Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
You know a player had a good season when one of the few things to complain about is that they finished second in MVP voting – that was Peyton Manning‘s 2012. After the Denver Broncos‘ quick playoff exit, that’s about the only thing that went wrong for the legendary quarterback.
In addition to the MVP race, Manning has now finished second to Adrian Peterson for another NFL honor, the NFL Network’s Top 100 Players of 2013. While the countdown is more for fun and just to see what the players think, it was still interesting to see them vote the same way. I believe they got it right, but I wasn’t sure that would be the case. In any other year, Manning would have easily won the MVP and the top player spot, but AP’s 2012 was just too ridiculous.
The argument always seemed to come back to Manning taking over a playoff team from the year before and improving their record, versus Peterson carrying the Minnesota Vikings to the playoffs. There is no way in hell the Vikings make it to January without AP, but you couldn’t necessarily say that about the Broncos and their QB.
Arguments on these topics seem picky, but you have to be picky when you’re talking about the number one player in a sport. The players got the vote right, just like the MVP voters did this past winter. AP edges out Manning simply because he put on a show like we’ve never seen before. Peyton’s season was great, but it wasn’t one for the ages.
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