With Aiyuk coming into the season-opener with limited practice time under his belt, the microscope was likely expected to be zeroed in on his overall performance after spending the majority of his summer making countless headlines under a number of different trade scenarios that ultimately ended with the team's best wideout staying in San Francisco and signing a four-year contract extension.
While the aforementioned throw from Purdy was beautifully placed in a way only Aiyuk could catch it, the ball wasn't really close to being corralled. And, simply going by the standards Aiyuk has set for himself, it was a ball he usually catches.
Naturally, social media was expectedly ready to pounce on the fifth-year receiver and so was Peyton Manning during ESPN's "ManningCast."
Eli Manning kicking things off by throwing up the verbal alley-oop to his brother by mentioning some possible rustiness from Aiyuk was absolutely more than enough to get Peyton Manning going off on the importance of training camp.
"Get signed, get in training camp, there's a reason for training camp, you need it!" a clearly frustrated Peyton Manning stated. "You need the reps! Get those contracts done earlier so we get in training camp, we don't drop balls on opening night."
After more passive, reasonable words from Eli, Peyton dialed it up several notches further and went in on Aiyuk's apparent lack of game-ready shape.
"You're still catchin' balls at a high school field from some quarterback that's 45 years old, my age, you're not catchin' balls from your quarterback. Get signed, get in camp, and we don't drop the ball."
What's great about the option of watching the "ManningCast" on ESPN2 instead of the traditional broadcast on ESPN is for moments exactly like this. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman only have so much rope—and time—to analyze any given play, and you're just never going to hear either one of them take it as far as Manning did and get references about a 45-year-old dude slinging the old pigskin at a random high school football field.
But that's what makes it all so endlessly enjoyable.
After listening to such intensely strong thoughts on training camp holdouts, one might go ahead and assume this probably happened a few times during Peyton Manning's legendary days with the Colts and Broncos, and he probably had something to say about it. Because, wow, did that rant feel pretty personal.
And given the way Manning acted towards those he was closest to—yes you, Jeff Saturday—any kind of confrontation with a teammate had to be front row, appointment-worthy entertainment.
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