Former chairman Bill Polian backs QB Peyton Manning as ultimate player for Indianapolis Colts – NFL News
Indianapolis Colts' former vice chairman, Bill Polian, has lived up to his reputation of being an outspoken person on the issue of their quarterback (QB), Peyton Manning, despite that his views are unlikely to affect the team’s decision-making after his
termination a couple of weeks ago.
Manning was the main reason behind the sacking of Polian and yet the vice chairman, while speaking for the first time on the issue since his departure, has come out in support of the player as the ultimate option for the team.
Polian in his post-firing comments had admitted that a failure to find and groom a replacement for the injured QB had cost the Colts the entire 2011 National Football League (NFL) season. It also cost him his job.
Peyton Manning had a neck surgery in September 2011 and without a timeline for his recovery and return, he was left on the active roster throughout the season by the management with hopes of his return at some point of the season.
In spite of the repeated assurances from the former chairman Manning didn't appear in the entire season.
The team without the QB ended the season with only two wins and 14 losses. This prompted Colts' owner, Jim Irsay, to immediately get rid of the Chairman and his son, Chris Polian, who was the general manager of the team.
Their sacking followed to the termination of their head coach, Jim Caldwell, and almost all of their assistant coaches.
It is yet again that Polian has come out openly about the handling of the Manning issue by his team. His latest comments have come amid apparent disappointment of the player over the latest developments in the team.
"We inside the building for Peyton, people outside of it for their own perception of the team: We just don't know, and nobody can tell you," Polian said.
The former vice-chairman added:
"I'll at least paraphrase Dr. (Robert) Watkins, who operated on Peyton back in September. He said, 'There is no potion, there is no medicine, there is no modality, there is no series of exercises, there is no test and there is no surgery that can predict
accurately when a nerve can regenerate,' and that is the issue here."
Polian has backed Peyton to be the ultimate player for the team. The chairman also reiterated his earlier viewpoint that both QBs, Manning and the prospective draft pick, can play alongside each other.
Irsay is expected to meet the player in the near future to discuss his future with or without the team, and Polian is among few voices to be timely heard in the player’s favour.
Manning had himself expressed his sadness on hearing about the Polians' departure, who saw him as one of the hands behind his repeated success with the Colts for many seasons.
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