Peyton Manning's Future

[Chaos Descending]

I guess the writing is pretty much on the wall, the Colts are going to dump Peyton Manning and draft Andrew Luck.

That just leaves one (two part) question.

Will he actually play in 2012 and if so, for which team?

Our local news radio is making a lot of noise about the Arizona Cardinals being a prime destination for Mr. Manning thanks to Larry Fitzgerald and whatnot.

What do you think?

 

[ThankQ]

I think nothing is gained by guessing. We don't even know, hell, HE doesn't even know if he's going to be able to play at all--ever again.

 

[Starbreaker]

If he can play, I expect to see him in DC or Miami.

 

[SmoothieX]

He's been cleaed medically. All the means is he won't get killed if he takes a head shot though.

He stated he will take a low base salary with perofrmance incentives to ehance his marketability.

He's not young, I can't see him going to a rebuilding team or disfunctional franchise. DC is a grease fire, and Arizona just invested all that dough in Kolb. The Jets have a toxic locker room and a windbag coach.

I could see Miami - ideal weather, played hard the second half of he year

49ers - All that plus Manning over Alex Smith

Minnesota - dome team, mostly the same guys that almost made the SB recently

Seattle - decent team that could make noise in a largely bad division if they had a good QB

 

[Satyrquaze]

Wouldn't mind seeing him in Minnesota. We need a quarterback.

 

[Scout101]

Honestly, I wouldn't play again if I was in his shoes. Risking a balky knee or bad back is one thing, being paralyzed or killed on the field from a routine hit is a bit much for me.

To avoid all this crap, in his shoes, i'd have tried to talk the Colts into making me the QB coach. They wouldn't have to pay the huge contract bonus because i'd retire, but I'd expect a decent 'retirement' bonus instead. They keep the goodwill, don't take a PR hit, don't have to play AGAINST Manning, and keep him the face of the franchise. He gets a nice big bonus, good salary, and can be the personal coach for Luck.

Story writes itself.

Now he's going to play for someone else for a couple years at most, chasing old glories and risking permanent damage. Not worth it, IMO.

 

[ThankQ]

Honestly, I wouldn't play again if I was in his shoes. Risking a balky knee or bad back is one thing, being paralyzed or killed on the field from a routine hit is a bit much for me.

To avoid all this crap, in his shoes, i'd have tried to talk the Colts into making me the QB coach. They wouldn't have to pay the huge contract bonus because i'd retire, but I'd expect a decent 'retirement' bonus instead. They keep the goodwill, don't take a PR hit, don't have to play AGAINST Manning, and keep him the face of the franchise. He gets a nice big bonus, good salary, and can be the personal coach for Luck.

Story writes itself.

Now he's going to play for someone else for a couple years at most, chasing old glories and risking permanent damage. Not worth it, IMO.

I think I recall hearing him say that he doesn't want to coach, but I'm not certain.

I do think he still wants to play, and I understand it. Being a star NFL quaterback is an amazing life with a narrow window and once it's gone, it's gone.

 

[Scout101]

Just saying that with the neck injury, and obviously fairly hazardous position being a QB puts him in, I'd consider the window closed if I was him.

Not saying he has to be a head coach, or do anything long term, but being Andrew Luck's personal QB coach for a couple years probably would be a smarter move. Less glamorous, but chances of still walking in a couple years are much higher.

 

[Pegaritaville]

Wouldn't mind seeing him in Minnesota. We need a quarterback.

Haven't the Vikings gone that route enough times? They need to develop Ponder (or Webb) and stop trying to fill the position with QBs that have been cast aside by other teams.

I'm sure Manning wants to continue to play, but I'm not so sure it's a good idea to go elsewhere. He could be risking serious permanent injury. And unless the team he plays for is willing to completly alter their offense to suit his needs, I don't think he'd be nearly as effective as he was at Indy.

 

[Thestral]

In retrospect, one of the Colts' recurring problems might have been that they were far too obvious with the "build everything around Manning and nothing else matters" approach - not only because the wheels completely fell off this year, but in comparison to the Patriots in the same time frame or, possibly, the Giants.

I don't think Arizona's likely because they sunk SO much money into Kolb.

I think Washington would be a mistake because it is, like somebody else said, a greasefire. Plus, and this may not be a factor, but he'd be guaranteed to play against his little brother twice a year - and with a lesser (far lesser) team.

The Jets would be a mistake because of their mess of a locker room plus Mark Sanchez doesn't deserve to be tossed aside like that. Plus, 2 Mannings in New York? Ehh...

