Peyton Manning has won his third NFL MVP award, becoming just the second player (Brett Favre) in NFL history to do so.
“I know it’s an individual award, but … truly, in my opinion, a team award,” said Manning, who won the award mainly because no one else was having a truly dominant season.
“It’s been the most rewarding regular season that I’ve been a part of in my 11 years, and I have to believe a lot of the other players and even coaches might feel the same way,” Manning continued.
Manning got off to a slow start to the 2008 season after having two offseason surgeries on a bursa sac in his left knee. His Colts started 3-4, but he’s had them rolling ever since, winning nine straight.
Despite the sluggish start, he still extended his NFL record of 4,000-yard seasons to nine and finished with 27 touchdown passes, 12 interceptions and a 95.0 passer rating.
“It’s just been different,” Manning said. “It’s been an entirely different season. I think the one thing that’s been inaccurate is that the seasons we were starting out 13-0, 8-0, 7-0, that it was easy. So all of a sudden this year we are 3-4 and now things are hard. Believe me, it’s never easy to win a game. I’ve never taken for granted winning a football game.”