But this season, for a number of reasons, the running game has been almost nonexistent. On average, the Colts have controlled the ball four minutes less than their opponents, further reducing Manning's margin for error. More than other seasons, he has had to make the most of each possession.
"When you talk about who's made the biggest difference on their football teams, if you took Peyton Manning off the Colts, honestly I'm not sure if they win four games," NBC's Cris Collinsworth said this month.
The MVP is selected by a 50-member panel of sportswriters and broadcasters, and votes are due Monday. The Indianapolis Star recently polled voters and got 19 responses; 13 of those voters said they had either settled on Manning or had him on their short list. Clearly, though, no one is a slam dunk in this race.
Manning, whose offensive line and backfield have been continually shuffled because of injuries, has overcome his own health issues this season. He underwent two knee surgeries during the summer to remove an infected bursa sac and then dealt with a subsequent infection.
"I don't even know if Peyton's teammates knew what he had to go through to play in that opening game," the elder Manning said. "Maybe I shouldn't say this, because I'm his dad, but there aren't a lot of quarterbacks who could have gotten themselves ready to play that game."
The Colts lost that opener to Chicago, and two weeks later lost at home to Jacksonville, meaning they couldn't christen their new Lucas Oil Stadium with a victory until beating Baltimore there in Week 6.
The current winning streak started three weeks later with a home victory over New England, and was definitely on the ropes in narrow victories at San Diego and Cleveland.
As for Manning, his most recent game was his best. He put on a near-flawless passing clinic at Jacksonville, completing 29 of 34 for 364 yards and three touchdowns in a victory that secured a playoff berth
Typically, the Colts came from behind, with Manning directing them back from deficits of 14-0 and 24-14.
"All in all, with everything that was riding on it . . . it was a great performance," Colts Coach Tony Dungy said. "It was an MVP performance for sure."
And it could have sealed the deal for yet another Manning comeback: one that brings him back to the award podium.
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sam.farmer@latimes.com
