Peyton Manning admitted in a TV interview with Jim Rome that his throwing arm isn't strong as it once was. He's doing what he can to get any missing strength back, but he didn't credit his string of neck surgeries as the culprit. Instead, Manning said it has to do with the inevitable, Father Time.
"I still have strength to recover, still have work to do," Manning said in an interview transcribed by ProFootballTalk.com. "My arm has a lot of yards and a lot of touchdowns on it, so it's probably not going to be the same as it was when it was 22, but I still think I can complete some passes. I can move the chains and hopefully get our offense into the end zone this year."
Fantasy Analysis:
Yeah, I think Peyton will find a way to complete a few passes, maybe throw a touchdown or two while he's at it.
I have no doubts that Manning will have his difficulties this year. As a man who has relied so much on routine throughout his career, he'll have to face a learning curve with new team, new coaches and new receivers.
It seems like concerns about his neck continue to fade with each passing day. He looked fine in the team's first preseason game. The decreased arm strength means some fewer yards, fewer TDs and a slight uptick in interceptions should be expected. But looking at his overall stats from the past couple of years, what does that mean? I'd say between 3,800-4,000 yards with 27-29 touchdowns and 18-20 interceptions. That should be good enough to put Manning just inside the top 12 his position. He would have tremendous value if he falls slightly and you grab him as your QB2.
