1. Peyton Manning
Age At Signing: 35 Contract: 5 years / $96 million ($18 million guaranteed)
Best Season Before Denver: 67.6% completion; 4,557 yards; 49 touchdowns; 10 interceptions; 121.1 QB Rating (2004, Colts)
Best Season In Denver: 68.3% completion; 5,477 yards; 55 touchdowns; 10 interceptions; 115.1 QB Rating
What he’s done: Peyton Manning isn’t just the greatest free agent signing of the John Elway era; he’s the greatest free agent in NFL history.
In Indianapolis, Manning had already solidified himself as a top-10 quarterback in NFL history, if not higher than that, but you can make a legitimate argument that four of his five best seasons were as a Denver Bronco — and the fifth season in Denver resulted in a Super Bowl championship.
It’s not often that a single player can alter the course of a franchise, and the league, with one decision, but that’s exactly what Manning did. Two Super Bowls, four division titles, 45 wins; that’s one of the best four-year stretches in NFL history, and it was done by a guy in his late 30s.
Safe to say, Elway got it right.
