Peyton takes knee out of question.

huevonkiller · Aug 26, 2008

Peyton takes knee out of question

By MICHAEL MAROT, AP Sports Writer 1 hour, 19 minutes ago

INDIANAPOLIS (AP)—More than a month after having knee surgery and enduring weeks of rampant speculation about whether the injury was worse than first feared, two-time league MVP Peyton Manning finally provided his doubters with one emphatic answer Tuesday: He’s back, right on schedule.

“This is a significant step for me to get back out on the practice field,” Manning said before throwing and running with teammates. “If things go well, as we expect they will, then I hope to be full go next week and ready for the season opener.”

Manning will be limited in practice initially after being activated from the physically unable to perform list.

Coach Tony Dungy said the Colts will be cautious with the franchise quarterback during this short week—Indy played Buffalo on Sunday night and faces Cincinnati on Thursday—before giving him a full complement of snaps next week.

“We’re going to monitor him and (rookie tight end) Tom Santi, who will start practicing today,” Dungy said. “So we do have a pitch count on those guys.”

It’s been a crazy month for Manning, the Colts’ iron man who has never missed a start in his 10-year NFL career.

He was instructed by doctors not to report to training camp with his teammates July 24, 10 days after having surgery to remove an infected bursa sac from the left knee. Team officials said it would take Manning four to six weeks to recover, and the six-week anniversary came Monday when the Colts did not practice.

Still, local radio talk shows, bloggers and fans continually questioned Manning’s whereabouts and readiness even after Dungy said July 29 that Manning had arrived in Terre Haute, Ind., the Colts’ training camp site.

When Manning didn’t appear at any practices or games, the doubts increased. A local television station ran what appeared to be a cell phone photo of Manning wearing a brace on his right knee—a photo Manning later called not true. Late last week, a national blogger suggested Manning had a second surgical procedure on the right knee, something Manning would not confirm Tuesday.

“I think it’s somewhat irrelevant because of where we are today, and I kind of like to keep you guys guessing,” Manning said, drawing laughter. “I never really like talking too much about an injury because if you play well, they say ‘Man, look how tough he is.’ And if you don’t play well, they say ‘That’s the reason.’ “

Manning’s return has taken on even greater significance given the Colts depleted situation at quarterback.

Longtime backup Jim Sorgi was expected to play into the third quarter Sunday night but never made it out of street clothes because of what the team described as a gimpy knee. Dungy said that although X-rays and tests were negative, Sorgi wasn’t at practice Tuesday because doctors were still trying to control the swelling.

Sorgi’s absence means the Colts have just two quarterbacks, Jared Lorenzen and Quinn Gray, who were both signed July 24, available against the Bengals. Last weekend, Lorenzen produced one significant drive in the first half while Gray threw four interceptions and one touchdown in the 20-7 loss.

But activating Manning doesn’t necessarily mean he will start the season opener, Sept. 7 against Chicago.

“I’m not really doing predictions at this point,” Manning said. “I hope to be ready, and I certainly don’t want to create this dramatic announcement. I think I will do some parts of practice today and tomorrow and I may even dress for (Thursday’s) game though I won’t play. We’ll do a short practice Monday, and then, hopefully, I’ll be full go Wednesday.”

If all goes according to plan, No. 18 will then start against Chicago.

The question that still lingers is how long will it take for Manning to round into MVP form?

Even he’s not sure.

Manning has never missed this much time as a professional or college athlete. One thing that should help in getting the timing down, is that Manning did participate in the team’s spring and summer minicamps and teammates know Manning well enough to know he won’t be behind when he steps onto the field.

“He’s been doing it forever, he’s been doing it since he was 6 years old in his backyard,” two-time Pro Bowl receiver Reggie Wayne said. “He and Marvin (Harrison) have been together forever, and this is my eighth year, so you kind of get used to it.”

With the Manning saga perhaps nearing a conclusion, there are more injury concerns for a Colts team that has opened the past three seasons with at least seven straight wins.

Indy is still trying to figure out what’s wrong with Jeff Saturday’s right knee. Saturday, a three-time Pro Bowler at center, was injured during Sunday’s game and Dungy said doctors are evaluating how serious the injury is.

“We really don’t know, at this point, where it is,” Dungy said. “It could be anywhere from a couple of weeks to a major injury. We don’t know that yet. Jeff has some options, but we don’t know how bad it is and it could be through this weekend before we know for sure.”

Fortunately, the Colts drafted three college centers in April—Mike Pollak in the second round, Steve Justice in the sixth and Jamey Richard in the seventh.

However, Pollak also injured his knee Sunday and isn’t expected to play Thursday.

But at least Manning is back in a helmet and pads.

“I’ve always been confident he’ll be ready (for the opener),” Dungy said. “We’ll start to see how that goes. One thing is we don’t want to put him out there if he’s not physically or mentally ready.”
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Source: Associated Press

Freaking amazing news.

huevonkiller · Aug 27, 2008

Manning back in the fold
Quarterback joins Colts teammates for his first full workout
By Mike Chappell
Posted: August 27, 2008

A bit of normalcy returned to the Indianapolis Colts on Tuesday afternoon as Peyton Manning trotted out of the team's indoor facility and into the bright sunlight.

