Peyton Manning’s challenge
Came across this while reading a piece in the current Sports Illustrated. I couldn’t care less about the NFL draft, but if I needed a reason, the relative futility of identifying the next great NFL star is documented by Peter King in his draft preview.
Somehow, I stuck with the piece long enough to find this:
As the 1998 draft approached, the job of new Colts general manager Bill Polian was to divine which quarterback should lead his franchise — Manning or Leaf. Polian sat alone in his office for four straight days that February, watching every snap of each passer’s college career; by a hair, he favored Manning. He convened a meeting of his scouts; sentiment in the room was 60-40 for Leaf. Polian asked quarterback guru Bill Walsh to evaluate tape of both players; he was bullish on Manning. The Colts worked out both guys; Manning threw a tighter ball and was in much better shape. Manning had the reputation of an Eagle Scout; the Colts had heard the party-hearty Leaf stories. And then there was Manning’s visit to Colts headquarters three weeks before the draft.
“I asked if I could see Bill Polian before I left the building,” Manning recalled last week. “So I went into his office, and Bill and coach [Jim] Mora were in there. Those are two of the most intimidating people I have ever known, and here I was, wanting to know what they were going to do. To be honest, I felt they were kind of stringing me along. So I said, ‘I’d really like to come here if you want me. But if you don’t, I promise you I’ll come back and kick your ass for the next 15 years.’ “
What’s your idea?