Peyton Manning Panic: 5 Reasons Colts Are Gelded If QB Isn't Healthy

The clock keeps on ticking down to the start of the 2011/12 NFL regular season and Peyton Manning's, you know the one who actually does belong in the same class as Tom Brady, much talked about neck injury continues to linger.

Two weeks of preseason action have already gone by and Colts fans are yet to see their superstar quarterback. While former Colts head coach Tony Dungy was quite adamant that Manning would play in Week 1 of the season "unless he was dead," the questions asking about what happens if he isn't continue to mount.

If he can't go for an extended amount of time this season, all signs point to Indianapolis' season going down in flames.

Terrible Running Game Becomes Horrific

Unlike fellow guaranteed Hall of Famer Tom Brady's team, the Indianapolis Colts rely almost completely on Peyton to win. We've seen how the Patriots perform without Brady, they finished the season with an 11-5 record. 

Manning has never missed a game due to injury in his NFL career, but even he is healthy the Colts are not skilled running offense. Over the last three seasons the Colts have finished 31st, 32nd and 29th in rushing offense. 

The Colts have done nothing to improve the situation with their running game as they have brought back the same committee of backs and will be fielding an aging offensive line that appears unsettled at this point.

Obviously, the Colts have a prolific passing otherwise they wouldn't be the perennial powerhouse that they have been for more than a decade. If the Colts fielded that poor of rush offense with Manning behind center, how bad will it be with the likes of Curtis Painter starting.

Passing Offense Is Too Heavy a Burden for Anyone Else to Bear

With the Colts atrocious run game, any quarterback that stepped in for the injured Manning would need to be elite, or at least above average. MVP quarterbacks don't just grow on trees. There's a reason quarterbacks come at a premium in trades after showing the slightest inkling of starting quality talent—look at the trades for Matt Cassel and Kevin Kolb.

Though there has been speculation that the Colts could bring Brett Favre or Kerry Collins out of retirement, the quarterbacks on the free agent and trade market are all of the untested, unproven or proven useless variety. Favre and Collins are long past their primes and the cabinets are bare for the other two options.

The Colts offense runs through Peyton. He makes the play calls, the pre-snap adjustments, and all the perfect throws. To expect someone to come in and pick up the offense at this juncture is nearly an impossible scenario.

Weak Options at Wide Receiver

This could probably fall under the same umbrella as the previous slide, but I'm gonna point it out separately anyway. Even if we did give the Colts the benefit of the doubt that they could find a solid replacement for Manning, his talents would be restrained by the talents of the team's receiver corps.

Even Peyton struggled throwing the ball to a quickly fading Reggie Wayne and a stable of guys that have no business being starting options. Austin Collie, Pierre Garcon, Anthony Gonzalez and more are solid depth guys that have been put on the map because of Peyton's incredible abilities.

In the past, the Colts focused everything on bringing in more and more offensive talent to surround Manning with, but have skimped on that after realizing that Manning can do plenty fine with less. Unfortunately, this group just will not be good enough to carry the load of an offensively focused team.

The Defense Is Not Elite

The Colts have a defense that works for what the team is capable of doing on offense. Manning puts the Colts ahead, and the defense puts their heads down and puts the pressure on the opposing team's passing game using their Cover 2 defensive scheme and their strong pass rush.

But if Manning is forced to sit, the offense is no longer one that provides its defense with leads to protect. If the undersized Colts defense is forced to become legitimately strong, they will undoubtedly come up short.

The players will become worn down by the increased amount of time on the field they must play since the offense keeps on stalling out in drives.

Is Jim Caldwell a Good Coach?

Jim Caldwell is a very well liked and respected guy in the league, but whether or not he is a good head coach is up for debate. This will be Caldwell's third season as the head coach for the team and he is yet to establish himself as a leader.

Many questioned the hiring, looking at his mediocre head coaching career at Wake Forest. The team has made the playoffs the past two seasons with a combined record of 24-8 and Super Bowl appearance. After a extremely questionable timeout in the team's playoff game against the New York Jets, many who question his decision making.

Peyton has a strong influence on the team, but when there's another quarterback out there Manning won't have much say and Caldwell's decision making will be that much more important. The Colts will have no room for error when Manning's sidelined.

Will Caldwell be able to handle the added pressure?