Peyton Manning has made his career out of making the impossible possible. Some of the greatest fourth quarter comebacks in the history of this game are a direct result of his play from the quarterback position. But, one could argue that the biggest feat he has ever accomplished had nothing to do with anything on a football field.His greatest accomplishment might be the near media blackout he has successfully cultivated around his personal life.
Our blog helped break the news back on April 8th that Peyton and his wife, Ashley, had welcomed into this world twins: A boy and a girl named Marshall and Mosely, respectively.
Now, when news of their births first hit the Internet, it happened at around April 1st. Thus, most of us thought the rantings of a view Tennessee Volunteers fans on a message board was just another April Fool's joke. Turned out it wasn't.
What is amazing about this news is that literally NO ONE KNEW ASHLEY MANNING WAS PREGNANT! Here is arguably the most famous quarterback in the world, a man whose face time in commercials rivals William Shatner, and no one knew he and his wife were expecting twins. How is that possible to keep a secret in today's world of MEDIA EVERYWHERE!
Did no one SEE Ashely Manning the last ten months? Didn't Peyton tell his teammates he was gonna become a daddy?
I can't answer for the first question, but I do have information that answers the second. No, Peyton didn't tell his teammates. They were just as shocked as we were when the news broke.
Today on the 1070 The Fan radio show 'Grady and Big Joe,' featuring former Colts offensive linemen Joe Stasniak and radio personality Michael Grady, Colts players Charlie Johnson and Pierre Garcon were interviewed. Both were asked if they'd seen Peyton's twins, and if they were surprised by the news of the births.
Just like us, Charlie Johnson (the man who has protected Peyton's blindside for two-plus years, and played in two Super Bowls with Peyton) was just as dumbstruck by the news as anyone else.
I actually it was a joke. I read it on, or I saw something on the Internet. And then I'm getting texts from friends back home. And I just thought it was a joke, but it ended up being real!
I'll be the egotistic schmuck that I am and say Charlie probably saw that 'something' here at Stampede Blue (Hi Charlie!).
Equally surprised by the news of the twins was Pierre Garcon, a guy who (according to Pierre) has been working out with Peyton all through this offseason during the lockout. When asked if he was shocked by the news of the twins, he laughed and said:
Yeah, I was.
Garcon also went on to say the wideouts like Austin Collie, Anthony Gonzalez, and Blair White were working out with Peyton as recently as this morning. He also said they were all back and healthy after dealing with multiple injuries last season:
Oh yeah. Everybody's back. Everybody's back. Dallas is back. Austin, Gonzo.
Nice to hear Dallas Clark is healthy after his freakish hand injury last year.
You can listen to the podcasts from 1070 The Fan here.