AP

In NFL Network’s annual Top 100 poll asking players to rank their peers, Peyton Manning’s place on this year’s list was a big question: Would the players say Manning should be healthy and as good as ever and therefore at or near the top of the Top 100? Or would they say he didn’t play at all in 2011 and therefore doesn’t belong on the list at all?

As it turned out, the players split the difference.

NFL Network revealed today that Manning checked in at No. 50 on this year’s Top 100, a ranking that reflects the uncertainty surrounding Manning as the new quarterback of the Denver Broncos, after 13 seasons (and one missed season) as the quarterback of the Indianapolis Colts: Some see Manning as an elite NFL player who should be as good as ever after last season’s neck injury, while others want to see Manning prove it on the field before they’re ready to say he’s back near the top of the league.

We’ll be interested to see what PFT Planet has to say.