Manning Legacy: Scrotal Recall

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/03/07/manning-strongly-denies-allegations-from-20-years-ago/

Reading from prepared notes highlights a perpetual commitment to preparation.

After a comprehensive and emotional speech at his retirement press conference, delivered while reading from prepared notes (which further highlights his perpetual commitment to preparation), Peyton Manning took questions from reporters attending the event.

Click to expand...

I didn't hear it all, but did he stiff Dungy in the press conference? All I heard was something like

"I'd like to thank Jim Irsay and Bill Polian, plus several coaches" before he went all hick and okey dokey talking about his rookie year.

I hope he didn't mention Dungy at all.

"Today, I truly am the greatest of all time." Ricky Henderson Peyton Manning

pappymojo said:

He is still easy to hate. For example, why would Patriots fans miss him if the team we root for got a lot of wins off of him?

Click to expand...

Because if that Pats got a lot of wins off of him we'd want him to stick around, wouldn't we?

It's the opposite of saying about a guy that's killed your team "We won't miss him". Like, when Brady leaves the other AFC East teams won't miss him at all.

Ah. Yup. I am stupid.

Klemko defended his "exclusive" with Peyton's roommate today, King's MMQB column

I wasn't watching, but I heard ESPN cut the feed when a reporter asked him about the sexual assault? And then he quoted Forest Gump "that's all I've got to say about that."

Ok, I'll say it.

I'm no Manning fan, but does anyone else find it weird that the sexual assault allegations only seem to be re-popping up now that Manning has won a Super Bowl and has been in the news quite a bit because of the HGH story and his possible retirement?

He was something like 19. What he did was 100% wrong. He's almost 40 now. It's just strange, and as much as I hate the guy I feel like the timing of all of this comes as no surprise; it's when he's at the most critical time in his career as it pertains to maintaining a perfect public image (winning SB 50, setting the clock on a HOF induction, etc).

How many people do you know that did REALLY stupid hazing-related things at age 19 found themselves facing possible legal action decades later? If Manning isn't Manning, are we at where we're at today?

Again, I'm not defending his actions. What he did was horrible and he absolutely should be ashamed and embarrassed. He was an idiot for doing what he did. But why is all of this suddenly major news when the story's been out there for 20 years and no one really ever said or did anything about it before?

I know I'll take a bit of heat for questioning the intent of the accusations, but can we not look at this with a tiny bit of an objective eye? Can we not try to do what other fans in football couldn't and still don't do for Brady in the Deflategate fiasco?

H78 said:

Ok, I'll say it.

I'm no Manning fan, but does anyone else find it weird that the sexual assault allegations only seem to be re-popping up now that Manning has won a Super Bowl and has been in the news quite a bit because of the HGH story and his possible retirement?

He was something like 19. What he did was 100% wrong. He's almost 40 now. It's just strange, and as much as I hate the guy I feel like the timing of all of this comes as no surprise; it's when he's at the most critical time in his career as it pertains to maintaining a perfect public image (winning SB 50, setting the clock on a HOF induction, etc).

How many people do you know that did REALLY stupid hazing-related things at age 19 found themselves facing possible legal action decades later? If Manning isn't Manning, are we at where we're at today?

Again, I'm not defending his actions. What he did was horrible and he absolutely should be ashamed and embarrassed. He was an idiot for doing what he did. But why is all of this suddenly major news when the story's been out there for 20 years and no one really ever said or did anything about it before?

I know I'll take a bit of heat for questioning the intent of the accusations, but can we not look at this with a tiny bit of an objective eye? Can we not try to do what other fans in football couldn't and still don't do for Brady in the Deflategate fiasco?

Click to expand...

I'm not here to answer your main point. In fact, I agree that a lot of this story is motivated by opportunism.

But the allegations here go beyond whatever Manning did when he was 19. We're talking about sustained character assassination of the woman/victim involved by Team Manning over a period of years. To me, that aspect of the story is part and parcel of the whole thing. Said differently, if all this was about was the mooning or worse that happened when he was 19, and there was no other component, I'd be much more persuaded by the "stupid college kid" defense.

