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Friday Flashback: Peyton Manning joined Broncos 8 years ago today

Future Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning led the Denver Broncos to the best 4-year stretch in team history.

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — "It’s one of the best decisions I ever made," said Peyton Manning about joining the Denver Broncos.

After spending 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, Manning signed with the Broncos as a free agent on March 20, 2012.

During the next four seasons with the Broncos, the team would go 13-3, 13-3, 12-4 and 12-4 in the regular season – the best four-year stretch in franchise history.

The Broncos appeared in two Super Bowls, winning Super Bowl 50 in 2016 in what was Manning’s walk-off moment at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.

When people look back on Manning's time in Denver, many will best remember the 2013 season. He threw for record 55 touchdowns that year, a record 5,477 yards and the team scored a record 606 points – 37.9 points per game.

Credit: AP
Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning addresses reporters during a news conference at the team's headquarters in Englewood, Colo., on Tuesday, March 20, 2012. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

"I always wanted to play for the same team that drafted me," said Manning at his introduction into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 2018. "I think that’s every player’s goal but things change and business things happen and I had a chance to go play somewhere else and I couldn’t have picked a better place to come and play. I always liked Denver.

“Always had great respect for the organization. That had a lot to do with me considering them [as a free agent]. And once I got here, everything I thought about Denver and heard about was true. Everybody’s been so warm and welcoming to my family, embracing us, believing in me."

Credit: AP
An electronic billboard is used to extend a welcome to Peyton Manning outside a sports memorabilia shop in north Denver on Tuesday, March 20, 2012. A person familiar with negotiations says that Manning and the Broncos completed his five-year contract worth about $96 million on Tuesday morning. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Credit: AP
Television crews broadcast live from the front of the Denver Broncos headquarters, in Englewood, Colo., on Tuesday, March 20, 2012. (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)

“It’s why we still live here. Three seasons later my family, Ashley and kids, we’re still here. It’s one of the best decisions I ever made," he said.

Up next for Manning is induction in to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Manning officially becomes eligible in Class of 2021.

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Credit: AP
Denver Broncos Media Services Manager Rebecca Villanueva displays a jersey with quarterback Peyton Manning's name and number before a news conference with Manning at the NFL Denver Broncos headquarters in Englewood, Colo., on Tuesday, March 20, 2012. (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)

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