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San Diego Chargers’ Impact On 2015 NFL Playoffs Felt With Peyton Manning’s Torn Quad

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Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos just revealed that the quarterback has been playing with a torn quadriceps muscle in his right leg for the last several games, including obviously the NFL playoff game loss against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. Sources from the team revealed that he initially suffered the injury while scrambling in the second quarter of the Dec. 14 road win over the San Diego Chargers.

Fans of the Bolts and Broncos who were at the game might remember the play, as it was obvious something was wrong directly after it. Manning limped badly for the rest of the quarter, and a short time later he went to the locker room for treatment for what at the time was described by Bronco team officials as dehydration due to an illness. He returned from the locker room right before the third quarter started but seem affected by it for the rest of the game.

Going into the game, Manning was having a fairly good season by most measurable statistics; he had thrown for 29 TDs and only 10 picks. His completion percentage was also fairly good, coming in at close to 68 percent. After that game, Manning’s year took a turn for the worse. He completed only 56 percent of his passes with three TDs and four interceptions, including Sunday’s loss to Indy.

The Chargers inadvertently altered the course of the 2014 season when they forced Manning to scramble and avoid their pass rush in that December matchup. During the game the Bolts were getting fairly good pressure on him as evidenced by Melvin Ingram’s two sacks, including one with a forced fumble for a turnover before the injury. Manning had been hurried and hit several times as well during the first quarter, and it most likely contributed to him having to move around both in and out of the pocket to avoid the pass rush.

It is no secret the Manning is not a great scrambler, and his near 40-year-old body was already fairly fragile and a concern for the Broncos in 2014. Coming off neck surgeries and being the lynchpin of their team, Manning’s health was key for the Broncos to make a similar run at a championship in 2014 that they had made the season before. The Chargers essentially put an end to that when they forced him to scramble out of the pocket on that second quarter play. Time will tell if the Bolts also contributed to his retirement, as Manning is now rumored to be strongly considering walking away from the NFL.

Jonathan George is an NFL writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @jonageorge. “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

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