I know I haven't written anything in awhile, and I just couldn't bring myself to write about a "noodle arm" or "nerve re-generation." I have been wanting to look at the cap implications of this mess since it started so I think I'll take this chance.

Much has been made about the cap consequences of the Colts having both Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck on the same roster. Many have called it cap suicide. I have heard a number of ideas about what the Colts should do with all the cap room that cutting Manning would afford them. It begs the question; How much cap room would that actually give us?

Let's take a look at the contract Manning signed before this season started. It was a 5 year deal worth a total of $90 million. It broke down this way:

$20M Signing Bonus (due at the time of signing)

$3M Roster Bonus for 2011 (due for being on the roster as of June 1, 2011)

$28M Team Option Bonus (due March 8, 2012 to engage last 4 years of contract)

$39M Salary over 5 years

I'll break down what that means after the jump.

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As fans and media, we overvalue championships.

No, really. We do. Way overvalue them.

If you win rings, you are awesome. If you don't, you suck. That's pretty much what it all boils down to when people evaluate the greatness of one player over another. However, when you try and apply logic to this extremely vapid and lazy criteria, it all falls apart... kind of how the Patriots defense kind of fell apart in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLVI.

The most recent example of overvaluing championships are articles like this one, articles where writers are actually asking the question as to whether a quarterback with zero league MVPs and a career rating of 82.1 is better than one who has won four league MVPs and has a career rating of 94.9.

Of course, we're talking about the moronic 'Is Eli now better than Peyton' question, a question so insulting to your intelligence it should make flames shoot out of your eye sockets.

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You all know how I feel, and based on response I'm getting via Twitter, email, and a few comments here, fans agree with my opinion. However, let's toss up a poll anyway. Do you like the Colts hiring Greg Manusky as their new DC? It's a Yes-No question. If you feel as though you want to give Manusky 'a chance' and, thus, have no opinion, then don't vote.

This past weekend, it was reported that the Steelers were wooing former Colts head coach Jim Caldwell to be their offensive coordinator, a position Caldwell has never held at the collegiate or NFL level. Well, it turns out being a coordinator isn't what Caldwell is interested in doing.

After visiting the Steelers this weekend, former Colts HC Jim Caldwell plans to join Ravens offensive staff, likely as QB coach.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 30, 2012

Personally, I think this is a good move by Baltimore. Caldwell was a good QB coach from 2002-2008. Peyton Manning had his greatest seasons as a pro under Caldwell's guidance. Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is very similar to Peyton in terms of physical ability. Caldwell will help him get better.

I'm happy Caldwell was able to get another job in the NFL. Let's just be honest: Many thought he was unqualified for the job he was handed in 2009, and those concerns turned out to be legit. I know several players liked and respected Caldwell, but in the two most critical areas that a head coach must excel in (coaching personnel and game management), Caldwell was lacking.

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'New era.'

Two words Jim Irsay has used repeatedly to describe where the Indianapolis Colts are heading in 2012. Now, with the hiring of former-Ravens defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano as the Colts new head coach, the organization is truly entering uncharted territory.

The firing of Bill and Chris Polian was the beginning, and the hiring of first-time general manager Ryan Grigson continued to hammer home the message. The Colts could have opted to promote from within, handing the G.M. duties to their director of player personnel Tom Telesco. However, Telesco's best friend is Chris Polian, and he owes his career to Bill. Simply promoting Telesco didn't read 'New Era.' It read 'Polian-Lite.'

Then there was the news that the franchise would retain Jim Caldwell as head coach (while also hiring Steve Spagnuolo as defensive coordinator). If Caldwell had stayed, 'New Era' would have been about a relevant as 'New Coke.' Caldwell had to go, and when Spagnuolo left his coordinator interview (which Caldwell participated in) without a deal, Caldwell's fate was sealed.

Replacing Caldwell is someone very different. Gone are the coaches from the Tony Dungy tree. The temperament both Dungy and Caldwell practiced on the sidelines will be replaced by Pagano, a man who once told the media, on the record, that his coaching stint as an assistant in Oakland was comparable to a prison sentence.

No, seriously. He actually said that, and he did so with a I-could-give-a-crap-how-Oakland-feels-about-this expression on his face.

Pagano is known for his brashness and his humor. He is considered a 'players coach,' and is not afraid to speak his mind to media. He also likes to run defensive formations out of a 3-4 base, working with large, interior tackles to mix with multiple blitz packages. He is a pressure guy. Someone who designs defenses to attack the quarterback from all angles.

More Rex Ryan. Less Tony Dungy.

This is a big shift. Tempered, pragmatic responses along the lines of 'take care of the little things' are going to be replaced by phrases on par with comparing Oakland to San Quentin.

Oh, and the Tampa-2? Likely gone. Bend-but-don't-break defense? Seeya. Zone coverages? Adios.

Get ready for blitz, blitz, and blitz some more. That's Pagano's background, which also happens to be Grigson's as well. Grigson scouted for Jim Johnson in Philadelphia, where blitzing all their linebackers was considered a prevent defense.

This is going to be a very different culture in Indianapolis. Very different indeed. From my perspective, it's a change that is long overdue. Interesting side note: Pagano was brought to the Ravens organization by John Harbaugh in 2008 to coach their secondary. John is the brother of Jim Harbaugh, the man who recruited and coached Andrew Luck at Stanford. If I have to draw out the connections even further for you, you've been living under Gibraltar the last three months.

