Peyton Manning Rumors: Miami Dolphins Must Gamble on Manning

The Miami Dolphins are reportedly interested in Peyton Manning, and they should do whatever it takes to bring the legendary quarterback to South Beach.

After announcing that Green Bay offensive coordinator Joe Philbin would be taking over as head coach, many thought that Packers backup Matt Flynn would follow him to Miami. However, the Dolphins will sit tight until Manning's situation in Indy is resolved.

This is the smart move by the Dolphins, who need to make a major improvement in the passing game.

Matt Moore was adequate this season, but he's definitely not the long-term solution in Miami. He finished 23rd in the NFL in passing yards (2,497) and tied for 18th in touchdown passes (16). He struggled to get the ball out quickly, taking 36 sacks on the season.

Signing Manning would be a risky move because of his age and health. He will be 36 before next season, his neck injury required multiple surgeries and he had to make a trip to Europe for stem cell treatment in the fall.

Despite the possible downsides, the Dolphins must push all their chips to the center of the table and bring in Manning.

They need to build some excitement before Philbin's first season and adding one of the best players in NFL history would certainly do that.

The list of Manning's accomplishments could fill a library, so I'll just throw out a few. He's an 11-time Pro-Bowler, a four-time NFL MVP and most importantly, a Super Bowl champion. He has nearly 55,000 career passing yards and 399 career touchdowns.

In 2010, Manning was as good as ever. He threw for a career-high 4,700 yards and finished second in the NFL with 33 touchdown passes.

If Manning's neck will allow him to play, I have no doubt that he will put up similar numbers for the next few years.

Although it's risky, the Dolphins need to break out the checkbook and get Manning to South Beach. He would work wonders with Brandon Marshall and Reggie Bush, and unless Miami trades up for Robert Griffin III, they aren't finding their quarterback of the future anytime soon.

If the Dolphins want to be relevant next season, they must sign Manning.