In Charlotte, Peyton Manning tells a story that Bryce Young non-believers should hear

Peyton Manning, one of the greatest quarterbacks in football history and No. 1 overall pick in the 1999 NFL Draft, made two points crystal clear Thursday afternoon.

One: It’s a “tremendous honor” to be the No. 1 pick.

And two: As that overall No. 1, you’re going to a team “that has earned it.”

“My first year was tough,” Manning said, speaking to a crowd of over 900 people in the Sheraton Hotel at the Charlotte Touchdown Club speaker series. The NFL Hall of Famer reminded the room that in his rookie season the Colts went 3-13 — losing more games in one NFL season than he had in high school and college combined — before discussing the record he holds that still feels beyond reproach.

“I set an NFL rookie record for interceptions, a record I still hold today,” he said, beaming with faux pride. He then chuckled. “It’s actually very hard to do. If you can throw three interceptions in your first game, four in your second game, three in your third — I mean, you get 10 early? Man, you really have a chance.”

Before the season’s end Manning had thrown 28 picks, followed by 23 the next season.

Manning’s story of his rookie year struggles — particularly when you marry it with his Hall of Fame, 18-year, two-time Super Bowl winning career — is an inspiring one, no doubt. It’s also one that Carolina Panthers fans and Bryce Young himself, the No. 1 overall pick in 2023 who went through his own rookie-year quarterbacking struggles last year, might benefit learning from.

Just like the Colts had “earned” their No. 1 overall selection in 1999, so had the Panthers. Carolina didn’t finish with the league’s worst record in 2022 — a product of overachieving after Steve Wilks took over as the interim coach and put the team a Tom-Brady-explosion away from the playoffs — but they traded away a bunch of draft capital and playmakers to get in the position to pick Young in 2023.

Just like Manning, Young hadn’t truly experienced losing before coming into the NFL. Beyond the fringe naysayers questioning Young’s 5-foot-10 frame and durability — of the same ilk that questioned Manning’s athleticism and arm strength years ago — it’s tough to pinpoint when Young had encountered true doubt. He was a star in high school and a juggernaut in college, fit with Heisman Trophy glory and the kind of team success that comes with being the quarterback of a Nick Saban-led Alabama team.

But, just like Manning, his rookie year was underwhelming. Young threw for 2,877 yards — 20th in the league — but also threw nearly as many interceptions (10) as touchdowns (11) and led one of the league’s worst offenses. The Panthers went a league-worst 2-15 last year — the franchise’s sixth consecutive losing season.

There’s nuance to this, of course. Manning, beyond his interceptions record, started all 16 games and set NFL rookie records for completions (326), attempts (575), passing yards (3,739) and touchdown passes (26). Young played 16 games, too, but sat out one because of an ankle injury and really only showed this sort of proliferation in flashes, like in his display against the Green Bay Packers on Christmas Eve.

But there’s a parallel between the two nonetheless.

“When you’re the first pick in the draft, you’re coming in with a lot of hoopla,” said Manning, who will be a part of ESPN’s coverage of the NFL Draft, which started Thursday and ends Saturday. “And it’s a lot different than college. Now you have 37-, 38-year-old adults now looking at you in the huddle to see how you’re handling this adversity. And (former Panthers and Colts GM) Bill (Polian), who was a rock for me, was a support system, would say, ‘Hey, just keep hanging in there. Keep fighting the good fight.’ He knew it wasn’t going to be easy.

“But all of the interceptions and the losses, while certainly disappointing, I’ll say this: Bill, he kind of recommended to the coaches that I stay in every single game. They never took me out of a game, and we went from 3-13 my rookie year to 13-3 the next year. ...

“Twenty-eight interceptions could humble you. And I think it made me a better player. And really since 1999, the Colts were kind of off and running.”

A few other things Peyton Manning said

Manning, ever the showman, didn’t only dwell on his rookie season in the 30-minute speaker series in Charlotte. Among the other things he talked about:

▪ Manning talked a lot about his life off the field — doing the ManningCast on ESPN2 during Monday Night Football games, doing so many commercials, hosting Saturday Night Live. He discussed why it’s important for him to be present in his 12-year-old twins’ lives, just like his own parents, Archie and Olivia, were for him and his brothers, Eli and Cooper.

▪ Manning said the person he disliked going up against the most was Ray Lewis — the Baltimore Ravens linebacker legend who defined a peerless era of toughness in the NFL. “His retirement was one of the greatest days of my life.”

▪ One of the best stories of Manning was offered by Bill Polian, the aforementioned general manager who the Panthers know well, too. Polian told the story of Manning visiting his office a few days before the draft, and the young college player asked Polian if the Colts were going to take him. Polian wouldn’t budge. Then Manning, before leaving, said that if Polian chose him, the Colts would win a championship, and if they didn’t, “I’ll come back and kick your butt.” Polian laughed: “I didn’t know if he was talking about me or the Colts.” But Indianapolis took him, stuck with him through a difficult rookie year and then achieved the kind of sustained greatness a team like the Panthers are endeavoring to do.