H78 said:

Ok, I'll say it...

Click to expand...

The only reason Manning has to deal with the sexual assault now is because he didn't deal with it either of the previous two times it came up. Heck, when it initially came up he cooperated with spreading a lie to cover it up and the second time he needlessly brought it up and completed his apparent goal to ruin another person's life. So no, I don't care if the timing is weird or awfully inconvenient for Manning. He created this situation by assaulting someone, lying about it, and never owning up to his mistake. Brandon Marshall has made a lot of mistakes yet we celebrate him for his honesty, the attention he brings to the issue, and his genuineness.

I feel the same way about Manning that I feel whenever anyone bitches about Polanski not being able to enter the country. If Polanski had not raped a 13 year-old, or had he not fled from punishment, he could go to the US. If he has stepped forward and served his punishment 10 years ago he could walk around the US right now. But he doesn't get to never accept his punishment yetbe free from consequences of his crime. It doesn't work that way.

So go back in time and convince Peyton to come clean and apologize to Naughtwright at any point in the last 20 years and I'd agree that it is off-limits at his retirement party. But since that never happened, fuck him. It should be part of every Peyton conversation until he does.

Also, can we as a society please cut it out with the "we all have skeletons" bullshit? I've never sexually assaulted anyone or done anything on that level or worse, and I'd wager that most people haven't. Manning doesn't get excused for being a privileged prick because we like to pretend everyone is as bad of people as our heroes.

TheoShmeo said:

I'm not here to answer your main point. In fact, I agree that a lot of this story is motivated by opportunism.

But the allegations here go beyond whatever Manning did when he was 19. We're talking about sustained character assassination of the woman/victim involved by Team Manning over a period of years. To me, that aspect of the story is part and parcel of the whole thing. Said differently, if all this was about was the mooning or worse that happened when he was 19, and there was no other component, I'd be much more persuaded by the "stupid college kid" defense.

Click to expand...

I agree. He seems to have done something similar (smearing his own wife) with the HGH allegations and used a legal team to try and intimidate Sly. He's clearly extremely protective of his image. That's a big part of why I don't like him either.

But I think it's also fair to say, "Gee, the timing of all of this is pretty interesting, isn't it?" not so much in defense of Manning, but in defense of common sense. It feels 100% like opportunism and as much as Manning is in the wrong, I get tired of seeing people try to do these types of things in hopes of getting a quick, easy settlement where they should have said something any other time over the last 20 years.

I also hope we're not all gleefully contributing to this discussion because we're vindictive about Deflategate. Deflategate had nothing to do with Manning; that's 100% on the NFL. I know there's that gritty, eye-for-an-eye, fuck-your-face New Englander in all of us that salivates at the thought of seeing the "NFL's Golden Boy" fall from grace at the most opportune time (right now). But at the end of the day that's really, really petty and a big reason as to why the rest of the country loves to troll us about Spygate/Deflategate: They know they'll get a reaction.

If people are genuinely outraged by this because they feel for the victim, I totally get that (though where have you been the last 20 years?). But if it's because we're being vindictive about DG, maybe we all really are the whiny bunch that the rest of the country accuses us of being?

H78 said:

Ok, I'll say it.

I'm no Manning fan, but does anyone else find it weird that the sexual assault allegations only seem to be re-popping up now that Manning has won a Super Bowl and has been in the news quite a bit because of the HGH story and his possible retirement?

He was something like 19. What he did was 100% wrong. He's almost 40 now. It's just strange, and as much as I hate the guy I feel like the timing of all of this comes as no surprise; it's when he's at the most critical time in his career as it pertains to maintaining a perfect public image (winning SB 50, setting the clock on a HOF induction, etc).

How many people do you know that did REALLY stupid hazing-related things at age 19 found themselves facing possible legal action decades later? If Manning isn't Manning, are we at where we're at today?

