Peyton Manning: Legendary QB Owes It to Indianapolis Colts to Restructure Deal

It's hard to imagine this, but we're at the end of the Peyton Manning era in Indianapolis.

Tim Kavanagh of ESPN laid out three scenarios for the Colts, who are headed toward locking up the No. 1 pick. 

1. Keep Manning, draft Andrew Luck
2. Keep Manning, trade the top pick
3. Draft Andrew Luck, get rid of Manning

The problem is that as things stand now, the Colts will owe Manning $28 million on March 12, which is the first day that they can trade him. The hit would belong to Indianapolis whether Manning is traded or not. 

That leaves us with an interesting scenario. The Colts could cut Manning and wipe that off of the books, but that would be a stab in the back to the man who's meant more to your franchise (in Indianapolis) than any one player. I know it's a business, but Manning deserves more than that. 

So do the Colts. Manning has given the Colts an awful lot, but they have done the same for him. In Indianapolis, Manning has had a tremendous amount of continuity in coaches and players. 

Think about it this way. It wasn't until 2007 that Tom Brady had a group of receivers that came anywhere near what Manning had in Indianapolis. So, while Manning is obviously immensely talented, the Colts have given him an awful lot throughout his career. He owes it to them to return the favor now. 

What that means is that he needs to agree to move the deadline back. That would give the Colts time to trade him and move that cap hit onto someone else. 

In return, you would hope that the Colts would do everything they could to accommodate specific trade requests. Manning deserves to go to a place where he has a chance to succeed.

There's no reason for Manning to not agree to push the deadline back.

For one, if he doesn't, the Colts can just release him. In turn, he wouldn't get that money. 

Someone will overpay for a quarterback. Given Manning's age and injuries, it doesn't sound like someone would be eager to pay $28 million for him, but that's simply not true. 

How many teams out there need quarterbacks?

Think about good teams that are a good quarterback away from being great. Heck, the difference between the 2010 Colts (10-6) and the 2011 Colts (0-13 and counting) shows how valuable Manning really is. 

One of the other 31 teams in the league would pay for him. They'd pay more for the No. 1 pick, but the Colts do need to look forward. That means that they need a younger QB to fill Manning's shoes. 

Manning would be doing the Colts a favor by restructuring his deal, allowing the Colts time to trade him without absorbing the cap hit. But in turn, he would also be doing himself a favor. 

The Colts and Manning have given each other a lot. They each owe it to the other to end their relationship on positive terms, each helping the other out.

Follow @mdixon1985