Colts owner Jim Irsay appeared Wednesday on NFL Network with Rich Eisen to discuss how Super Bowl week is going in Indianapolis.
Yeah, another topic came up too.
“A lot of people think Peyton [Manning] and I know what’s going to happen,” Irsay said. “No one knows exactly what’s going to happen.”
Irsay stressed that he’d like to wait until the “last possible minute” to make a final decision on Manning’s future. He said that he would continue to talk to Manning into early March and possibly beyond. (That contradicts a report Manning could be released by the Scouting Combine.)
Eisen did a nice job with the interview, like Trey Wingo did with Peyton Manning on Tuesday. Ultimately, it was hard for Irsay to change the perception that Manning is very likely almost done with the Colts.
“There’s never been a quarterback that’s had this type of injury,” Irsay said. “The reference points just aren’t there. It’s so rare.”
Irsay talked about the “real cap problems” for the Colts and the danger of making decisions based on “affection.” He talked repeatedly about waiting as long as possible to make a final decision on Manning.
Essentially, Irsay wants to wait to see if Manning’s neck will make a sudden recovery. If that doesn’t happen by early March, then everyone will know what’s going to happen to Manning.