Again, I'm not defending his actions. What he did was horrible and he absolutely should be ashamed and embarrassed. He was an idiot for doing what he did. But why is all of this suddenly major news when the story's been out there for 20 years and no one really ever said or did anything about it before?

I know I'll take a bit of heat for questioning the intent of the accusations, but can we not look at this with a tiny bit of an objective eye? Can we not try to do what other fans in football couldn't and still don't do for Brady in the Deflategate fiasco?

Click to expand...

I'd be willing to bet that the reason Manning is dealing with the fallout of his decades-long effort to destroy the woman he sexually assaulted back at Tennessee is that someone noticed the pattern of behavior (lie without conscience and use outsiders to intimidate witnesses into recanting and/or backing his version of events) re-emerging in the HGH case and decided to that enough was enough. So they dumped a bunch of documents on the NY Daily News and let nature take its course.

As one who has known about the allegations for years and has been mystified about why he escaped scrutiny, this chain of events bothers me not a bit.

Average Reds said:

I'd be willing to bet that the reason Manning is dealing with the fallout of his decades-long effort to destroy the woman he sexually assaulted back at Tennessee is that someone noticed the pattern of behavior (lie without conscience and use outsiders to intimidate witnesses into recanting and/or backing his version of events) re-emerging in the HGH case and decided to that enough was enough. So they dumped a bunch of documents on the NY Daily News and let nature take its course.

As one who has known about the allegations for years and has been mystified about why he escaped scrutiny, this chain of events bothers me not a bit.

Click to expand...

But you don't get it. It's for opportunism. The opportunity to get what, exactly, escapes me ... but, still

f

E5 Yaz said:

But you don't get it. It's for opportunism. The opportunity to get what, exactly, escapes me ... but, still

Click to expand...

Oh, I don't know, maybe a giant slice of the >$150 million that he's worth?

But to Red's point: I hope that's what this is all about. If so, you wouldn't hear an argument from me. Unfortunately, we'll never know the true motivation as it relates to the "Why now?" question. It's just...as I mentioned above, he sure is worth a whole lot of money.

But, aside from asking "Why now?" my main point is I hope this is getting so much attention on SoSH because we genuinely care about the victim, and we're not just hoping for a "win" in our post-Deflategate New England vs. Everyone drama with the NFL.

If people are genuinely pissed about this because they feel for the victim as opposed to they're still pissed about the NFL's handling of Deflategate, then I get it. Otherwise, if it is because we're a vindictive bunch, we look kind of awful, too.

H78 said:

I agree. He seems to have done something similar (smearing his own wife) with the HGH allegations and used a legal team to try and intimidate Sly. He's clearly extremely protective of his image. That's a big part of why I don't like him either.

But I think it's also fair to say, "Gee, the timing of all of this is pretty interesting, isn't it?" not so much in defense of Manning, but in defense of common sense. It feels 100% like opportunism and as much as Manning is in the wrong, I get tired of seeing people try to do these types of things in hopes of getting a quick, easy settlement where they should have said something any other time over the last 20 years.

I also hope we're not all gleefully contributing to this discussion because we're vindictive about Deflategate. Deflategate had nothing to do with Manning; that's 100% on the NFL. I know there's that gritty, eye-for-an-eye, fuck-your-face New Englander in all of us that salivates at the thought of seeing the "NFL's Golden Boy" fall from grace at the most opportune time (right now). But at the end of the day that's really, really petty and a big reason as to why the rest of the country loves to troll us about Spygate/Deflategate: They know they'll get a reaction.

If people are genuinely outraged by this because they feel for the victim, I totally get that (though where have you been the last 20 years?). But if it's because we're being vindictive about DG, maybe we all really are the whiny bunch that the rest of the country accuses us of being?

Click to expand...

You do realize that the woman in question took action promptly. And there was a settlement. Then Manning violated the terms of the settlement and she took action again. Then Manning violated terms of the settlement agreement - again - and she took action. Again.

