Rod Smith Says Peyton Manning Needs Another Super Bowl For Greatness
DENVER (CBS4) - Broncos great Rod Smith has never been one afraid to speak his mind and on Xfinity Monday Live! he offered his thoughts on Peyton Manning, whose overall playoff record is 9-11.
"For the quarterback position, that's what they judge you on; they judge you on Super Bowls, they really do," Smith said. "I still remember everybody was talking about how Terry Bradshaw was so much better than John (Elway), and then when John won the back-to-back Super Bowls and road off in the sunset, he immediately vaulted past a lot of quarterbacks in the league."
Smith said getting to the playoffs is one thing, but winning in the playoffs sets great quarterbacks apart from the good quarterbacks.
"The quarterback is the only position they define it at and he will go down as one of the all-time greats, but we need to win a Super Bowl," Smith said.
CBS4's Vic Lombardi asked Smith if he thinks the cold weather affected Manning more than other players because of the nerve issues in his neck.
"Not really, he's a professional. That guy put his body through so many different things. You saw him practicing in gloves and things like this because he knows what he can do. He physically knows better than anybody and he knows how to adjust," Smith said. "You don't throw for as many yards and won as many games as he has without knowing how to adjust. That's why I am so glad he is on our football team."
Smith said he was excited to see the Broncos land wide receiver Wes Welker in the offseason.
"Wes Welker is the best addition to our defense. I tell people that and they look at me and say, 'What are you talking about?' We keep the sticks moving, they stay on the sidelines. We keep the defense on the bench. This guy, he's known for catching passes, keeping the sticks moving, and with the big guns outside, we're going to have an explosive offense."
Smith said Welker just knows how to get open.
"Especially working with a guy like Peyton, it is going to be that much better … just like he was with (Tom) Brady, they have a connection. I'm telling you it will be real hard for a lot of defenses."
- By Matthew J. Buettner, CBSDenver.com
Watch more of the video with Rod Smith in the Xfinity Monday Live! section.
