Manning and Luck can't co-exist.

Even if the Colts dont take a quarterback in the draft they would have to spend a pretty good chunk of money to get a quarterback who can play.

I think they should make Peyton if not head coach then offensive or quarterback coach.
Whose the one that was coaching all year and has always called his own shots. The colts look up to him and he has been there leader for years. Besides Andrew needs to learn some tricks from Peyton who is truely a genius. Some things he won’t be able to teach because football is in Peyton’s blood. He understands all sides of it and I think he should be are next coach. The management is stupid for not even thinking of this. Peyton is so much part of the colts I can see it without him.

They might be. Irsay might see this as the best possible way to keep Manning “in the family”. Problem is, until Peyton retires, noone will speak of this publicly because it is not an option. I will be interested to see if the Colts head coaching position is filled prior to deciding whether or not to pay Manning’s option bonus. I see no point in doing so. The Colts front office should keep their options open.
If Peyton were to become the head coach, Irsay can rebuild his franchise around Luck and still have Peyton Manning to keep the home games sold out.

3 reasons why Brandt is totally off base.

1. Suppose that there were no franchise QB in this draft. The Colts would take the best lineman instead and still have to pay him $15 million, and would still have to pay Manning + the #1 overall pick $50 million. If they could have made it work with Manning and, say, USC LT Matt Kalil – and they would have, trust me – they will make it work with Manning and Luck. You could PRETEND that there is a difference between paying that much money for two positions instead of for one, but A) the Colts aren’t going to be a contender in 2012 or 2013 regardless so it doesn’t matter short term and B) the Colts are only going to be paying one of the two – Luck – after 2013, and possibly after 2012, anyway.

2. Brandt is presuming that merely because the Panthers gave Cam Newton $14 million in 2011 that the Colts are going to be obligated to give Andrew Luck $15 million in 2012. They aren’t. The rookie cap contract for Luck will be $23 million, and the Colts can break it up however they choose. As the Panthers were planning on starting Newton immediately and had no other high priced QBs on the roster (Derek Anderson made the veteran minimum; Jimmy Clausen got a 2nd year 2nd round pick salary) it was mutually beneficial for the team and player to give Newton 2/3 of his money upfront, and pay him $1.4, $2.4 and $3.4 million the other 3 years. But the Colts can defer the massive sum to Luck until after Manning is gone. Say Manning plays 2 more years in Indy … the Colts can pay Luck $1.4 million in 2012 and $2.4 million in 2013 to sit on the bench, and then $15 million in 2014 to start when Manning and his contract are no longer around.

3. The oldest QB to win a Super Bowl? John Elway at the age of 38. And Elway was much more mobile with a much stronger arm in his prime, meaning that he could get the ball out and move around a lot better in decline than Manning can do either in his decline. And further, Elway’s Super Bowl wins were as much about Terrell Davis (and that offensive line) as they were about Elway. Well, Manning turns 36 this year. Now he is certainly free to play 5-7 more years if he chooses, and will have no problem finding teams willing to let him, but in terms of being a legitimate threat to win a Super Bowl … it is basically going to be during the next 2-3 years at most. And 2-3 years is going to be about how long it takes AT THE VERY MINIMUM to rebuild a Colts roster that has severe deficiencies in every single unit into a Super Bowl contender. Of course, the Colts MAY be able to use spit, glue, papier mache, smoke and mirrors to get a 10 or 11 win team on the field before that, but it won’t be a Super Bowl contender; just a team that beats up on mediocre and worse teams during the regular season and is quickly exposed in the playoffs.

Bottom line: the Colts will draft Andrew Luck, they will retain Peyton Manning for at least the 2012 season if he is healthy, and they will make it work. Despite what Archie Manning claimed, Luck will have no problem sitting on the bench while Peyton Manning leads a horrible team next season … the only thing that Luck has to lose is a totally meaningless offensive rookie of the year award. And if Peyton Manning has any problems with it, well there is always retirement. But it is very much in the Colts’ interests to play him in 2012, because they will be able to trade him in 2013, and if the Bengals got 2 #1 picks for a battered Carson Palmer, then … again it is VERY MUCH in the Colts interests to coexist with Manning and Luck in 2012.

Why do you all assume that we’ll pay Manning all his contract money? I honestly think that the club shouldn’t exercise the option under any circunstance… If we were to keep Manning we must reestructure his contract, a LOT has changed since he signed his contract, that contract now just don’t make sense…

So for me the possibilities to fit both Manning and Luck in are endless, this 50 million something is pure BS…

Manning the $28 million signing bonus and he plays for 2 years and retires or is traded. the cap hit will be about $22 million. The Colts will not pick up the option and he will be a free agent.