DENVER — It was brought to Peyton Manning’s attention that it was 25 years ago he became the No. 1 overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft.
“It’s changed so much now,’’ Manning said Wednesday night in an interview with 9NEWS prior to the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame banquet. “There was just four of us invited to the draft in New York. Nothing like what you have now. It’s truly a show now and it should be. That’s the power of the NFL. But it was an exciting time.’’
The four players invited to Madison Square Garden in New York for the NFL Draft announcements in April 1998 were Manning, the presumptive No. 1 selection and quarterback from Tennessee, fellow quarterback Ryan Leaf, Michigan cornerback Charles Woodson and Penn State running back Curtis Enis.
For three or four months leading up to the draft, there was real debate as to whether the Indianapolis Colts should take Manning, who had all the quarterback intangibles, or Leaf, who had the cannon arm, with the No. 1 overall selection. The Colts, general manager Bill Polian, head coach Jim Mora, offensive coordinator Tom Moore and quarterbacks coach Bruce Arians decided on Manning, who set all the career passing records before he was through. Manning became a first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Fame electee – in part because of his four magical seasons with the Broncos to end his career.
Leaf went to the Chargers with the No. 2 pick and became one of the spectacular draft busts in NFL history.
“I was curious up until they call your name out,’’ Manning said of going No. 1. “I had a pretty good idea of what was going to happen but until the commissioner calls your name out, you really don’t know.’’
Woodson, who edged Manning for the 1997 Heisman Trophy, went No. 4 to the Oakland Raiders. Woodson joined Manning as first-ballot Hall of Famers in the class of 2021. Enis went No. 5 to the Chicago Bears but tore his ACL in his first NFL start and was never the same.
The No. 3 pick in the 1998 draft went to Arizona, where defensive end Andre Wadsworth was a lengthy contract holdout. After a fine rookie season, Wadsworth played sparingly for just two more seasons.
While other great players came out of the 1998 draft – including future Hall of Famers Randy Moss and Alan Faneca – there’s little debate 25 years later that the Colts made the correct decision with their No. 1 pick.
“It was really the first day on the job,’’ Manning said. “I flew to Indianapolis, they gave me a playbook, I started studying and I think I was back in Indianapolis three days later for a minicamp. It really is the beginning of your first real job. For me that’s what it was and it was an exciting journey.”
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