Our apologies to Indy's Sunshine Supermen
Cold, Hard Football Facts for February 8, 2009
We owe a big apology to Indy fans.
For years we’ve been piling on their beloved Colts – and on Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison in particular – for their obvious failures in the postseason. In fact, we were the first to start pointing out these failures and it’s only over the past year or two that pigskin “punditry” has begun to accept the truth: Manning and Harrison suck in the postseason.
Their small handful of decent playoff games are largely overshadowed by the pathetic failures. The 13.6 PPG for the Indy offense in the eight playoff losses in the Manning Era; Harrison’s two career TDs in 16 postseason games; Manning’s pathetic 70.4 passer rating – nearly 25 points below his career rating – in his eight playoff losses.
But we’ve been unfair to these guys. The truth is that Manning and Harrison sparkle like the shiniest gems in the final game of the year.
Yes, Manning and Harrison radiate greatness in the Pro Bowl.
You’d be hard-pressed to find their names anywhere in the playoff record books. But Manning and Harrison dominate the Pro Bowl record books. Here’s a look at some of their greatest Pro Bowl achievements. It's a bright, glowing tribute to these ultimate Sunshine Supermen that they dominate the ultimate sunshine showcase.
Pro Bowl touchdowns, career
Harrison is No. 1 all time (tied with Jimmy Smith) with five Pro Bowl touchdowns over the course of seven Pro Bowl appearances. For those of you keeping score at home, that’s three more touchdowns than he’s scored in 16 career playoff games.
Points scored, career
Harrison is No. 1 all time among non-kickers with 30 Pro Bowl points (tied with Smith). Only ageless kicker Morten Andersen has scored more points in the Pro Bowl (45).
Most touchdowns, game
Harrison scored two TDs in the 2001 Pro Bowl – which is the same exact number of TDs he’s scored in those 16 playoff games. It’s a single-game Pro Bowl record he shares with 16 other players.
Most receptions, career
Marvin Harrison is third on the all-time list, with 30 receptions in seven Pro Bowls. The great Jerry Rice (37) and Tony Gonzalez (33) rank 1 and 2.
Most receptions, game
Harrison caught eight passes in the 2001 Pro Bowl, tied for second with seven other players, behind only the nine passes Randy Moss caught in the 2000 Pro Bowl. In case you’re wondering, Harrison has never caught eight passes in a playoff game.
Most pass attempts, career
Manning has attempted 162 Pro Bowl passes – easily the best mark in history. Dan Fouts is No. 2 (120 attempts); Steve Young is No. 3 (101). Just for the record, Manning's 565 pass attempts in the playoffs are nowhere close to the all-time leader Joe Montana (734).
Most pass completions, career
Manning is easily No. 1 in this category, too, with 95 Pro Bowl completions. Fouts is a distant second (63). In case you were wondering, Manning's 348 completions in the playoffs are nowhere close to the all-time leader, Montana (460).
Most pass attempts, game
Again, Manning is No. 1, with a stunning 41 attempts in the 2004 Pro Bowl.
Most pass completions, game
Manning set the record for completions in a Pro Bowl in that same 2004 game, with 22. We’re not sure how he managed to complete just 22 of 41 passes in a game in which nobody plays defense – or why he kept passing the ball when he had so much difficulty connecting … but we digress.
Most passing yards, career
Wow! Who knew? Manning is No. 1, having passed for 1,345 Pro Bowl yards, easily out-pacing No. 2 Fouts (890).
Most passing yards, game
You guessed it: Good ol’ Peyton is No. 1 with 342 yards in the 2004 Pro Bowl. Manning also boasts the third-best Pro Bowl passing day with 270 yards in 2000. Fouts, no surprise, is No. 2 (274).
Average gain per pass, career
Manning has averaged a brilliant 8.3 yards per attempt in the Pro Bowl. That’s only slightly better than his 7.4 yards per attempt in the playoffs.
Most TD passes, career
Manning has thrown 13 Pro Bowl touchdowns – nearly doubling up the No. 2 player on the list, Rich Gannon (seven).
Harrison won't get a chance to pad his records this year. He's missed the Pro Bowl for the second straight year. But, sure enough, Manning will pile up the Pro Bowl numbers as the AFC's starting QB Sunday, following another year in which he was one-and-done in the postseason games that really mattered.
