Quarterback Terrelle Pryor is heading into the biggest game of his NFL career. The new starting quarterback for the Oakland Raiders will be going head-to-head against arguably one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time in four-time NFL MVP Peyton Manning of the Denver Broncos.
Over the past two weeks, Pryor has turned plenty of heads around the league with many believing the Ohio State standout might be the future face of the Raiders franchise. Although rough around the edges and still learning how to be a starter in the NFL, Pryor has shown signs of promise while providing hope for a team that hasn’t had much to be excited about over the past decade or so.
On Wednesday, Pryor talked about the challenge of facing Manning and potentially having to match his output on the field via Vic Tafur of The San Francisco Chronicle:
Pryor is ready to go against Peyton Manning, but won’y try to match the prolific passer.
“He is going to make big plays,” Pryor said. “I can’t go in there and say I am going to fire back too … Down for down, one play at a time, I just have to take my time and that will be much better than trying to match him play for play and forcing things. … I know it’s a big task.”
At this point in time, expecting Pryor to match Manning is ridiculous. Manning may be turning 38 in March and is arguably in the twilight of his career in the NFL, but the future Hall of Famer has shown no signs of slowing down and is potentially leading a team that’s Super Bowl bound.
Despite Pryor having the daunting task of having to go head-to-head against one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, the promising youngster seems to be up to the task. Pryor might continue proving his doubters wrong with an impressive performance on the biggest stage of Monday Night Football against arguably the team to beat in the AFC.
