It's not as if Peyton Manning died.
The now former Broncos' quarterback has been accused of providing an imcomplete farewell speech on Monday to announce his retirement. But addressing anything other than his retirement wasn't going to happen; not on this day, anyway.
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"Was that Peyton Manning up there retiring Monday afternoon? Or was it the Pope?" USA Today Sports' Christine Brennan asked. "At times, it was hard to tell. The reverence, the awe, the adoration: it was remarkable, it was over the top, and it was, sadly, quite predictable.
Brennan went on to argue that questions about Manning's off-the-field life -- about the accusations of HGH use and of the incident 20 years ago involving a then-Tennessee athletic trainer, Jamie Naughright, and exactly how he exposed himself -- should've been answered.
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Earlier in the day, USA Today Sports' Nancy Armour wrote that Manning needed to include an apology for the Tennessee incident in his press conference.
"Apologizing for the actions of an immature 19-year-old during his news conference Monday would be a good place to start," Armour wrote. "An apology is not an admission of anything. Even if what transpired was as innocent as Manning claims, though, it was crass and juvenile, and it's a good bet he cringes when he thinks about it now. We all do things when we're young and think we know it all that we come to regret with the perspective of age and experience, and that's all Manning has to say."
Fellow USA Today Sports reporter Lindsay Jones did ask about the Tennessee incident.
To which Manning replied, "First off, this is a joyous day. Nothing can overtake from this day. I think it is sad that some people don't understand the truth and the facts and I did not do what has been alleged and I'm not interested in re-litigating something that happened when I was 19 years old. Kind of like my Dad used to say when I was in trouble, I can't say it any plainer than that. And so this is a joyous day and it's a special day and like Forrest Gump said, that's all I have to say about that."
If Naughright's allegations prove to be true, that Manning didn't just moon another student athlete in front of her and that he did place his testicles and scrotum on her face, then by all means, Manning should suffer the full extent of consequences for those actions. If he didn't, then he owed nothing more than what he said during his news conference. He denied what happened at Tennessee. He has denied taking HGH.
Manning owes no public apologies to anyone. If he feels as if his stunt damaged Naughright in some way, he should apologize directly to her, not in public.
And it appears as if he doesn't feel that way, so he doesn't have to apologize. But if Manning is found to be innocent in both the Tennessee and HGH incidents, will Naughright, Brennan and Armour apologize to him?
It's doubtful, and besides that hasn't been proven, yet.
Exactly. Nothing's been proven. Should the media have asked about the HGH incident and more about the Tennessee incident? Perhaps.
But Manning still will be around. When more facts are presented or time passes, it's perfectly OK to ask him those questions again. After all, it took a few years to address the Tennessee situation.
Expecting him to say something at his retirement announcement was misguided.
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