The Colts lost their shot at perfection, and they’re still preparing for another run at the Super Bowl. One trophy the team does have in the bank, however, is Peyton Manning’s record setting fourth MVP award. The sterling 14-2 SU record of the Colts was coupled with a strong 10-6 ATS record, making them the winningest team in the league this season and the third best bet in football overall. Manning’s unreal efforts this season also qualify the Colts with the best Super Bowl XLIV odds at +125 to win the big one.

Manning outclassed fellow quarterbacks Drew Brees, Philip Rivers and Brett Favre in voting to take the MVP honors in what has largely been detailed his most challenging season in his 12 year career. Marvin Harrison, his favorite career receiving target, retired and Anthony Gonzalez suffered a season ending injury. While free picks experts usually harass the Colts for their imperfections, it helped define a resilient team that simply found a way to win when it needed to.

For the season, Manning finished 6th in quarterback rating (99.9), 2nd in completions (393), 2nd in passing yards (4,500), tied for 2nd with 33 touchdowns and was the fewest sacked quarterback of all starters, getting plowed in the backfield just 10 times. Manning also finished with nine games of 300+ yards and was off the field for the Colts’ two losses this betting season.

With his fourth MVP, Manning broke a tie with Brett Favre who was practically snubbed for putting the Vikings on his shoulders. Favre received just one vote from the sports writers polled, which, quite frankly, boggles my mind. Of course, much of the reason that Manning won the award in such a landslide with 39-of-50 possible first-place votes is because the Colts on paper are not as strong as other teams.

Philip Rivers is surrounded by talent, as is Drew Brees in New Orleans. Brett Favre not only plays with Adrian “All Day Peterson”, but he also has one of the deadliest defenses in the league led by Jared Allen.

As I wrote all year, Manning did more to win games with less on his team. Consider that nobody on the Colts rushed for more than 828-yards, and that Dallas Clark and Reggie Wayne both hit 100-recpetions despite being double covered often while rookies Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon both went over the 650-yard mark as the third and fourth receivers, and what you get is a remarkable season by Manning.

Manning won the award in 2003, 2004 and 2008 and this will mark the second season he has earned the title in back-to-back seasons and the third time he has won this award solo. None of these accolades will matter to Peyton if he’s not hoisting the Lombardi trophy in Miami this season, and while the NFL MVP award was a nice way to enjoy the weekend, Manning’s attention now turns to the surprising Baltimore Ravens who stunted the Patriots over the weekend and face the Colts as underdogs at Lucas Oil Field.

This information is provided in partnership with BetUs Sportsbook

More ...