Some people might not like this 'New Era,' and those some people probably go by the name of 'Peyton Manning.' Regardless of what those some think, change was needed. Desperately needed. In this case, the change we are getting could be a very welcome breath of fresh air.

Welcome to Indianapolis, Coach Pagano.

Go Colts!

I'm not going to hate on Bob Kravitz this morning because, when all is said and done, he's a good writer. Rather, I'm going to poke a little fun at him. There's really no other way to treat him after his meltdown on Twitter last night following the reports that the Colts will retain Jim Caldwell as head coach in 2012.

We'll start out by going back to the timeline.

It all began when Indianapolis sports radio host Jake Query tweeted Saturday night that the Colts will keep Jim Caldwell as head coach in 2012, and that an announcement was expected Tuesday or Wednesday. Bob Kravitz saw this tweet, and, in a passive-aggressive sort of way, did his best to discredit it. He started his response to the Query report by tweeting 'No disrespect,' and then used the rest of his 50 characters to disrespect Query and his dismiss his story. There was some bickering back-and-forth between Query and Kravitz, which I highlighted in this article. In the end, it seemed to settle down to a 'let's see how things play out' kind of resolution.

Harmless spat. No harm. Everyone moves on.

Then, on Sunday, Indianapolis Star beat writer Mike Chappell posted his weekly 'Ask the Expert' piece, where he answers questions from readers. In the piece, he reported (or so it was presented) that the Colts will indeed keep Caldwell and that the announcement will come Tuesday or Wednesday.

Well, that's kind of a big deal.

Here is the local beat writer essentially confirming Jake Query's earlier report, which Chappell's colleague, Bob Kravitz, did his best to discredit the day prior. Chappell's news was so big that the Indianapolis Star's sports twitter account (@indystarsports) blew the bombshell up all over the Internet Monday night:

Reporter Mike Chappell expects Colts to retain Jim Caldwell, announcement tomorrow or Wednesday. indy.st/AcKVaV

— Indy Star Sports (@IndyStarSports) January 16, 2012

Well, it was at that point when I thought it prudent to suggest that Kravitz apologize to Query. Kravitz's colleague had just confirmed Query's report, and it's just good gamesmanship for Kravitz, who seemed pretty clearly out-scooped by Query, to say sorry and congratulate Jake on his news-breaking skills.

Instead of doing this, Bob opted to toss an insult my way, rant insanely against rumor-mongering, and, in general, make a bunch of illogical, contradictory comments.

In short, Bob Kravitz sounded an awful lot like Bill Polian last night on Twitter.

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It's a telling sign when people are writing more stories about where Peyton Manning will play next year then they are articles about what the Colts can do to get better with him as their starting quarterback in 2012. Regardless of whether or not the Colts retain Jim Caldwell as head coach next year (and if they do, it's going to make this 'New Era' chatter fall on deaf ears), the prospect of Peyton Manning under center next year for the Indianapolis Colts doesn't make any sense. I've written about this, as has my colleague Bomani Jones, but at some point the Colts and their fans need to let go of Peyton and move on.

The question now is, Move on to where?

Peyton Manning is old. Football old. Some would say just plain old-old, but 36-years-of-age in the NFL is pretty geriatric. Thus, any suggestion that Peyton has time to fiddle around with a mediocre team is a waste of breath. Where Peyton goes will depend on three key factors: Location, cap space, and opportunity.

Location is important because Peyton will probably not want to play in the Colts division. In fact, the further away from Indianapolis, and the AFC in general, the better. Peyton's legacy will always be with the Colts, but neither he nor owner Jim Irsay want to do anything to potentially hurt that legacy, and seeing Peyton in a Titans uniform would certainly piss off a lot of loyal fans. Both sides do NOT want to mirror the mistakes made by Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers in 2008.

Cap space is equally critical. Peyton isn't going to play for the 'vet minimum.' If any team wants Peyton, they will need to fork over roughly $28 million to get him, which is what the Colts will owe him if they keep him after March 9th. No discounts. No cap-friendly deals with incentives. Peyton will only play for top-tier asking price, or he simply won't play. Money equals status in the NFL. If you get paid a lot, you are considered good in the eyes of the players. Peyton is a leader among the players and their union. Don't look for him to slash his asking price for anyone.

Finally, there is opportunity. The Colts are rebuilding, and are probably looking at another 2-14 season next year. If they are lucky, six wins. This team is old, lacking talent, and unsure of its direction. Wherever Peyton goes, the destination team pretty much needs to be a quarterback away from contending. Anything less isn't a consideration.

Factoring in these criteria, I've isolated the four teams most likely to land a presumably healthy No. 18 in 2012. And don't worry Colts fans, none are in the AFC South.

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With the launch of a bold rebuilding phase from our almighty leader and owner, Jim "Balls of Steel" Irsay, the future of many still dangle in the balance.

First, we saw the dismissal of Bill and Chris Polian – Bill, the face of the franchise, internally, for what seemed like a million years – that would set the stage to completely alter the foundation upon which the Colts’ top-flight fundamentals were nurtured.

Irsay felt the dismissal of the Polians was necessary to implement a future with a fresh and revised direction.

Now, with the new league year only three months away, many of our favorite Colts could find that their best opportunity to win another ring might reside at another destination. They might also come to the realization that their services will no longer be rendered complimentary to the future development of this team.

All bets are off, folks.

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