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Peyton Manning’s Return to the Denver Broncos Could Not Have Worked Out More Perfectly for Him

By Caleb Calhoun

Jan 3, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning (18) waves to the crowd as he walks off the field after the game against the San Diego Chargers at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Broncos won 27-20. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 3, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning (18) waves to the crowd as he walks off the field after the game against the San Diego Chargers at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Broncos won 27-20. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports /
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The return of former Tennessee Vol and current Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning could not have worked out better for him and his fans.

It has been an emotional year for Peyton Manning fans, especially Vols fans who have based their entire support of the NFL behind their beloved quarterback for the past 18 years.

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Watching Manning get pulled in the ninth game of the year and then have to sit out the next few weeks due to injury was gut-wrenching. It also created a conundrum that culminated on Sunday.

Going into the Broncos-Chargers game, the New England Patriots had just lost. That meant that a Denver win would give them the top seed. But a Denver win also meant Brock Osweiler would start over Manning in the playoffs.

So what are Manning fans to do? The biggest priority for them is to see him win another Super Bowl. As a result, they obviously want him to have the easiest path to get there in the playoffs, meaning they obviously wanted the Denver Broncos to get the top seed.

But what good is it if he won’t be playing? Manning fans had to balance wanting him to play vs wanting the top seed for the Broncos.

As a result, Manning fans bit the bullet and rooted for the Chargers Sunday. Then, the best possible scenario they could have asked for played out.

Manning fans were able to have their cake and eat it too. He replaced an ineffective Osweiler in the second half and led the Broncos to a win, securing the top seed while also regaining his starting spot for the playoffs.

You could not have had it play out better for the Hall of Fame quarterback.

It has been hard to root for the Broncos the past few weeks because it was clear that Gary Kubiak was going to stick with Brock Osweiler if he kept winning.

Obviously, Manning winning was more important to Manning fans than the Broncos winning. So as Manning got healthy and Kubiak stated his intention to stick with Osweiler, Manning fans continuously pulled against the Broncos.

It all seemed over last week when they beat the Bengals, though. Denver at that point was the No. 2 seed by winning and could still capture the top seed, but a huge win over Cincinnati encouraged Kubiak to stick with Osweiler.

More volunteers: Vols Football in Same State as Last Time they Beat Northwestern

The Manning faithful were just about ready to give up on the season. But the football Gods shined on him Sunday and gave his fans everything they wanted: the top seed in the playoffs with him back in control.

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