He did some light throwing. He handed off to running backs and he worked on throwing while moving out of the pocket.
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He's back.

And not a minute too soon.

For Manning, it was a significant occasion, performing all of those practice basics for the first time in a full-team setting since undergoing July 14 surgery to remove an infected bursa sac from his left knee.

Manning moved effortlessly and threw with precision, just as he had in countless other workouts before the surgery.

It was the latest step in a rehabilitation process aimed at having him ready for the Sept. 7 regular-season opener against the Chicago Bears in Lucas Oil Stadium.

The clock is ticking. The opener is 11 days away.

"This is a significant step (Tuesday) for me to be out there on the practice field," Manning said prior to the afternoon workout, the first 30 minutes of which were open to the local media. No players were available after practice. "If things go as we hope they do and expect they do, then I definitely see myself practicing full time next week and playing against the Bears.

"Every day you hope you're making progress and you wake up the next morning and hope you still feel good. So far that's been what we've been dealing with."

Manning said he might be in uniform for Thursday night's preseason finale against Cincinnati in Lucas Oil Stadium, but he isn't expected to play.

Coach Tony Dungy noted that Manning would be on a "pitch count" at least for the first few practices.

"We're going to monitor him," Dungy said.

Pro Bowl receiver Reggie Wayne does not believe it will take Manning long to regain his sharpness with a veteran offense.

"It shouldn't be hard to do," Wayne said. "Look at him and Marv (Harrison). They've been doing it since (1998). With me, this is my eighth year.

"You kind of get used to it, seeing him back there throwing. I'm kind of excited about it."
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Source: Indystar

The Return of the Raider · Aug 27, 2008

Even if he doesn't practice until the first game, I can't imagine that Peyton would miss a beat. The guy is genius.

huevonkiller · Aug 27, 2008

More reviews on his performance:

Manning gets good reviews after first workouts with Colts

Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS -- Now Peyton Manning can start fine-tuning the mechanics, timing and rhythm.

Just don't expect him to try it in Thursday night's preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
NFL.com season preview

Coach Tony Dungy increased the two-time league MVP's workload Wednesday, one day after he finally returned to practice and showed no lingering effects from the knee surgery that kept him out for the past six weeks.

"We didn't have him in team work (Tuesday), but he did fine and hasn't experienced any problems," Dungy said. "So far, so good. He'll get a little more work today."

Manning, who has never missed a start in his 10-season NFL career, had surgery on July 14 to remove an infected bursa sac from his left knee.

Team officials initially said their franchise quarterback would miss four to six weeks, and all along Dungy, team president Bill Polian and others contended Manning was on schedule amid speculation he might miss more time. That didn't end the questions about Manning being hurt worse than first feared, nor did it end the speculation about whether he would keep his streak of 160 consecutive starts intact Sept. 7 against the Chicago Bears.

Things changed Tuesday when Manning returned to practice one day after the six-week anniversary of surgery. Indy did not practice on Monday.

Manning threw passes with velocity and moved around well Tuesday, but as with most injured players, the real test came Wednesday morning when Manning returned to the team complex.

The result: No soreness, which prompted Dungy to gradually increase Manning's workload.

"We've been telling you guys that he's been doing a lot of things, and we have a pretty extensive workout before we let guys get back on the field," Dungy said. "They go through a routine on the side and do some individual work, and it's like a decathlon. So when we clear guys to come back, I usually don't worry about how they're going to be."

Manning, like most of the team's starters, will not play Thursday even though the Colts' quarterback situation is precariously thin.

Longtime backup Jim Sorgi missed another practice on Wednesday, although Dungy said the swelling in his knee has started to subside.

Without Manning and Sorgi, the Colts have only two other quarterbacks -- veterans Jared Lorenzen and Quinn Gray, who were signed last month and are fighting for the No. 3 job. The Colts have traditionally kept only two quarterbacks because of Manning's durability. He's missed only one play in 10 NFL seasons because of injury.

But the uncertain status of Manning and Sorgi for the season opener may force Indy to rethink its philosophy when making final cuts this weekend.

"It's still to be determined from what we do, and a lot of that will be based on the medical report on Jim and Peyton," Dungy said. "So those guys (Gray and Lorenzen) are both going to play, we'll see how they do and then we'll determine whether we keep four, three or two."

Cincinnati also will be without its most prominent players, Carson Palmer and Chad Johnson, the quarterback-receiver combination that wanted to pattern their games after Manning and Marvin Harrison.
Who should you take?

Has Peyton Manning's knee injury damaged his fantasy stock? Find out as NFL.com's Michael Fabiano ranks the best quarterbacks in fantasy land this year. Full story ...

