Today is a sad day in Bracketville. As of today, I'm no longer a fan of the Indianapolis Colts. Today is the day the Colts fired Peyton Manning. I know the official NFL term is "released," but who are we kidding? They traded him in for the newer, less expensive model with less wear on the tires that is Andrew Luck. We all saw this coming. That doesn't make the decision any smarter.
Colts owner Jim Irsay insists that this isn't a financially-motivated move. Then why did you mention the salary cap about 15 times during the 10-minute press conference? It's not a coincidence that you threw him out with yesterday's garbage the day before he was due a $28 million roster bonus. Jim, we're not idiots. This wasn't financially motivated. Sure. And penis envy wasn't the reason Texas A&M left the Big 12 either.
Jim, all I've got to say is you'd better be right. You were right 14 years ago. Back then, Peyton said that if you didn't take him with the No. 1 pick, he'd come back and kick your ass for the next 15 years. Instead he turned your franchise from a laughingstock to a dynasty. That beautiful new stadium you play in that just hosted the Super Bowl? That's there because of Peyton. That Lombardi Trophy at the team facility? That's there because of him, too.
Consider these facts: in the 14 seasons between moving to Indianapolis and Peyton's arrival, the Colts made a grand total of three playoff appearances, never won more than nine games in a season, and had 11 or more losses six times. In 13 seasons with Peyton (not counting the 2011 season he missed because of injury), the Colts won at least 10 games 11 times (including an NFL-record seven straight 13-win seasons), won eight division titles, made 11 playoff appearances (tying the NFL record with nine straight from 2002-10), went to two Super Bowls, and won one. Oh yeah, Peyton also owns every team passing record you can think of, won four MVPs and never missed a start during his first 13 seasons in the league, making 208 consecutive starts.
You know the reason the Colts sucked last season? Because Peyton wasn't there. The entire team was built around one guy, and when they didn't have him, everything hit rock bottom. I'm not saying they would've had a typical Colts season had Peyton played in 2011, but they definitely wouldn't have started 0-13. Or finished 2-14. Or ended up with the No. 1 pick. Everybody knows that. Peyton will be back next season, but instead of immediately becoming contenders again, the Colts decided that they wanted to rebuild. With Andrew Luck at quarterback. Irsay said a couple weeks ago that it was Peyton's decision. It became clear today that it was not. He never had any intention of bringing back the guy who IS the franchise (correction: WAS the franchise).
Not even 30 seconds into the press conference, Irsay actually had the gaul to say that no Colt will ever wear No. 18 again. Duh! You know something else, Jim? Peyton should be a Colt. But if Brett Favre could be a Jet, Joe Montana could be a Chief and Joe Namath could be a Ram, I guess Peyton can be a Dolphin. Or a Cardinal. Or a Seahawk. Seeing him in another uniform is going to take some getting used to, though.
So, what uniform will he be wearing in 2012? Not surprisingly, a number of teams immediately reached out to him. He's not going to any team in the NFC East, where he'll have to contend against Eli for a division title. Sorry Redskins fans. Likewise, he's not going to share New York with Eli. So that dysfunctional mess known as the Jets is also out. Seattle's interesting. I can't see him going to a cold-weather team that doesn't play in a dome. Not if he has other options. Kansas City has Matt Cassel, so I'm not sure that's a realistic option, either. That leaves us with two teams: the Cardinals and Dolphins. They're both warm-weather teams, they both have All-Pro receivers, and they're both a quarterback shy of being a contender.
I think he goes to Miami. Dolphins fans have driven every quarterback they've had since Dan Marino retired out of town simply because he wasn't Marino. Well, Peyton's as close to Marino as they can get. Plus, he'll get the chance to beat his friends Bradicheck twice a year if he goes to Miami. And, I mostly just want to see him stay in the AFC, when he'll get the chance to stick it to the Colts a lot more often. (Hey, how about Jacksonville?)
Of course, history will always remember Peyton Manning as an Indianapolis Colt. That'll be the team he represents in Canton. And I have no doubt that he'll sign one of those ridiculous one-day contracts somewhere down the line so that he can "retire" a Colt. I wouldn't even be surprised if all is forgiven and he ends up in the Colts front office after he retires. Was it too much to ask to want him on the field at Lucas Oil Stadium with a horseshoe on his helmet for his entire career? I guess so. Football's a business. But some business decisions just don't make sense. At least we finally realized that loyalty really does mean absolutely nothing in the NFL.
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