Is it time for Peyton Manning to hang up his cleats? The answer to that question is a resounding yes, especially if you listen to what Indy Star columnist Bob Kravitz has to say about this future Hall of Famer. After all, Kravitz didn’t mince any words when he called Manning’s arm “a noodle” this week. Oh I am sure that there are plenty of teams who are willing to take a chance on Manning and his shredded throwing arm; though the real question is why should Peyton hang around to see what he has left? What does this four time NFL MVP and former Super Bowl champ have left to prove? Not much. So why not leave the NFL on a high note, the way Roger Staubach did back in 1979 after he suffered a series of concussions. Surely Staubach could have played another season, after all he had just led the league in passing and taken his team to the playoffs. But at the time Staubach had nothing left to prove and his health was in question, so he did the most sensible thing he could do, he retired. Manning should follow his lead, if not he risks joining this list of NFL quarterbacks who stayed around too long.
Johnny Unitas (Chargers 1973)
Everyone remembers Unitas as one of the NFL greatest quarterbacks when he played for the Baltimore Colts from 1956-1972. But does anyone remember him during his final year as a San Diego Charger? For those that don’t, that season (1973) the 40 year old Unitas completed a whopping 44.7 % of his passes and only won one out of four games he started; numbers not worthy of his Hall of Fame career.
Joe Namath (Rams 1977)
Namath is often credited for bringing about the merger of the AFL with the NFL after leading his Jets to a Super Bowl victory against the Colts in 1969. But does anyone remember that this New York City icon would finish his career as a Los Angeles Rams in 1977? That season Namath and his wobbly knees played in all of four games and completed just 46.7 percent of his passes. Not exactly the way we want to remember this NFL legend.
Ken Stabler (Saints 1984)
As a Raider, Stabler won 69 out of 96 games he started, winning a Super Bowl along the way. And if it had all ended there, we certainly would be including this Raiders signal caller among the NFL greats. But alas Stabler was also one of those gifted QBs who did not know when to hang it up. His final season was played for the Saints in 1984, and Stabler’s stats that year included a 41.3 QB Rating in the three games he managed to play.
Warren Moon (Chiefs 2000)
After a highly successful career in the CFL and a Hall of Fame career in the NFL few will remember that Warren Moon hung up his cleats at 44 while playing for the Kansas City Chiefs. Moon’s final season stats? Well, he played two games and completed 44.1% of his passes, nowhere near the type of numbers he had put up in Houston during the prior decade.
Archie Manning (Vikings 1984)
A two time Pro Bowler, Manning would have been a Hall of Fame caliber player on almost any other team. However, Peyton’s dad had the misfortune to have played most of his life for New Orleans at a time when the Saints were one of the worst teams in the NFL. Still, Archie himself did not know when to call it a career, and he ended up playing six meaningless games for the Vikings in 1984, where he threw all of 2 touchdown passes.