There have been mixed reports concerning Peyton Manning‘s throwing ability as he recovers from multiple neck surgeries, but Manning’s ex-teammate Brandon Stokley had nothing but glowing reviews of his former quarterback.
Stokley, who played in two games and recorded one catch with the Giants last season, played with the Colts from 2003-2006, catching 68 passes for 1077 yards and 10 touchdowns in Peyton Manning’s record-breaking 2004 season. He caught passes from Manning in Denver over the weekend and says Peyton looks great.
“I saw him for three days at Duke and he was the only quarterback (throwing to four or five receivers) and he threw a ton of balls for three straight practices and the guy looked to me like he did when I was there six years ago,” Stokley told The Denver Post.
“He threw on Saturday here on a little field and maybe because he had some rest, I think he looked better than he had last week. People who say the Broncos are crazy for not watching his balls fly, or what are they doing? those people are dead wrong,” Stokley said. “I’ll put whatever reputation I have on the line behind that guy right now. He looks great.”
Manning’s recent workout at Duke University was apparently filmed and distributed to NFL teams. We even shared that video here at LBS, though it was hard to see much. But if you take Stokley’s word, Manning is a lot further along in his rehab than maybe we were led to believe. If Peyton’s arm strength is back, the only worry would be how he responds to hits during games.
