Indianapolis Colts Sign Kerry Collins: Should Colts Fans Be Worried?

Kerry Collins (and not Brett Favre, thank God) has been pulled off his couch and out of retirement by the Indianapolis Colts, reportedly. Colts' team owner Jim Irsay tweeted the preliminary announcement around 10 am CT today. Irsay’s twitter account has created some rumblings with potential personnel additions lately, as Irsay appears more and more concerned about Peyton Manning’s status for the beginning of the regular season in September.

Collins figures to be catapulted to the top of the Colts’ depth chart while Manning rehabs because of the sub-par performances by the Colts other backups, Curtis Painter and Dan Orlovsky.

Collins is the real deal, and has shown over his lengthy NFL career that he can get the job done. In 16 NFL seasons, he passed for 40,441 yards and scored 206 touchdowns. He has been named to two Pro Bowls as well.

The biggest question mark for Collins is whether he will be able to withstand opposing team’s defenses if the Colts patchwork offensive line doesn’t hold up.

The move by the Colts front office, however, is a bad sign that Manning will not be the starting quarterback on opening day when the Colts take on their division rivals, the Houston Texans. If Manning cannot go in Week 1, his streak of 227 consecutive streaks would come to a screeching halt.

Collins was signed by the Colts with the details of the deal to follow shortly. Sources indicated that the team was also considering Marc Bulger and Jake Delhomme as possible short-term band-aids if Manning sits in Week 1.

Collins has ties to the Colts’ Vice Chairman, Bill Polian and head coach Jim Caldwell. Polian was the general manager of the expansion Carolina Panthers, when Collins was drafted with the fifth pick in the 1995 draft. Caldwell was part of the Nittany Lions’ coaching staff during Collins’ college days at Penn State.

Collins is definitely an upgrade compared to Painter, the Colts no. 2 starter. In last week’s preseason game against the Washington Redskins, Painter managed only one first down, and failed to move the team past their own 30-yard line.

The move by the Colts to acquire Collins appears like a move of desperation to ensure that the team doesn't dig itself into an early season hole that it cannot recover from. Even Manning’s comments hint that he may not be ready for the Texans, a scary notion for the Colts’ fan who hasn’t seen another quarterback start in Indianapolis in nearly 10 NFL seasons.

“I certainly want to be out there, and it's hard to keep track of the hours I've spent in rehab,” Manning said. “I was shortchanged a little bit by the lockout and I'm going to need every bit of the next two weeks, and then I can give you more of an update with where I am.”

The last Colts quarterback before Manning to start was Jim Harbaugh, the current head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.