6 best moments of Peyton Manning's career

In a Hall of Fame career that spanned 18 seasons, Peyton Manning has amassed an almost unprecedented amount of records and achievements, making the task of choosing just the six best moments close to impossible.

However, there are several defining milestones that stand above the rest, moments that defined his career, and ones that will almost certainly be highlighted when he receives his bust in Canton, Ohio.

21-point 4th-quarter comeback against Bucs on MNF

Manning is the master of the fourth-quarter comeback. He has more of them than any other passer in NFL history - with 45 - but his crowing achievement was in 2003 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football.

Manning engineered one of the all-time great comebacks, doing so against a defending Super Bowl champion which boasted one of the league's most stifling defenses.

After Manning threw a pick-6 with five minutes remaining, the Indianapolis Colts' chances of victory appeared close to zero with the Bucs leading 35-14. However, Manning - with the help of some spectacular special-teams play - led the Colts to three straight scoring drives, erasing the 21-point deficit and forcing the game into overtime.

The Colts kicked a game-winning field in overtime, sealing arguably the most impressive comeback victory of Manning's career.

Retaking the single-season TD record from Tom Brady

Manning prides himself on producing spectacular regular-season statistics, and it presumably hurt when his adversary, Tom Brady, took what is arguably the most impressive statistical achievement of his career - the all-time single season touchdown record.

Manning broke what was thought to be an untouchable record in 2004, throwing 49 touchdowns to move ahead of Dan Marino's mark of 48. Unfortunately, Manning watched as Brady tore up the league in 2007, besting his mark by one score after just three years.

It was clear how much Manning wanted the record back. During his magical 2013 season, he closed in on the record in Week 16, finally breaking it in the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans.

But he wasn't happy with just taking it back from Brady, he was intent on destroying it. He extended the record to 55 touchdown passes with four scores in Week 17.

The vindication of winning Super Bowl XLI

For nine seasons, all Manning heard was that he was incapable of performing on the biggest stages. Many lauded him as the king of the regular season, but said he would never win a championship because he became a different player come playoff time.

Then, finally, Manning got his hands on the Lombardi trophy in 2006 and silenced his doubters.

His performances during the postseason weren't vintage Manning, but he led the Colts past the three top defenses from that year, a feat that often goes overlooked.

While the narrative around Manning would never fully disappear - and would rear its ugly head after future high-profile postseason losses - by capturing a championship, he ensured no one could ever throw the same criticisms at him that Marino endured.

AFC Championship Game comeback win over New England

Manning's rivalry with the New England Patriots and Brady has defined his time in the NFL and his comeback victory against them in the 2006 AFC Championship Game can be seen as the pivotal moment of his career.

Manning had been dominated by the Patriots and the duo of Brady and Bill Belichick up until this point in his career, losing six of their eight contests.

Another high-profile loss might have reinforced his "playoff choker" narrative, and it appeared to be headed that way after the Colts went down 21-6 at halftime.

However, Manning orchestrated an improbable victory, rallying the Colts to a 38-34 win that still stands as the biggest comeback in AFC championship history.

Becoming the NFL's all-time leader in TD passes

Manning was never shy about his desire to capture as many statistical records as possible, and captured maybe the most prestigious of those in Week 7 of the 2014 season.

Brett Favre's mark of 508 career touchdowns seemed insurmountable, especially after Manning's career looked in jeopardy after four neck surgeries.

Instead, Manning came back and played arguably as well as he had before, capping off his remarkable recovery by taking the record from Favre against the San Francisco 49ers.

Manning continued to extend his record for the next season and a half, finishing with 539 career touchdown passes.

While many diminish statistical achievements in the absence of multiple championships, Manning's dominance cannot be dismissed. The two other most prolific passers of this generation, Brady and Drew Brees, sit 111 scores behind Manning.

The perfect ending

Despite a career filled with postseason disappointment, Manning earned a storybook ending by beating the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50.

Manning was a shell of his former self, with his defense acting as the driving factor of the team's success. However, there is arguably no other quarterback in NFL history who deserved to be carried to a championship.

Manning has been let down by his sub-par teams so often - both in Indianapolis and Denver - that no one should view his second championship as any less significant than his first.

Fittingly, by emerging victorious from this year's Super Bowl, Manning now ends his career with a winning postseason record (14-13), taking away one of his detractor's biggest criticisms.