SCOTT JACOBS

For years Peyton Manning covered up many of Indianapolis’ glaring needs. Year after year as they piled up double digit wins, his offensive brilliance and cohesion made him the most important player in the Colts organization.  Then, when neck surgeries went awry, we found out quickly that he was the most valuable player in the league.

Indianapolis limped out to a dreadful 0-13 start without #18 under center this season, before finally slogging out a pair of comfort wins – as they went from perennial playoff and Super Bowl contender all the way to the bottom of the NFL’s bottom-feeders.

Indianapolis’ inability to groom a QB behind Manning cost them dearly this season. Obviously.  But losing the face of their franchise may have been the reality check the Colts needed.  As weird as it would be to see the Colts without Manning, it might be a necessary step for them to re-tool and re-load. Holding onto their iconic, record setting, Super Bowl winning QB is the smart PR move, but might not be the best long term move. Ask the Dolphins about Dan Marino, and the backup plan they had in place after he retired. They’re still trying to replace his namesake almost 2 decades later (Fittingly, Marino retired after Peyton’s second season – Manning’s first of many playoff appearances).

The 35 year old Manning doesn’t appear ready to retire just yet, which means the Colts are stuck with the #1 pick – presumably Andrew Luck —  and Manning. While the Packers were able to draft Aaron Rodgers and stash him behind Brett Favre as Favre completed the twilight years of his Packer career, teams don’t usually have that luxury.

Peyton Manning probably doesn’t want to be the guy who helps groom his eventual replacement.  The Colts don’t look like a team that can win a Super Bowl right now anyways. So why not let Manning try to get another ring elsewhere as the Colts start fresh. If healthy enough, Manning could definitely elevate a middle-tier team into a playoff contender or even a Super Bowl threat; There’s already been rumors about a team like Miami or Arizona taking a crack at the Colts star.

The Colts have fired their Head Coach, their long time GM, and Center Jeff Saturday, a Colts lifer has retired. Reggie Wayne is as good as gone, and the old guard that helped make the blue horsies the machine that they were has pretty much moved on – whether to new teams or new careers.

The timing is what makes this whole changing of the guard awkward. It was afterall, not even a  year ago on July 30, 2011 that Manning and Indy agreed to a 5 year deal worth $90 million. Money aside, less than a year into that deal, Manning could be gone.

At 35, honing in on 36, Manning is obviously no longer a young pup.  His lack of mobility, but quick release, and brilliance at assessing defenses and making changes on the line, reminds me a great deal of Marino towards the end of his career.  My dad used to always wonder aloud how Manning would play on a team like the Dolphins, or a team that had a weak offensive line. I always figured he’d do just fine.

But we might actually find out. We really might find out how Manning would do put on a new team in a new environment, having to adjust to a new offensive line and brand new coaches. It’d be fascinating.  Besides, it’s not exactly a new thing for iconic franchise QBs to change addresses at the tail end of their career.  For every John Elway and Jim Kelly, there is a Brett Favre or Joe Montana. Even the unforgettable Joe Namath played out his final season – an injury plagued ending – as a Los Angeles Ram.

The point is this: Manning’s legacy with the Colts is secured. While the allure of playing with one team for an entire career is an aspect sports fans treasure – we call it loyalty – no one can ever question Peyton’s loyalty to the organization.  He brought the Colts to the top.

Consider this: The Baltimore Colts moved to Indianapolis in 1984. In their first 12 years in their new home, the Colts made the playoffs just 3 times.  After drafting Manning in 1998, Indy would go on to win 8 division titles, make 3 AFC Title game appearances, 2 Super Bowls, and would climb to the top of the ladder for their lone Super Bowl triumph against the Bears in Super Bowl XLI.

Other incredible stats: Indianapolis made the playoffs every year that Manning played after his rookie season with the exception of 1 – 2001. The Colts finished 6-10 that season, which also was the last season before the NFL switched from 6 divisions to 8 and Indy was moved from the AFC East to the South. 2001 was also the last season of the Jim Mora Era, which led to Tony Dungy, the man who would escalate Manning and the Colts to elite status.

Incredible Stat #2: Before Manning the Colts franchise had played football dating all the way back to 1953.  They had 9 seasons of 10 or more wins in the 44 seasons before Manning’s arrival. With Manning Indianapolis has had 11 seasons of double digit wins since 1998.

Incredible Stat #3: The Colts won 12 or more games for 7 straight seasons (2003-2009). That’s an NFL record. Here’s perspective. From 1953-1997, the Colts had just 2 seasons of 12 wins or more (1964, 1968).  This is one of the NFL’s most historic teams, folks.

So to say that Manning’s legacy is secure as a Colt is the understatement of the year.

Throw in some of these NFL records: 4 NFL MVPs, 6 consecutive seasons with 4000+ passing yards, and 11 seasons with 4000 yards or more and Manning’s impact on the league has been obvious.

All of this comes in the midst of little brother Eli’s second run to the Super Bowl, and questions about whether little brother has over-taken big brother. While I love the fact that Eli has led the Giants to 5 straight road playoff wins (another NFL record) and has a chance to double Peyton’s  title total, Eli is nowhere near the star or the game-changer that Manning ever was.

Peyton never benefited from a ferocious pass-rush like the Giants have.  He took good players and made them great. He commanded the line of scrimmage like no one else. He had the fastest trigger and the best awareness, and no matter how many Super Bowls Eli wins, nothing will change that fact. Eli isn’t the type of guy who you could put on the Rams and he’d win them 10 games. Peyton (when healthy) is.

So here’s the bread and butter to all of this: It’s okay for Manning to change locales at this point in his career. It’s okay for the Colts to seize the opportunity for a fresh start, with their all-world QB’s health status in continued limbo. It’s okay for both sides to start anew. While it just wouldn’t feel right to see Peyton donning anything but a Colts helmet, we eventually got used to Favre in something other than a Packer lid. It happens. It makes more sense for the Colts to move on now, rather than to hold on to their shrinking window of opportunity. With a new GM in place and a new coach on the way, the Colts look nothing like the model franchise they did just a few years ago.  That aura of consistency and invincibility has faded. In its place is a new regime and a new plan.

I don’t think Peyton is part of that plan. For both sides, in the end, it’s probably a good thing.

Photo: Getty

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