Before the Pro Bowl on Sunday, reporter Peter King was called upon to discuss the status of Peyton Manning, who could be cut by the Indianapolis Colts before March 8, when he is due a $28 million bonus. Fans of the Arizona Cardinals are particularly interested in this, as Arizona is one of the teams believed to be interested in pursuing him should he be let go by the Colts.
The biggest question surrounding Manning is whether he will be healthy enough to play football. The report by King will not make Cardinals fans happy:
Said King:
"I'm told that Manning is having difficulty almost five months after surgery getting back to full arm strength. Family friend Gil Brandt told me last week, 'My gut feeling is that we've probably seen the last of Peyton in a football uniform.'"
Manning's former head coach, Tony Dungy, now working for NBC Sports, had this to say:
"I don't know where he is medically, but I do not think he is going to play for another team. I think if he's healthy enough, he plays for the Colts. If he's not healthy enough, he'll retire."
All the signs right now seem to be pointing to Manning's departure, but then again, according to what King reported, Colts owner Jim Irsay has not yet made the decision yet.
That decision will come at some point and it will be before March 8. Until it happens, we can only expect there to be rumors and discussion at a constant rate throughout the process.
We will be part of that discussion.
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