I think the Dolphins would be a great fit, honestly. They came on strong at the end of last year, they've got a great receiver, and it would mean two games a year against Brady. I heard somewhere Peyton's got a house in South Beach anyway, and although it might be weird to see Peyton in Florida, it's a Hurricane town, and they despise the Gators.

 

[Satyrquaze]

Wouldn't mind seeing him in Minnesota. We need a quarterback.

Haven't the Vikings gone that route enough times?

snip

Yes. But, the Vikings have proven time and time again that they never learn from their mistakes. And speaking as someone who has been a fan of theirs for fifteen years... their fans don't learn from our own mistakes either, because the Vikings fool us into believing in them almost every year.

At least this year, they saved us the trouble.

 

[Borgminister]

Color commentator. Vanilla.
Keep him away from Miami--I don't want to be reminded of Marino-style 99-yard interception returns for a touchdown by a quarterback who went behind his best by date.

 

[SmoothieX]

The Jets would be a mistake because of their mess of a locker room plus Mark Sanchez doesn't deserve to be tossed aside like that. Plus, 2 Mannings in New York? Ehh...

Sanchez is basically Eli Manning before his 1st SB win. Capable of a big late game drive, early playoff accomplishments, and also capable of stinking it up. He's lauded one week and run out of town the next.

Whereas Eli had the benefit of a stable, accomplished, steady organization, Sanchez was thrust into a situation with a bombastic, look at me coach, quetionable character players, and an offense that can't figure out if it wants to run or throw first.

I'm not saying he's the next Montana or Marino, and as a Pats fan, I hate the Jets, but I don't think he's gotten a fair shakedown.

 

[Thestral]

I think that's a fair way of putting it.

 

[ThankQ]

The Jets would be a mistake because of their mess of a locker room plus Mark Sanchez doesn't deserve to be tossed aside like that. Plus, 2 Mannings in New York? Ehh...

Sanchez is basically Eli Manning before his 1st SB win. Capable of a big late game drive, early playoff accomplishments, and also capable of stinking it up. He's lauded one week and run out of town the next.

Whereas Eli had the benefit of a stable, accomplished, steady organization, Sanchez was thrust into a situation with a bombastic, look at me coach, quetionable character players, and an offense that can't figure out if it wants to run or throw first.

I'm not saying he's the next Montana or Marino, and as a Pats fan, I hate the Jets, but I don't think he's gotten a fair shakedown.

I can buy that, but...

Sanchez is basically Eli Manning before his 1st SB win.

I'd say that honor would go to Rivers and/or Romo. Sanchez isn't even near Rivers and Romo yet.

I have a friend who is one of the millions of Romo bashers and he was saying that Romo is the reason the Cowboys were 8-8. I said, "Yeah, instead of 3-13."

I think Eli Manning is the 21st century Terry Bradshaw. Crap for 4 games, average for 10 games, and amazing for 4 games... the RIGHT four games. "Great players aren't always great; they're only great when they have to be."

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Eli Manning and Tony Romo are exact opposites. Manning wins only when it matters, Romo wins when it doesn't matter.

 

[SmoothieX]

^Kind of like the Redskins, offseason champions 6 years running.

I'm a Pats fan, so it kills me to admit it. But down by 4 on the road with 3 minutes left and 1 timeout, I'm taking Eli over anyone.

 

[tighr]

I'm a huge fan of Manning, and the Colts, so it pains me to say it but he needs to retire if he doesn't think he's 100%. He's been compared to Favre his entire career as an ironman for his consecutive starts record (Manning with the rookie record, Favre with the overall record), and we all got a chance to see how Favre's career ended. He was mediocre with the Jets, and was somehow able to lead the Vikings to the NFC Championship game in spite of his tendency to throw interceptions. Then it went all downhill from there. It says something if both of those teams are still in the conversation for a veteran quarterback several years later.

Manning has an opportunity to go out as near the top as he can after this last season that ended with him ultimately being placed on IR. Sit back for 5 years, get inducted into the hall of fame, and enjoy seeing his brand new twins grow up.

If he did want to play again, I would say Miami is his best bet. Washington is a nightmare, and Peyton's PR image would suffer with the Jets. He wants to win the Super Bowl, not pad his stats.

 

[drychlick]

the smart move is to just walk away from the game! Let see if he smart! When it over it is over!

 

[Kirby]

^^ I'm with you, it's not like the guy needs the money but he his risking his future health, hell, he's risking his life if he continues to play. You don't screw around with a neck injury.
That said, as professional athlete, he has a innate desire to compete more than most others, so he probably just can't walk away from the game. I hope he doesn't turn into a joke like Brett Farvre, where he just kept coming back when he was well past his expiration date. Also the weiner pictures. Don't do that Peyton.