But that was about a decade ago. If there is litigation pending with respect to this case, I'm unaware of it.

You may very well be right that the current "scandal" is nothing more than someone acting opportunistically. But it doesn't appear that anyone is doing it for money. Rather, they appear to be doing it for the sheer joy of seeing a shitty person get what's coming to him.

My assumption is that this is going to lead to litigation or another settlement. If it doesn't, then great. If it does, then why?

I thought the timing was due to the title Ix lawsuit?
This isn't a lawsuit against manning its against Univeristy if Tenn and manning is just part of that story.

The victim here had absolutely nothing to do with this coming up again. It is 100% because of the Title IX suit. Manning is the juiciest name here so it gets the most traction. In fact, I bet the victim may wish that it had never come up again.

What Bill Crosby did is much much worse, but sometimes some celebrity's are able to skate for a long time without their scandals sticking to them. Sometimes, however, old stories gain traction.

In addition to the suit, Manning is in the news due to the HGH story and his team winning the superbowl.

I'm getting my car serviced this morning, which means I get to see this USA Today sports headline screaming at me: "Manning all class in farewell"

Was just me and one other guy in the waiting room (he's the one who was reading the paper) so I took a chance and asked "does that mean he refrained from placing his testicles in anyone's face?"

Rewarded with a smirk. It's a good morning.

NortheasternPJ said:

I thought the timing was due to the title Ix lawsuit?
This isn't a lawsuit against manning its against Univeristy if Tenn and manning is just part of that story.

Click to expand...

Exactly. This is a story because of the lawsuit against UT, in which Manning is cited as an example of the indifference/hostility the UT administration allegedly showed toward victims of sexual assault. And since he's such a big name, and since this is such a hot-button issue now, it's news. It doesn't have anything to do with Jamie Naughright seeking a payday. If anything, it's been somewhat underplayed (in terms of how hard people have gone after him) because the media is wrestling with how to handle this in light of the sainted image they have of Peyton.

PC Drunken Friar said:

The victim here had absolutely nothing to do with this coming up again. It is 100% because of the Title IX suit. Manning is the juiciest name here so it gets the most traction. In fact, I bet the victim may wish that it had never come up again.

Click to expand...

Plus, I feel like the Manning story has been referenced every year in media; it just never took off the way it did this year. Really kind of like the Cosby situation.

I think you mean Crosby.

singaporesoxfan said:

Plus, I feel like the Manning story has been referenced every year in media; it just never took off the way it did this year. Really kind of like the Cosby situation.

Click to expand...

I think a lot of it IS opportunism though - like the Cosby situation, the media (in this case ESPN, etc) struggles with cult of personality issues, and has a lot of trouble going after its Golden Gooses - simply put - this is the first time that going after Peyton Manning doesn't have a lot of downside.

Like Cosby - his career is done. Burning him down isn't going to hurt them.

Is Manning's done? All the talk was him sliding right into the booth for a network.

"You set the bar H!GH"? Holy shit.

Newton is such a tool, but that's funny.

Glad they waited until Peyton is out of the league to "investigate" this.

Lindsay Jones ‏@bylindsayhjones 7s8 seconds ago
An NFL spokesman said the players named in the Al-Jazeera report in December likely to be interviewed within the next month.

Goodell: Did you do it?

Matthews: No.

Goodell: Ok, good enough for me!

BigSoxFan said:

Goodell: Did you do it?

Matthews: No.

Goodell: Ok, good enough for me!

Click to expand...

Come on man, that's bull and totally unfair to Roger. Matthews at least has to look him in the eye.

Peyton Manning will not sue Al-Jazeera

No surprise here. But its a stark contrast as to how aggressive he was at the beginning of all this, hiring investigators to intimidate the source and get his spin machine moving.

Attorney: did you have HGH shipped to you?
Peyton: No.
Attorney: did you have HGH shipped to your wife?
Peyton: (looking at his shoes) ...
Attorney: If their report is accurate, you can't sue for defamation.
Peyton: (angry look on his face) but they don't know that we had it shipped. They have no proof.
Attorney: If you sue them, you have to prove that their report wasn't true.
Peyton: (smiling) Okay, let's do it!
Attorney: (rubbing his temples) ...

