page_title: Peyton Manning
section_title: 2004 season: Second MVP
hierarchical_section_title: Peyton Manning / Professional career / Indianapolis Colts / 2004 season: Second MVP
caption_attribution_description: English: Manning and offense line up against the Packers in a 2004 regular season game.
context_page_description: Peyton Williams Manning is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League for 18 seasons. Considered to be one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four seasons with the Denver Broncos. Manning played college football for the University of Tennessee, leading the Tennessee Volunteers to the 1997 SEC Championship Game in his senior season. He is the second son of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning and older brother of former NFL quarterback Eli Manning.
  Manning was selected by the Colts as the first overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft. From 1998 to 2010, he improved the fortunes of the struggling Colts franchise and helped transform them into consistent playoff contenders. During his tenure as starting quarterback, Manning led the team to eight division championships, two AFC championships, and one Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XLI, the franchise's first in over three decades, and their first since relocating to Indianapolis. He was named Super Bowl MVP in the team's victory, making him the first Colts player to receive the honor.
context_section_description: The 2004 Colts opened the season with a 27–24 loss to the New England Patriots, after placekicker Mike Vanderjagt missed a game-tying field goal in the closing seconds of the game. The Colts won their next four games including a 45–31 win over the Green Bay Packers in which Manning threw five touchdowns, earning him AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors, but then lost their next two games, to the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Kansas City Chiefs, despite Manning throwing for 840 yards combined in the two games. The Colts responded well, winning their next eight games before losing their final regular season game to Denver, a game in which Manning played only the first series. During the month of November, Manning was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week twice; once for his five-touchdown performance in a 49–14 blowout of the Houston Texans and once for his performance in a 41–9 road win against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving in which he threw six touchdowns in less than three quarters. Due to his performances in November, Manning earned AFC Offensive Player of the Month honors. He was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for a fourth time in the Week 16 game against the San Diego Chargers where he led the Colts to a 34–31 victory after trailing by 15 in the fourth quarter. With the Colts facing a 4th & 4 at their own 26, Manning waved the punt team off the field and completed a 19-yard pass to wide receiver Reggie Wayne for the first down. He finished the drive with a 21-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Stokley, his 49th touchdown pass of the season, breaking Dan Marino's record of 48. After the two-point conversion to tie, Manning got the ball first in overtime and set up the winning field goal. The Colts clinched the AFC's third seed with the win.
  During the season, Manning threw for 4,557 yards, had a then record 121.1 passer rating and a then-record 49 touchdown passes while throwing only 10 interceptions. Manning's 2004 season was voted the second greatest passing season of all time by ESPN in 2013. He achieved this despite the 2004 season being his only season of his career where he attempted less than 500 passes. He finished with a league-high 13.6 yards per pass completion and 9.2 yards per pass attempt in 2004. His 9.9% touchdown passing percentage is currently the highest in NFL history. His 49 touchdown passes is currently the third highest ever and his 121.1 passer rating is the second highest ever. He was selected as the 2004 NFL MVP drawing 49 of 50 votes, was named NFL Offensive Player of the Year and was named the Best NFL Player at the ESPY Awards for the second consecutive year; Manning also received the ESPY Award for Best Record-Breaking Performance for his 49 touchdown passes. The Colts finished the season with a 12–4 record and their second straight AFC South title. The Colts scored a franchise record 522 points. Three Colts receivers had 1,000 yard seasons with at least 10 touchdowns that season, also a record. Sports statistics cite Football Outsiders calculates that Manning had the best season ever by a quarterback, play-for-play, in 2004.
  In the Wild Card Round against the Denver Broncos at home, Manning passed for 458 yards and four touchdowns in the 49–24 victory. However, the Colts' 2004 season ended in Foxborough for a second straight season with a 20–3 loss against New England in the Divisional Round, when Manning recorded a season-low passer rating of 69.3. It was Manning's seventh consecutive loss to the Patriots in Foxborough and the Colts' three points were their lowest single game point total since their opening game of the 2003 season. Manning was named a Pro Bowl starter; in the Pro Bowl, he threw three touchdowns in a 38–27 victory and was named the game's MVP. Manning was also a unanimous first-team All-Pro selection.
caption: Manning and the Colts line up against the Green Bay Packers in 2004.
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