Eli and Peyton: Ultimate brothers in arms

Shaun Powell

February 7, 2008

Given their success at raising champions, if Archie and Olivia Manning had produced girls, they probably would've named them Venus and Serena.

Instead, they had Peyton and Eli, who grew up, became Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks and went from boys to Manning. In the annals of famous brotherhood, this accomplishment is off the charts. No other brothers can compare. In the political world, the royal family was the Kennedys, except only John got his own airport. In the musical world, where the Jacksons ruled, only Michael could hold a tune for very long.

In the sports world, Peyton won a Super Bowl and Eli won a Super Bowl. Think about that for a moment. You can have your 100 points in a game, or 56-game hitting streak, or undefeated season. Having brothers go 2-for-2 in back-to-back years in the big game and both win MVP is the record we'll never see matched in our lifetime.

"It wasn't in the plan," Archie Manning said.

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Two men share the same position, same trophy, same blood. We've had our share of sensational siblings in sports, just none like this. Mostly, we get the likes of John and Patrick McEnroe, one superior talent and the other just OK. It's quite a feat for two brothers or two sisters or a brother and a sister just to reach the highest level of any sport. When both win the biggest prize arguably in pro sports, well, that's called breaking the sperm bank.

"It just happened," said Archie, who quarterbacked the Saints.

Archie had three boys. The oldest, Cooper, a standout wide receiver in high school, couldn't continue in sports because of health issues. The other two stuck with it. They all say their father never pushed any of them toward sports or football or the quarterback position. Archie says he gave them tips only when they asked. He never took a proactive approach, mainly because he wanted to make sure they gravitated to sports because they wanted to, not because he asked them to. He didn't want to burden them with expectations and therefore take the fun out of sports.

In hindsight, it was a genius move, because the Manning boys never suffered burnout. They saw what their father did for a living and no doubt were motivated by it. What little boy wouldn't be? And yet, "My dad never put any pressure on me," said Eli, who was 3 when Archie retired from the NFL. "All he did was support me."

There's also something Archie couldn't give his boys, even if he wanted to: the mental toughness needed to become championship quarterbacks.

For years, at Tennessee and continuing through his first several years in the NFL, Peyton dealt with the tag of "never winning the big one" and never buckled from it. Eli was dealt a double whammy: criticized for manipulating the draft and getting himself traded from the Chargers to the Giants, then coping with the demands of playing in New York. He was scolded by some who said he was lacking in emotion, when truthfully, his even-keel personality was exactly what he needed to deal with the highs and lows. "He handled himself wonderfully," Archie said.

And now, Eli and Peyton are Super Bowl champs. Peyton owns the big statistics and the Pro Bowl appearances and MVP award. Eli had a better performance in the Super Bowl, taking his team 83 yards and throwing the winning touchdown in the final two minutes.

The only siblings that can match the Mannings are Venus and Serena Williams, the grand dames of tennis, winners of 14 major tournaments. We probably won't see that again, either.

Nobody else comes close. Michael and Leon Spinks were heavyweight champs, but with so many belts and organizations around, we'll see that again. Lloyd and Paul Waner, Little Poison and Big Poison, are in the Hall of Fame but didn't win back-to-back World Series. If Tiki Barber hadn't retired, he might be comparing Super Bowl rings with brother Ronde. Who else? Phil and Joe Niekro? Jose and Ozzie Canseco? The Alous?

Sorry. Little boys everywhere fantasize about playing quarterback and winning Super Bowls. It's the American Sports Dream. Two boys from the same family lived it and we lived to see it.

"We just raised kids just like other parents raised their kids," Archie said. "I can't explain it."