(three months later)
Peyton: I will not be suing for defamation.

It looks like the NFL will be interviewing active players regarding the accusations made in last December's Al Jazeera report. As always, impeccable timing.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000671338/article/nfl-to-interview-players-named-in-aljazeera-report

League Office: "Peyton, are you 100% sure you're retiring?"
Peyton: "Well, give me till June 23"

League Office: "Peyton,it's June 23...you done for real?"
Peyton: "Yeah, I'm done"

League Office: "Hey, let's start an investigation on any ACTIVE players mentioned in that Al Jazeera thing!"

I am expecting many personal cell phones to be demanded as part of this investigation.

Nothing proves your true fandom like rooting for 6 teams simultaneously, including two in the same division: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/peyton-manning-reveals-the-six-nfl-teams-hes-rooting-for-this-year

"Peyton said he'd be rooting for Broncos, Colts, Giants, Texans, Dolphins and Lions this season."

Most athletes/agents don't cheer for teams and more so for individual players. Who really cares?

Yeah, those are his two former teams, his brother's team, his mentee's team, and two of his former QB coaches. Not terribly surprising, tbh.

I wasn't sure where to put this:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/07/01/nfl-dismisses-charles-slys-recanting-of-ped-allegations/

I feel strange writing this, but I think I am on the NFL's side on this one:

“The fact that statements aired in the report may have been since ‘recanted,’ while potentially relevant to any ultimate conclusions reached, does not extinguish our need to investigate,” NFL senior V.P. of labor policy and league affairs Adolpho Birch writes in his letter to NFLPA counsel Heather McPhee. “And it is hardly remarkable or dispositive that an individual would publicly disavow statements for which he may be subject to criminal or civil sanctions.”

Click to expand...

“@AdamSchefter: After a seven-month investigation, NFL has determined that Peyton Manning did not use HGH nor any other PED, sources told ESPN.



SHOCKING!

What a surprise. NFL finds Manning innocent of all allegations (I wonder if Ted Wells & Co were on the case).

Of course Peyton never did anything wrong and TB12 is the worst cheating QB ever. Stay classy NFL.

heavyde050 said:

What a surprise. NFL finds Manning innocent of all allegations (I wonder if Ted Wells & Co were on the case).

Of course Peyton never did anything wrong and TB12 is the worst cheating QB ever. Stay classy NFL.

Click to expand...

Did they use the phrase more probable than not? Or did the Shield learn from deflate gate

I'm at the point where this is getting funny to me. Absolutely love the timing of the release of the statement.

“Following a comprehensive seven-month investigation into allegations made in a documentary by Al-Jazeera America, the NFL found no credible evidence that Peyton Manning was provided with or used HGH or other substances prohibited by the league’s policy on performance-enhancing substances, it was announced today,” the league said in a statement.

“The Mannings were fully cooperative with the investigation and provided both interviews and access to all records sought by the investigators. Initiated in January, the investigation was led by the NFL’s security and legal teams with support from expert consultants and other professionals. The investigation involved witness interviews, a review of relevant records and other materials, online research, and laboratory analysis and review. Separately, the NFL’s investigation continues into the documentary’s allegations made against other NFL players, which involve different lines of inquiry and witnesses.”

Click to expand...

No mention of cell phones.

The NFL could have manufactured mountains of "evidence" given they were working with the foundation that HGH was shipped directly to Manning's house.

pappymojo said:

No mention of cell phones.

Click to expand...

Good point. NFL is really upping their troll game on Brady...."fully cooperative"

I wasn't there and I am not a doctor but I find hard to believe Peyton didn't use something to help recover from three neck surgeries. I actually don't think there would be anything wrong with him using something to help recover either.

I hope Ashley survives her illness. #PrayforAshley