Peyton Manning Done In Indianapolis?
Peyton Manning Calling Out Signals
Manning's Season Over?
It appears that the Colts star quarterback Peyton Manning is out for the season, according to Colts owner Jim Irsay Monday morning. He stated that December would be a possibility for Manning to come back, but realistically, this team is not going to have a winning record in December and no chance of a playoff birth so why risk bringing Manning back too early?It looks like Manning is going to be sidelined until next season at best, so the Colts are moving on with Collins or Painter at QB. It looks as if they also just brought journeyman Dan Orlovsky back on the roster. Fantasy owners, if you haven't done so already, drop Manning from your team, even in the deepest of leagues, because he will not be coming back any time soon. Kerry Collins left Sunday night's game against the Steelers with a mild concussion, so Colts fan got to see a glimpse of Curtis Painter under center. Painter had a couple decent throws, but didn't show much hope for the struggling offense. At this point, he may be the best option for the Colts with what they have on the roster. Collins looks like a retired quarterback. He's slow, he's not able to move in the pocket, and his release is very slow and he holds the ball to low. None of these attributes bode well for a struggling young offensive line. This is why Collins has fumbled and turned the ball over so many times in the first three games.
Watching this game last night, it really showed how much Peyton Manning means to this team, not only as a player, but as a coach. The Colts lined up in formations that should have been checked out of, or not called at all. They had Dallas Clark trying to block James Harrison most of the night, and he's never going to win that battle. The coaching staff needs to step up and create mismatches and put their team in the best position to succeed.
A bright spot Sunday night was the Colts defense, especially the rush defense, stuffing the Steelers running backs nearly every time they touched the ball. If the defense continues to play this way, the Colts can win a few games. Looking at their schedule, I see six games that they can compete in. They face Tampa Bay Monday night, who's defense looks very stout, but their offense is sputtering this year, so if the Colts can keep it close, they can have a chance like they did last night against Pittsburgh. Then they have the Chiefs and Bengals, which are both winnable games for the Colts. Week 12 they host the Carolina Panthers, who they have a good shot of beating, and the Jaguars twice on the schedule should be competitive games. I don't expect them to compete with New England, New Orleans, or the Tennessee Titans this year.
