18 Best Peyton Manning Indianapolis Colts Moments

INDIANAPOLIS, IN — The Indianapolis Colts were far from impressive in the second half of their blowout loss to the Seattle Seahawks last week, but the number of points they scored in the 46-18 defeat could not have been a more fitting transition into the theme of the week heading into this Sunday's match-up at home against the San Francisco 49ers.

The '18' the Colts put on the scoreboard was surely an unintended intro into "Peyton Manning Week," in which the Colts' greatest and most beloved former player will be presented with a statue outside of Lucas Oil Stadium and have his No. 18 jersey retired.

RELATED: Indianapolis Colts Detail Weeklong Celebration For Peyton Manning

There's been a lot said and written about what Peyton Manning has meant to Indianapolis since he was drafted in 1998. On top of establishing the Peyton Manning Children's Hospital, staying after every training camp practice until every fan who wanted an autograph got one and becoming the unofficial face of the city, there's plenty of on-the-field moments to remember as well. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Indianapolis Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts and LIKE Indianapolis Patch on Facebook).

Here's a look at the 18 best moments to remember from The Sheriff's career in Indianapolis.

18. Colts Enter NFL's Elite With Win Over Dallas' Big 3: The changing of the guard for the NFL's "Big 3" was apparent in a 1999 Halloween afternoon game at the RCA Dome. The young and energetic Manning, Edgerrin James and Marvin Harrison out-dueled the aging Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin in a much-hyped game that served as the first notice to America that Manning and the Colts would be a dominant team throughout the next decade.

17. Snowy Win In Denver: This was far from one of Manning's greatest individual performances, but this November 2002 23-20 overtime win was the first sense the nation got that he could win games on the road in rough conditions against good teams. This win, highlighted by a pair of 50-yard field goals from Mike Vanderjagt in the snow, was one of eight victories Manning had against his future team.

16. 10 Touchdowns In 5 Days: During Manning's epic 2004 season that saw him break the record for touchdown passes in a season by Dan Marino, he threw 10 of them in a 5-day span. First, on November 21, he torched the Chicago Bears for four touchdowns in a 41-10 win and just four days later on Thanksgiving Day he tossed for six against the Detroit Lions. Oddly enough, a commercial aired during that month featuring Manning lined up against actual (animated) bears and lions.

15. 6 TDs In His Hometown: Thanksgiving wasn't Manning's only six touchdown performance as a Colt. His first came on a Sunday Night in 2003 when he put up the performance of a lifetime on the road in New Orleans, where his father, Archie Manning had starred under center for years. Peyton's (second) return to the Superdome featured a perfect 158.3 quarterback rating and an 80 percent completion percentage as well.

14. Quick Comeback At Houston: This wasn't Manning's most memorable come-from-behind win, but the October 2008 game at Houston was the fastest he brought the team back from three scores down. Indy trailed the Texans by 17 with just four minutes to go, but just after the two-minute warning they were already up by four after three touchdowns. Aided by a defensive touchdown, this game signified Manning's dominance of the AFC South during his time with the Colts. The team won the division seven of the nine years it existed while he was in a Colts uniform.

13. Run, Peyton, Run: While Manning was a passing legend, it would be a tough task to find a less mobile Hall-of-Fame quarterback than #18. Manning would gladly take a sack more often than attempt to gain any yards on the ground. But in a 2001 game at Buffalo he faked out the entire Bills defense with a called quarterback draw to the left and took it all the way to the end zone for a 33-yard rushing touchdown, the longest run of his career. In a 2007 game at Oakland, he also converted a long rush to seal a victory over the Raiders on third down.

12. Manning In Motion: Watching him at the line of scrimmage and his pre-play antics was dressing on the cake for Colts fans. When he would yell "Richmond," or the famous "Omaha," to change a play call or throw off the defense. For fans at the RCA Dome and Lucas Oil Stadium, it was like watching poetry in motion.

11. The '4th And 2' Comeback: Manning only beat Tom Brady four times while playing for the Colts, and three of those wins land on this list. Including the thrilling Sunday night win at Lucas Oil Stadium in 2009 when he led the team in a 17-point comeback at home to preserve their undefeated season at that point. This game is most remembered for New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick's puzzling call to go for it on 4th and 2 from their own 30-yard line late in the game only up six. Belichick's reason was simple. Give the ball back to Manning and he probably gets the score no matter where he is on the field.

