Peyton Manning snubbed on Jim Irsay's all-time list

Jim Brown died on Thursday, prompting several to remember how special of a talent he was on the football field by naming him the best football player of all time.

He topped Irsay's list but the inclusion of John Elway at the expense of Peyton Manning raised eyebrows.

As Pro Football Talk pointed out, Elway refused to play for Indianapolis after the organization—then in Baltimore—selected him first overall in the 1983 NFL Draft. The Colts acquiesced to his trade demand and he landed in Denver, where he played 16 seasons, appeared in five Super Bowls and won two.

At the tail end of Elway's career, Indianapolis selected Manning first overall in the 1998 NFL Draft. Unlike Elway, he accepted his fate and played 13 seasons for the Colts.

Manning won four MVPs in a seven-year span in Indianapolis. He holds Colts franchise records in completions, attempts, passing yards and touchdowns. He also piloted the team to a Super Bowl XLI win, the only one the team has had since relocating from Baltimore in 1984.

Like Elway, Manning ended his career in Denver. A neck injury threatened his playing career and after missing the 2011 season, Indianapolis moved on from him and drafted Andrew Luck with the No. 1 overall pick in 2012.

Manning thrived with the Broncos, winning a fifth MVP in 2013 and—also like Elway—went out on a high note by winning the Super Bowl in his final NFL start.

Since that moment, Manning's been more closely associated with the Broncos than the Colts. He lives in the Denver area and is likely to be seen at Broncos games and practices—or a Denver Nuggets postseason game—instead of in Indianapolis.

Irsay reasoned he chose Elway because of his footwork, particularly what he demonstrated as a baseball prospect. Apparently, Irsay wasn't as impressed by Manning's effort at a Colorado Rockies batting practice with Russell Wilson last year.

Manning made up for his lack of mobility with his gaudy passing stats. At least to some, but not to the owner, he delivered a Super Bowl.