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The last five games of the season? That wasn’t the Peyton Manning we’re accustomed to. From the end of November to the end of the regular season, Manning averaged only 233 yards per game and one touchdown to 1.2 interceptions. The average passing yards and even the touchdown to interception ratio aren’t bad for a quarterback not named Peyton Manning, or perhaps a quarterback not vying for his second Super Bowl. And then in lies the question: is Manning’s competitive window closing? We’ve asked this question before, and were wrong to do so, but we will, by default, get it right one of these days. Manning’s five-game season-ending run certainly wasn’t a death sentence for his career – Denver went 4-1 during that stretch after all – but it’s not enough for Manning to only be decent to keep the worriers at bay. You don’t draft Manning to put up QB1 numbers in fantasy, you draft him to lead the position category. The 38-year-old is of course close to the end of his road competitively; he still has the smarts that have made him one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, but Monday morning quarterbacks across the country have noticed a little less zip on his throws. Will Colts’ defensive backs notice the same thing? There are other concerns for the Broncos heading into Sunday’s Divisional Round tilt, ones the team hopes can be solved by their first round bye week. Denver finished the year with a number of injuries – nicks and bruises that sapped players’ performance – none more concerning than tight end Julius Thomas and his troublesome ankle. While injuries happen to every team, Thomas was making a legitimate argument as the best tight end in the game in the first half of the season. The Broncos mostly lost that threat, a big part of their offence, to injuries in the second half of the season. If Thomas is anywhere close to form come Sunday, it’s another headache for the Colts’ defence. But if he’s still mostly hobbled, it allows Indy to focus their attention on a slightly smaller pool of gamebreakers on the Denver offence. It’s really too bad there are gathering bad omens for the Broncos because it could have been, and it certainly was, great in the first half of the regular season. Manning was rested and nobody was questioning the amount of gas left in his tank, Julius Thomas was joining Jimmy Graham and Rob Gronkowski on the highlight reels, and DeMaryius Thomas was putting together another top notch season, and Emmanuel Sanders was transitioning seamlessly into the Broncos’ high-powered passing attack, taking over for Eric Decker, who had chased the money to New York, and putting up just as gaudy of numbers in the process. It’s a shame Denver’s running game didn’t find it’s groove until mid-season to line up with the height of their passing attack. Despite Montee Ball looking like a fine replacement for Knowshon Moreno, it wasn’t until Week 10, and in the unlikeliest of places – CJ Anderson, that Denver’s running game really became the threat it was all of last season. Had Anderson been given the rock from the get go, Denver could have made a run for top offence in the league this year, or certainly at least top offence in Sunday’s matchup. As it stands, the Broncos finished fourth overall averaging 402.9 yards per game. Their passing game also finished fourth at 291.3 yards per game while their rushing attack finished a middle-of-the-pack 15th, at 111.6 yards per game. Denver’s star-studded offence actually overshadowed the team’s defence, which was actually the better of the two units statistically. When you spend an off-season dedicated to plugging the holes exposed by the Seattle Seahawks in last year’s Super Bowl, you’re going to improve on a defence that was less than an intimidating unit last season. Big name free agent acquisitions like Aqib Talib, TJ Ward, and DeMarcus Ware helped the Broncos improve from 19th in yards allowed and 22nd in points allowed in 2013, to third in yards allowed and 16th in points allowed this season. All three made the Pro Bowl with Ward finishing second on the team in tackles with 74, Ware returning to double-digit sack totals with 10, and Talib finishing with very few stats at all – the most telling stat for a shutdown corner. Von Miller also kept up his impeccable play, leading the team with 14 sacks, and Chris Harris continued to emerge as a strong cornerback opposite Talib. There are reasons for the Broncos to fall short of their ultimate goal, Super Bowl 49, but not nearly as many as some teams still in the race have. Had Manning’s production not dipped the last five weeks of the regular season, Denver would be on many prognosticators’ lists to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl for the second straight season. But the team’s four wins in that stretch came against non-playoff teams while their loss was to the AFC Wild Card Cincinnati Bengals. We’ll know on Sunday if there’s anything to that trend. Harry Carson Youth Jersey . They have homered once every 27.3 at bats, which just happens to be the third best mark in the American League, albeit just 10 games into the season. Evan Engram Womens Jersey . Just as the meeting was beginning, Major League Baseball unveiled Rule 7.13, an experimental rule for the 2014 season aimed at eliminating what the league calls “egregious” runner/catcher collisions at home plate. http://www.authenticnygiantspro.com/Daniel-jones-giants-jersey/ . Nine-year veteran Danny Granger did not make his debut with the Clippers because of a technicality on the teams active list, which is signed by coach Doc Rivers before every game and relayed to the officials. Grangers name was printed by hand by a member of the public relations staff under the heading: "Updated Roster Additions," but the number on the sheet was not circled along with the other active players by the required deadline of 6:30 p. Deandre Baker Giants Jersey .Y. - Carey Price had an early feeling that one goal might be enough to settle the latest matchup between his Montreal Canadiens and longtime Original Six foe, the New York Rangers. Dexter Lawrence Youth Jersey . LOUIS -- Joe Thornton and the San Jose Sharks won the matchup of unbeaten teams.DETROIT - The Detroit Red Wings have recalled centre Stephen Weiss from his conditioning loan with Grand Rapids of the AHL.The 31-year-old Weiss was limited to 26 games for the Red Wings in 2013-14 and did not play after Dec. 10 because of hernia surgery. The Toronto native had two goals and two assists in his first season with Detroit after signing a five-year, $24.dddddddddddd5 million contract.Weiss has played in 681 games since 2001-02. He has 147 goals and 251 assists with Detroit and Florida.The Red Wings host the Los Angeles Kings on Friday night. ' ' '