Concerns lingering about Manning's knee

Ok Ok, we'll admit, this will completely contradict something posted earlier on the site - but who cares? Not me, and that's the main thing. It's one of the beauties of having more than one opinion contributing to a common cause.

Anyway...

With the 30th August deadline rapidly approaching for teams to cut their rosters down to 53, one interesting question will be what the Colts do at the Quarterback position. Peyton Manning has spent a great deal of time rehabbing his knee after an infected bursa-sac was removed in mid-July. Despite reassurances early in the process that the injury would not mean missing any regular season time, coach Tony Dungy has sounded more coy over the last week.

"Everybody can say, 'Oh, if Peyton Manning isn't playing, the Colts are going to be a .500 team. I don't think anybody here believes that. Is it easier to win without Peyton? No. It's going to be tougher."

- Indianapolis Colts Coach, Tony Dungy

As we always say about these kind of statements, the mere consideration of this eventuality means that the team accepts that Manning could actually miss the start of this season. That's not to say that it's a certainty by any means, as you can bet your house on Manning starting if he's even 75% ready to play. The man is as durable as he is talented, but even he concedes that the challenge has been "something totally different than I've ever had to experience."

Next Saturday should give a clear indication of how close Manning is to making the opener. On the roster are four Quarterbacks: Manning, backup Jim Sorgi, former - and in many ways, current - Giant Jared Lorenzen, and Quinn Gray, who started four games for Jacksonville last year. Sorgi has started the pre-season games so far, but has looked far from impressive.

To us, it feels like the Colts are hedging their bets here. The team is usually set with just the two QB's on the roster by this point in the pre-season, and has rarely entertained the prospect of a third, let alone having an open competition for the spot. It all seems like a remarkable coincidence that the Colts would feel the need to do so this year, and if we were gamblers, we'd probably shorten the odds on him missing the opener right now. During the last week, when he was rolled out at practice to sate the press, Manning has looked like exactly what he is: an injured player. The guy can hardly walk, let alone play, and with just two weeks until the team take on Chicago in a rematch of Superbowl XLI, there isn't a great deal of time for Manning to regain confidence in his knee, let alone his team mates.

Manning has not missed a game in his ten years in the league up to this point, but it seems that at least short term, Indy may be forced to consider what life is like without their talisman.