Manning hushes critics with Super Bowl MVP

~ The two-time NFL MVP filled the only blank on his hall-of-fame resume.

MIAMI -- Peyton Manning finally has an answer for that perpetual question.

Yes, he can win the big game -- and yes, he can do it in a big way, too.

His career-long quest for a championship ended Sunday in Miami with an efficient performance against the Chicago Bears that added a Super Bowl MVP award to his long list of achievements.

The two-time NFL MVP was 25-of-38 for 247 yards and a touchdown pass, keeping the Bears on their heels with his play calling at the line of scrimmage as he rallied the Colts to a 29-17 victory.

Typically, the polished quarterback didn't gloat one bit after proving his critics wrong.

"I've not played that game, and I'm not going to play that game now," Manning said. "It's great that we got this as a team."

For more than a decade, including nine seasons with the Colts, Manning kept hearing detractors follow their acknowledgments of his greatness with this: He could only be remembered along with John Elway, Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw if he won a Super Bowl.

In a few short months, Manning will be wearing that answer on his hand: A shiny, new championship ring.

"He's done it, he's gotten it behind him," Colts coach Tony Dungy said. "I don't think there's anything you can say now, other than this guy is a Hall of Fame player and one of the greatest players to ever play the game."

The doubts started when Manning was in college at Tennessee. He never beat rival Florida, and the year after he left, the Volunteers won a national championship.

In Indianapolis, the questions lingered. When he started 0-3 in the postseason, people wondered if he'd ever win a playoff game. When he finally did that, people said he couldn't beat New England. When he did that, the critics contended he still couldn't win the biggest game of all.

Now the what-ifs are gone. He will no longer be lumped alongside other top quarterbacks who never won the Super Bowl -- Dan Marino, Fran Tarkenton and Warren Moon among them.

"I wanted this team to win a Super Bowl," Manning said. "To me, that's always what this was about. We finally learned from some of those losses, and we became a better team for it. It's great to cap this off with a championship."

Manning wasn't the only Colt shedding his old tag Sunday.

Dungy had led Tampa Bay to the NFC championship and lost. He had guided the Colts to the AFC title game in 2003, too, and was called too nice to win a Super Bowl.

Team president Bill Polian was the architect of Buffalo's four straight Super Bowl teams -- all losses.

But it was Manning who heard the criticism more than anyone else.

"I love this being a team win, because that's what we've done all season," he said. "We just kept chipping away at it and getting some points."

After taking about a quarter to figure out the Bears' defense, Manning dissected it like a surgeon -- carefully and aggressively. He methodically moved Indianapolis by masterfully finding open receivers, calling runs and converting third downs.

"I thought Peyton did a real good job of staying patient, and our run game in the second half gave us a big lift," Dungy said.

Manning threw a 53-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne with a Chicago defender draped around his waist. And even an early glitch on kickoff coverage that led to Devin Hester's 92-yard return for a touchdown to open the game couldn't derail the Colts.

Manning wouldn't let it.

He led them on a drive to a field goal, then put them ahead when Dominic Rhodes scored on a 1-yard touchdown run. He expanded the lead by setting up Adam Vinatieri for two second-half field goals, and the defense took care of the rest with Kelvin Hayden's interception return for a touchdown.

But it was Manning who showed the world he could excel on the grandest stage in sports.

"I'm proud to be part of this team," he said. "It's hard to put it into words."