"I know that there has been a number of players who have walked away as champions", Manning said."I,m sure that is a great feeling for those people. John Elway. Ray Lewis did it last year. And Michael Strahan. In talking to Ray Lewis, and talking to John Elway, they couldn’t play anymore. It was all they had to give. They truly left it all out there. I certainly had a career change two years ago with my injury and with changing teams. I’ve been truly on a one year at a time basis."
"So, I really have no plans beyond this game. I had no plans, coming
into this season, beyond this year. I think that it is the healthy way to
approach your career at this stage. I still enjoy playing football. I feel a
little better than I thought I would at this point, coming off that surgery. I
still enjoy the preparation part of it, the work part of it. Everybody enjoys
the games. Everybody is going to be excited to play in a Super Bowl. When
you still enjoy the preparation and the work part of it, I think you ought to
be still doing that. I think as soon as I stop enjoying it, if I can’t produce,
if I can’t help a team, that’s when I will stop playing. If that’s next year,
then maybe it is. I certainly want to continue to keep playing."