10. Peyton Returns Home As Opposing QB: One of the most emotional moments any Colts fan can remember came in 2013, when Manning's new team, the Denver Broncos, visited Indianapolis for the first time since the Colts released Manning and drafted Andrew Luck. Before the game, a video tribute played with highlights of Manning's career with the Colts. In an unheard of move in football, Manning removed his Broncos helmet and saluted the Colts fans during a standing ovation he received following the video. In the game, the Colts upset the undefeated Broncos. Manning only won one of four games he played against Indianapolis as a Bronco.

9. Manning To Harrison - The Record Breaker: There were countless receivers who caught a pass from Manning with the Colts, but none more prominent than NFL Hall-of-Famer Marvin Harrison. The two broke the record for quarterback-receiver touchdown connections during a Monday Night Football game against the St. Louis Rams in 2005.

8. With The First Pick In The Draft: "The Indianapolis Colts select Peyton Manning, quarterback, Tennessee." Then Commissioner Paul Tagliabue's words to start the 1998 NFL Draft would change the course of history for the struggling Colts franchise. In Manning's first interview after the selection, he was he "would like to thank the Colts for picking me." Now, 19 years, later, Colts fans are thanking him for much, much more.

7. Finally Beating Brady: In 2005, Manning had already acquired a pair of MVP awards, the all-time NFL touchdown passing record for a season and the general distinction as the game's best player. But the one mark on his career was that he could never beat his nemesis, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. That changed in a big way on a Monday night when Manning put up 40 on his rival in a blowout win on the road.

6. The 2003 Playoffs: Before 2003, the knock on Manning was that he could not win a playoff game, going 0-3 in the postseason over his first five seasons. But he came pretty close to perfect in his first two postseason games that year, leading the Colts to victories over the Broncos (41-10) and Kansas City Chiefs (38-31). The Colts didn't punt in either game, and Manning had another perfect QB rating in the win over Denver. "We're hot right now," he said after the win over the Chiefs.

5. Leaving Indy: Another one of those tear-jerk moments for Colts fans came on March 7, 2012, when Manning held a press conference with Owner Jim Irsay, who announced the team would release their all-time best player. The move made sense because the Colts had the No. 1 pick in the draft and Andrew Luck (the best quarterback prospect since Manning) was in line to be picked. Manning got a little teary himself while describing some of the best moments of his 14 seasons as the team's quarterback. "I do love it here," he said.

4. The Tampa Comeback: Only once in NFL history has a team come-from-behind by as many as 21 points with less than four minutes to play. That would be the work of Manning, who led a furious comeback in Tampa Bay against the world champion Buccaneers and a vaunted defense. In Colts coach Tony Dungy's return to his former home, Manning's miracle goes down as one of the most incredible comeback wins in any sport.

3. Breaking TD Record At Home: Manning broke Marino's touchdown pass record in a 2004 game at home against the San Diego Chargers. The record-breaking pass to Brandon Stokley was part of another one of Manning's signature comeback wins. But right after he broke the record, his focus wasn't on the achievement. It was on the 2-point conversion the Colts needed to tie the game and send it into overtime. They converted, and Indy ended up winning it in OT.

2. Super Bowl MVP: Manning may have two rings, but only one Super Bowl MVP award and that came when he led the Colts to a 29-17 win over the Bears in Super Bowl XLI. A masterful performance in the rain was celebrated the next day when the team returned to Indianapolis to a raucous parade and rally at the RCA Dome, where Manning held the trophy up high in a salute to "the greatest fans in the world."

1. The AFC Championship Game: Actually winning the Super Bowl after the 2006 season was a bit anti-climactic, as hard as that may be to believe. Only because of how the Colts got there. In order to play in the Super Bowl, Manning had to beat Brady and the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game after falling behind 21-3 in the first half. He led the Colts to a 32-point second half and a 38-34 in the biggest game of his life, and one that is unquestionably the best memory Colts fans have of the Manning era.

Sure, there were a number of heartbreaking moments too. The Willie McGinest fake injury that ended up costing the Colts home-field advantage in the 2003 AFC Championship Game, the playoff defeats (especially the ones to Brady, the 2005 upset loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Super Bowl XLIV loss to the Saints) and watching Manning and other starters pulled in a 2009 game against the Jets with an undefeated season on the line are some of the most vivid ones.

But even those moments were made so heartbreaking by the relevance Manning brought to the Indianapolis Colts franchise. A franchise in a non-major market with a relatively brief history trained its fans to expect the best. The Colts were in the championship discussion pretty much the entire time he played here. And without Manning, it is possible the Colts may have left for another city by now.

Before Manning arrived in Indianapolis, the franchise was mediocre at best. And while the hope is still there that Andrew Luck will return and have a successful career as the Colts' signal caller, it's now abundantly clear that there will never be another Peyton Manning.

Photo by Tim Moran, Patch