Peyton Manning missing Pro Bowl due to injury

Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning will miss next week’s Pro Bowl due to the quad injury that hindered him over the final month of the season.

Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford was named as his replacement.

“It’s a great honor to be selected to the Pro Bowl, and I’ve always taken the obligation to play in it very seriously,” Manning, 14-time Pro Bowler, told the Denver Post. “I’ve believed that, if healthy, it’s a player’s responsibility to play in the game because of what it means to be voted in by your peers and the fans.

“I’m disappointed that I’m just not healthy enough this year to be part of it. It’s going to be tough not being down there with the other guys, but it hasn’t had enough time to heal.”

Manning first suffered the injury Dec. 14 against the San Diego Chargers, and multiple reports have indicated he tore his right quad muscle.

Stafford finished the 2014 regular season with 4,257 passing yards, the fifth on the Lions’ single-season list.