Quote:
Originally Posted by ChaosTheory
People like to bring up the comparison with Rivers to the Colts in 2020, which is understandable. But I keep looking more to an example like Manning to Denver in 2012.
Manning turned 36 in March before the 2012 season (Ryan just turned 37). He wasn't the same athlete he was in IND, but even with his age and neck/nerve issue, he had plenty in the tank to lead roster that was just missing a QB (and the offense was stellar for three seasons).
Denver's D was solid and the offense had some guys that didn't explode onto the scene until Manning arrived. Demaryius Thomas was a third-year guy with a career high of 551yds and Eric Decker was a third-year guy with a career high of 612yds. They had 1400+ and 1000+ respectively in 2012.
I'm not claiming Ryan is as good as Manning or that we have a Thomas-Decker tandem or claiming any other 1:1 comparisons with those teams... I'm just saying there are some similarities. There's no reason to think Ryan is old/broken and can't make an exponential difference for individual players and the team as a whole.
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IF the O line stays relatively healthy, the run game will make it hard to double any one receiver. Plus, the running backs need to be targeted early and often. Ryan has a history of distributing the ball to the open guy.