Revisiting the Colts beating the Jets in the 2009 AFC Championship Game behind Peyton Manning.
When you think of some of the most underrated wins of Peyton Manning’s storied career, there are honestly dozens to choose from. After all, he accomplished so much that some wins and records were bound to fall into the “overlooked” category.
The former five-time MVP quarterbacked the Indianapolis Colts from 1998 to 2010. Across those 13 years, he was in the playoffs 10 times, won seven AFC South crowns and made three appearances in the AFC Championship game. Easy money.
Ironically enough, one of those three AFC title game cameos just so happens to qualify as an afterthought when it come to Manning’s most impressive accomplishments. Let’s take it back to 2010 when the Colts squared off against the New York Jets with a spot in the Super Bowl on the line.
Time to party like it's 2009.
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) April 18, 2020
Peyton Manning and the Colts play host to Mark Sanchez and the Jets in the 2009 AFC Championship Game right now on @CBSSportsNet. Who you got? 😉@Colts | @NYJets pic.twitter.com/gwmaxMf6dX
After the Jets rattled off 10 points in their final two drives of the first half, Indianapolis found itself trailing 17-6. However, when they needed him most, Manning marched the Colts down the field and hit wide receiver Austin Collie for a touchdown with just over a minute remaining before halftime to bring it back to a one-score game.
From there, it was all Colts, as they shut out New York in the second half en route to a convincing 30-17 victory. For the game, Manning completed over 66% of his passes (26-of-39) for 377 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions. For you math geniuses out there, those numbers equate to a mind-boggling 123.6 passer rating.
How rattled were the Jets by Manning’s magnificent performance? Well, when his career ended, they were rumored to be considering him for a prominent role in their front office!
Jets are targeting Peyton Manning to fill key front office role, per @ProFootballTalk pic.twitter.com/mfiRgfnIuO
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) May 18, 2019
In all seriousness, it’s mind-boggling to think that a nearly 400-yard, three-touchdown game with a ticket to the Super Bowl on the line is regarded as an underrated performance, but those are simply the standards Manning set for himself.
The Jets were slammed by the media for squandering an 11-point lead, but the real story here was that the future first ballot Hall of Famer willed his team to victory.