Should Peyton Manning retire?

TSN.ca Football Editors Mike Hetherington and Ben Fisher debate the compelling headlines throughout the off-season. This week: should Peyton Manning retire?

YES It’s time for Peyton Manning to ride off into the sunset. Whether it was due to injury, or simply the decline that comes along with age, Manning was nothing short of awful in the first half of the 2015 season. His 9:17 touchdown to interception ratio would have been enough to sink any team without the elite defence the Broncos had. Manning managed to reclaim the starting job in Week 17 from Brock Osweiler - despite the numbers favouring the backup - and was able to acquire his second Super Bowl ring. With that victory, Manning helped to erase some of the memories of his ineffective season, but it was no secret the championship belonged to the defence and Manning had been reduced to little more than a game manager. Still, this is Manning’s chance to retire a champion.

Should he choose to return, he will likely hit the open market as a free agent. He’s simply not worth the $19 million he’s owed by the Broncos this season, and they should cut him and look to their future with Osweiler. While Manning can likely find a suitor, perhaps in the Los Angeles Rams, he will be risking further tarnishing his reputation.

Remember Brett Favre suffering through his final season with a 5-8 record in Minnesota? Manning should take that as an example and walk away. His legacy is secure, a five-time MVP with an even 2-2 record in Super Bowls. The only major record he doesn’t currently own is career wins – he’s tied with Favre at 186 – and that shouldn’t be enough to convince him to come back.

Walking away is hard, but this is a chance for Manning to do it on his own terms, in one year, it could be because no one wants him. – Mike Hetherington

NO Manning caught kid brother Eli in Super Bowl wins this year, but he still has some work to do to catch arch nemesis/good friend Tom Brady. And until he does, he’ll never go down as the best quarterback ever.

I know Peyton Manning isn’t what he used to be. Not even close. When the Broncos ran CJ Anderson into the waiting teeth of the Panthers’ defence on third and long with the Super Bowl still in question, that had to be a blow to the ego for Manning. But if he can get himself in the right situation – he’s not coming back to quarterback the Browns after all – he could Trent Dilfer his way to another ring or two.

Maybe Manning can finagle a return to the Broncos. Maybe he signs with the Rams (reportedly interested) opposite their promising defence. Or maybe he lands with another contending team. Whichever way, he’s likely 16 weeks of “game management” away from another playoff run. And that’s another chance at narrowing the Super Bowl gap between himself and Brady; narrowing the gap of perceived greatness between the two.

Manning should sacrifice his reputation in the short term, as we all witness him embarrassing himself with lame duck interceptions only to have his defence return the ball to him; to secure his legacy in the long term, as our kids marvel at his all-time records and numbers. – Ben Fisher