Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning entered the victory formation and kneeled down to run out the final few seconds of the AFC Championship game and advance to Super Bowl 50. Before the celebrations really began for the Broncos, the players and coaches met at midfield to congratulate each other.
Manning met with quarterback Tom Brady and had a lengthy conversation with each other, but the real noteworthy conversation happened between Manning and New England Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick.
Their 20th career showdown? Might've been the last. So Peyton met Belichick at midfield and... wow #NFLPlayoffs https://t.co/YvvkE6Wxyw
— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2016
The two gave each other hugs, and Bill Belichick said something to Manning, but that was not picked up by NFL Films cameras. However, what Manning said was picked up by the cameras, and Manning once again reiterated that this 'might be his last rodeo'.
"Hey, listen, this might be my last rodeo. So, it sure has been a pleasure,"
Belichick's reply wasn't caught on camera, and after the game, he said his reply would remain private.
"Don't have anything to share, I shared it with Peyton."
Manning has hinted at this prior in interviews during the season, but hearing Manning say it to Belichick in a private moment makes it sound legit to me.
In Peter King's MMQB, Manning opened up a little bit about how much Brady and Belichick meant to him during his historic career.
"I really feel that when everybody tries to analyze me versus Tom and me versus Belichick, I think it’s more about enjoying the games and the rivalry," Manning said. "And today I hope everybody enjoyed that game. I know I enjoyed being there. That’s what I told Tom and Bill—that I’ve enjoyed this game and I’ve enjoyed all of them. I’ve enjoyed the rivalry and all the games we’ve been in. It’s been such an honor to play against both of them. This is my seventeenth time playing against the Patriots with Tom at quarterback. It’s my 24th against Belichick as head coach or defensive coordinator. I can’t shake either one of them. They are always there. They’re always standing between me and where our team wants to go. What a rivalry. It’s been such a big part of my career. So I wanted to take the time to pass that along to them, with how much respect I have for both of them."
While us fans like to hate Belichick and Brady in this rivalry, Manning has gone down a different route. Instead of hate, he respects them.
The odds are that Super Bowl 50 will be Peyton Manning's final game in his historic career. He will soon be 40 years old, and his skill set has rapidly declined over the last year or so.
This means that Peyton Manning will be trying to do something that only his boss has done before, go out on top. John Elway and the Denver Broncos defeated the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl XXXIII, and afterwards, Elway 'rode off into the sunset".
Will this story-book ending repeat itself again for the Broncos? If so, the Broncos, Manning, and us fans are in for an emotional and crazy Super Bowl.
The Broncos play the Carolina Panthers February 7th at Levi's Stadium in San Francisco.