Why Indianapolis Colts are at loss without Peyton Manning - I
Indianapolis Colts were seen anxiously waiting for two things to happen for them in the 2011-12 regular season of the National Football League (NFL).
First, it was their first win of the season, and the second, recovery of their injured quarterback (QB), Peyton Manning.
Both of them seem linked together, tightly, and both very hard to come by for them.
However, it was their win that came first, while still waiting for the second one to come by.
Colts were at loss for their first 13 games of the season. It was their fourth tie, against the Tennessee Titans, into week 14 of the NFL, that they recorded their first victory of their season.
They then went on to pull off another win straight in their very next game, against the American Football Conference (AFC) south champs, the Houston Texans.
However, sooner they realized that their wins were untimely and did not fit in their hopes for the top draft prize next season.
They needed to finish as the top losers of the league to claim eligibility for the top draft pick. He could be the Stanford College’s QB, Andrew Luck.
They then have to end the season the way they had started it: on the losing note. Courtesy of their final loss they now stand eligible for the draft. They are expected to sign him next draft season that begins in April this year (2012).
Another thing that kept the Colts in waiting so long to come true, are their hopes for recovery of their QB, Peyton Manning, from his third straight neck surgery in two years.
Manning had neck surgery in September 2011. He is in recovery since. Despite that the Colts did not have a timeline on his recovery; he was left on their active roster throughout the season 2011, with their ambitious hopes of him making a comeback at some
point of time in the season.
Their hopes were reflection of their anxiousness to see the QB back to their side sooner or later.
He mattered to them so much that it is for the first time in history of the league that a player has been left on the active roster of a team for whole season, despite that they had no confirmation of his recovery and resumption of his career.
This shows how much Colts were dependent on the one man. It was for the first time in his 14 years stay at the Colts that Manning did not start at the QB position for them.
It was the only season with him being absence and it was the only season that the Colts could not pull off win in game until 14th game of the league.
Apparently, the Colts seemed at loss without Peyton Manning. It was their negligence to find and groom his replacement that cost them the whole season. This is admitted by both their sacked officials in their respective comments.
It also cost the jobs of their vice chairman, Bill Polian, and general manger, his son, Chris Polian.
Polian in his post-sacking comments admitted that it was his total reliance on Manning throughout 2011 season despite the Colts continued downfall that he blamed was responsible of his firing by the team management.
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