By: Josh Dixson
As much as we don’t want to admit it, we’re watching history unfold. The football world, regardless of affiliation, is watching to see what happens in Indianapolis in the coming months. What will they do in regards the undisputed face of the franchise? How do they handle what will become the fate of their team for years to come?
To some, the stars aligned perfectly this season for the Colts to secure a future. A team coming off a 10-6 season would become so inept without their franchise quarterback, that they’d secure the 1st pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. This would mean they could choose a franchise quarterback for the future, whose NFL readiness was being compared to their current golden boy 14 years earlier. The only problem is that the story is convoluted by ‘what ifs’ and ‘maybes’.
Andrew Luck, by all accounts, will be a solid pro quarterback for several years. What Colts fans maybe don’t want to realize is that Luck is not Manning, and no matter how much better the Colts would be next year with Luck at the helm compared to this one, it would not be anything close to what they’ve been used to for more than the past decade. Simply put, Peyton Manning is one of the greatest players to ever touch a football, and you can’t expect the same things from a rookie. That is to assume the Colts would draft Luck and deal Manning.
On Monday, the Colts threw another wrinkle into the dilemma. Owner, Jim Irsay, fired Vice Chairman Bill Polian along with his son, GM Chris Polian. Why would they do such a thing at a pivotal crossroad for the organization? The chatter in Indy is that Bill Polian, who is seen by all as a Hall of Fame GM, was leaning towards drafting Luck and dealing Manning, who he had drafted in 1998. There have also been rumblings out of Indianapolis that the elder Polian was on his way towards retirement and there wasn’t much faith in the younger Polian taking the helm. It has long been known that Irsay and Manning are extremely close, and the idea of dealing Manning to another team may be too much to bear for the eccentric owner. Irsay went as far as saying the future of Manning and the Colts would be handled as a “family decision”. This would lead you to believe that a new GM may be instructed to work on a deal for the 1st pick that would allow the Colts to keep Manning and re-up on talent where they are deficient. In this situation, you have to assume that Peyton will be able to play next season.
The current and projected health of Manning has been shrouded in about as much secrecy as “What really happened in Roswell”. Peyton Manning is the highest form of competitor, a la Kobe Bryant, who will do whatever he can do to continue his career, including controversial stem cell therapy. There have been reports of Manning beginning to throw in pads, and being on schedule in his recovery, but for an injury that has ended other careers’, you must wonder how fragile the guy will be in his return. Do you pay Manning the $28 million he is owed in March, pass on Luck, only to realize that Manning isn’t the same Manning? These are decisions I wouldn’t wish on the most shrewd business minds.
If you look at similar situations around the league, the general consensus would be that you could draft Luck and let him develop for a few years (maybe more) behind one of the greatest offensive minds in all of football. With the new CBA and lower rookie pay scales, it’s not impossible to see this scenario play out, even with Peyton taking up so much of the Colts cap. It’s hard to say if Aaron Rodgers would be the same player today had he not gotten to sit behind a legend in Brett Favre, but we all know this: it certainly didn’t hurt. Even this scenario has flaws in that Rodgers was drafted 24th, and not potentially the #1 overall.
If you look back through the annals of football history, you’ll find that this is one of the most unique situations to ever be presented to a franchise. It’s a situation in which the ramifications won’t be known for several years. The decisions to be made will make or break careers. These decisions will shape the future of an organization and a city. No pressure.