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Man, are they clutch.
Cold, Hard Football Facts for February 8, 2009
For years we’ve been piling on their beloved Colts – and on Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison in particular – for their obvious failures in the postseason. In fact, we were the first to start pointing out these failures and it’s only over the past year or two that pigskin “punditry” has begun to accept the truth: Manning and Harrison suck in the postseason.
Their small handful of decent playoff games are largely overshadowed by the pathetic failures. The 13.6 PPG for the Indy offense in the eight playoff losses in the Manning Era; Harrison’s two career TDs in 16 postseason games; Manning’s pathetic 70.4 passer rating – nearly 25 points below his career rating – in his eight playoff losses.
But we’ve been unfair to these guys. The truth is that Manning and Harrison sparkle like the shiniest gems in the final game of the year.
Yes, Manning and Harrison radiate greatness in the Pro Bowl.
You’d be hard-pressed to find their names anywhere in the playoff record books. But Manning and Harrison dominate the Pro Bowl record books. Here’s a look at some of their greatest Pro Bowl achievements. It's a bright, glowing tribute to these ultimate Sunshine Supermen that they dominate the ultimate sunshine showcase.
Pro Bowl touchdowns, career
Harrison is No. 1 all time (tied with Jimmy Smith) with five Pro Bowl touchdowns over the course of seven Pro Bowl appearances. For those of you keeping score at home, that’s three more touchdowns than he’s scored in 16 career playoff games.
Points scored, career
Harrison is No. 1 all time among non-kickers with 30 Pro Bowl points (tied with Smith). Only ageless kicker Morten Andersen has scored more points in the Pro Bowl (45).
Most touchdowns, game
Harrison scored two TDs in the 2001 Pro Bowl – which is the same exact number of TDs he’s scored in those 16 playoff games. It’s a single-game Pro Bowl record he shares with 16 other players.
Most receptions, career
Marvin Harrison is third on the all-time list, with 30 receptions in seven Pro Bowls. The great Jerry Rice (37) and Tony Gonzalez (33) rank 1 and 2.
Most receptions, game
Harrison caught eight passes in the 2001 Pro Bowl, tied for second with seven other players, behind only the nine passes Randy Moss caught in the 2000 Pro Bowl. In case you’re wondering, Harrison has never caught eight passes in a playoff game.
Most pass attempts, career
Manning has attempted 162 Pro Bowl passes – easily the best mark in history. Dan Fouts is No. 2 (120 attempts); Steve Young is No. 3 (101). Just for the record, Manning's 565 pass attempts in the playoffs are nowhere close to the all-time leader Joe Montana (734).
Most pass completions, career
Manning is easily No. 1 in this category, too, with 95 Pro Bowl completions. Fouts is a distant second (63). In case you were wondering, Manning's 348 completions in the playoffs are nowhere close to the all-time leader, Montana (460).
Most pass attempts, game
Again, Manning is No. 1, with a stunning 41 attempts in the 2004 Pro Bowl.
Most pass completions, game
Manning set the record for completions in a Pro Bowl in that same 2004 game, with 22. We’re not sure how he managed to complete just 22 of 41 passes in a game in which nobody plays defense – or why he kept passing the ball when he had so much difficulty connecting … but we digress.
Most passing yards, career
Wow! Who knew? Manning is No. 1, having passed for 1,345 Pro Bowl yards, easily out-pacing No. 2 Fouts (890).
Most passing yards, game
You guessed it: Good ol’ Peyton is No. 1 with 342 yards in the 2004 Pro Bowl. Manning also boasts the third-best Pro Bowl passing day with 270 yards in 2000. Fouts, no surprise, is No. 2 (274).
Average gain per pass, career
Manning has averaged a brilliant 8.3 yards per attempt in the Pro Bowl. That’s only slightly better than his 7.4 yards per attempt in the playoffs.
Most TD passes, career
Manning has thrown 13 Pro Bowl touchdowns – nearly doubling up the No. 2 player on the list, Rich Gannon (seven).
Harrison won't get a chance to pad his records this year. He's missed the Pro Bowl for the second straight year. But, sure enough, Manning will pile up the Pro Bowl numbers as the AFC's starting QB Sunday, following another year in which he was one-and-done in the postseason games that really mattered.
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Man, are they clutch.
