Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison in 2008. (Harry How, Getty Images)
Peyton Manning’s farewell tour continued Friday in Indianapolis, where Jim Irsay announced the Colts would construct a statue of Manning outside Lucas Oil Stadium and retire his No. 18 jersey.
But in true Manning fashion, the ceremony was as much about the honor as it was about the stories. After all, Manning’s ability to recall plays from more than a decade ago, or team employees he met only once, or even conversations on the sideline during his rookie season are part of what makes Manning Manning.
So at the Colts’ Indiana Farm Bureau Center, he retold some of his favorite memories and recounted some of his many NFL records. He began where his career began:
“The very first preseason game, my very first pass, I threw a 5-yard pass, and Marvin Harrison ran 48 yards for a touchdown,” he said. “I remember thinking, ‘The NFL is easy. You just throw a short pass and Marvin Harrison will run for touchdowns.’ Which is pretty much what he did for the entire time we played together.”
Manning and Harrison connected for 112 touchdowns from 1998-2008, the most by any quarterback-receiver tandem. Steve Young and Jerry Rice rank second among quarterback-receiving duos with 92 touchdowns. San Diego’s Philip Rivers and Antonio Gates lead active players with 77 touchdowns.
But, the two won’t break it together. Rivers is 34 and last August signed a four-year extension with the Chargers. Gates is 35 and recently signed on to play two more seasons. No other quarterback-receiver tandem is close.
“I think many records will be broken — most of my records will be broken,” Manning said. “I don’t believe that record that me and Marvin have of throwing the most touchdowns together will ever be broken.”
