NEWARK, N.J. -- The Seattle Seahawks have been tucked away for more than a week breaking down the game film of Peyton Manning.
To a man, every player I spoke with during Tuesday's Media Day heaped praise on the Denver Broncos quarterback, acknowledging that no secret formula exists to defuse Manning's abilities on the field.
Nobody could point out a weakness in Peyton's play, but defensive tackle Tony McDaniel has noticed one quirk, telling Around The League: "He's got happy feet."
"When the quarterback makes his reads, he's got one, two, three," McDaniel said. "And if (Manning) don't see them guys open, he'll start dancing and getting real antsy and just throw the ball."
Interesting observation, but the core problem still remains: Manning completes most of those passes. Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn said his own tape study of Peyton only emphasized the "precision, accuracy and timing" with which the Denver signal-caller scorches opponents.
The only way to unsettle Peyton is to knock him around, but no quarterback was sacked less this season. That's a credit to Denver's line, but also to Manning's ability to get rid of the ball before the hammer drops. Happy feet or not, it's not a quirk teams have used to Manning's disadvantage.
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