Peyton Manning Announces Retirement: ‘God Bless Football’
RUSH TRANSCRIPT:
"My battles with players named Lynch, Lewis, Thomas, Dawkins, urlacher, polamalu, Harrison, Woodson and Reid. Coaches like fisher, Ryan, Belichick, kippen, Phillips, Rivera, Cornell, capers, Lewis, the late Jimmie Johnson and so many more. I always felt like I was playing against the middle linebacker or that safety or that defensive coach Reggie sitting on the bench next to me and perfecting a fake handoff to James. I will miss Thomas telling me he loved me and thanking me for coming to Denver after every touchdown I threw to him. I will miss putting in a play with Tom Moore on Sunday. On Friday I will miss picking out the game balls with my equipment guys and talking football with the broadcast crews after the game and afterwards recapping the game with my dad and checking to see if the giants won and calling Eli. I will miss the hand shake of Tom Brady and I miss the plane ride after a big win, with 53 teammates standing in the aisles laughing and celebrating during the whole fliechlt I will miss playing in front of so many great fan, both at home and on the road. I will even miss the patriot fans in foxboro and they should miss me because they sure did get a lot of wins off of me. This is important, football fans everywhere need to know how much they meant to me over the years. Fans, you were at the core of what makes this game remarkable. I received more letters from you than I can count. Fan letters that have touched me made me think, act. I was made mistakes and learned it is a plat form that has given me a voice that can echo well beyond the game. Football has taught me not to be led by 0 obstructions and set backs but instead to be led by dreams. Due to good genes, I'm smart enough to know those lessons can enrich who I am and where I go from here. I'm totally convinced that the end of my football career is just the beginning of something I haven't even discovered yet. Life is not shrinkng for me. It's morphing in to a new world of possibilities. Pundits will speculate that my effort and drive over the past 18 years were mab mastery and working to master every aspect of the NFL game. Don't believe them. Because every moment, every drop of sweat, every blearied eye night of preparation, every note I took and every frame of film I watched was about one thing, reverence for this game. I look back at my Neville career I know without a doubt I gave everything I had to help my team walk away with a win. There're other players who were more talented but there was no one who could out prepare me. Because of that I have no regrets. There's a scripture reading, II Timothy 4:7. I have fought the good fight, finished the race. I fought the good fight, finished my football race and after 18 years it's time. God bless all of you and god bless football."