Palmer is out with a broken nose and is expected to be replaced by backup Ryan Fitzpatrick. Johnson will miss the game with an injured left shoulder.

Coach Marvin Lewis still hopes to see running back Rudi Johnson and receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh make their first appearances of the preseason, although they will likely be in cameo roles.

"I would assume very little," Houshmandzadeh said when asked how much he'll play. "But, hey, you know what they say when you assume."

To Rudi Johnson, there's no significance to Thursday's game given the recent trade rumors.

"The (trade) situation has already been presented, the game doesn't really matter," he said.

With Manning back on the field, the Colts' biggest question mark is starting center Jeff Saturday.

Dungy has not said how much time Saturday, a three-time Pro Bowler who injured a ligament in his right knee during Sunday night's loss to Buffalo, would miss. He was at the team complex Wednesday but was not on the practice field.

"I know Jeff was visiting, getting more looks at it," Dungy said. "But I don't have an update on that."

As for Manning, who didn't speak with reporters on Wednesday, teammates thought he looked like his old self.

"It was good to see him back on the field, dressed and ready to go," right tackle Ryan Diem said. "Hopefully, he'll be back all next week. I think he'll be fine because we know how hard he works."
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Source: Associated Press

Dungy stated it pretty much became set in stone that Peyton will start Week 1, because of his performance today.

Colonel Ronan · Aug 28, 2008

He is an amazing QB. Lets hope he's ready.

huevonkiller · Aug 29, 2008

Relax, Colts fans, franchise QB looks like he's ready to go
Posted: August 29, 2008

Stop your worrying. Stop your grousing. The Franchise, Peyton Manning, will be ready to go when the Indianapolis Colts open the season Sept. 7 against the Chicago Bears.

Seriously, was there ever a question?
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"I would be shocked if (Manning) isn't there (for the season opener),'' coach Tony Dungy said after Thursday night's typically unwatchable preseason loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. "He'd have to have a dramatic setback (to miss the game).''

By setback, he means "getting hit by a bus.''

Gnash your teeth about center Jeff Saturday's knee and the fact the Colts don't seem to have much in the way of a second- or third-string quarterback, but as far as the big question of the preseason, consider that one answered.

Manning wasn't around after the game to talk to the media, but his pregame work said virtually everything that needed to be said. After a limited practice Tuesday and a more complete session Wednesday, there was Manning at Lucas Oil Stadium before Thursday's game, engaging in a full pregame warm-up.

Has a man every looked so good in a uniform?

He was throwing, running, sweating, doing everything that Manning does when he's not making commercials.

He looked sharp.

He looked crisp.

He looked like Peyton Manning, as opposed to The Mighty Quinn Gray and Jared Lorenzen, whose battle for the No. 3 quarterback job has held this entire city breathless.

"Peyton wanted to simulate what he's going to do on game day and see how everything felt and if he wanted to alter his routine for (next Sunday),'' Dungy said. "I think he came away feeling pretty good about it. He wanted to see how loose he would be after the wait in the locker room, and we had an exercise bike on the field for him.

"He was pretty happy with the way his routine went. And he told me on the sideline that if he'd started the game, he would have felt in good shape and ready and loose enough to go.''

Manning's knee problem flared up perilously late in the summer and there was a lot of speculation, neither confirmed nor denied by the Colts, that doctors had to go into the knee a second time to address the continued swelling. But over time, Manning has come out of hiding from his "undisclosed location'' and slowly returned to the fold, and two weeks of practice should be more than enough time to get ready.

Will he be as sharp as he would like without taking a single preseason snap? Probably not.

Will he be good enough to give the Colts what they need to beat Kyle Orton and the Chicago Bears? Absolutely.

Manning's return was the easiest call of the preseason. He has missed one snap due to injury in his 10-year career, leaving a home game against Miami with a busted jaw. He played the next few weeks with his jaw wired shut, reduced to drinking his meals through a straw. Along with his other, more apparent virtues, the dude is tough.

The only way Manning was going to miss this game and, in the process, blow up his consecutive-games streak, was if he got his right arm caught in the retractable window on the stadium's north side.

So that's the good news, the best news.

On the other side, there's the Saturday question. Or better yet, questions. The biggest one being, just how badly is this guy hurt?

Dungy said after the game he doesn't know the severity of Saturday's knee injury, saying the player and the team are still exploring their options. That could mean just about anything in ColtsSpeak. If you want the whole truth and nothing but the truth on injuries, bring sodium pentothal and water-boarding devices.

According to Saturday's agent, Ralph Cindrich, the options are more cut-and-dried. The Pro Bowl center could sit out six weeks and rehabilitate the injury, or he could opt for surgery, miss roughly 12 weeks and return for the late-season playoff push.

If I'm the Colts, I'm opting for surgery and saying, "Come back in December and be at full strength for the postseason.''

If I'm Saturday, though, I'm thinking about my financial future, understanding this is a contract year. He will be a free agent at the end of this season. Like San Diego's Shawne Merriman, he may choose to fight through the injury, establish his value on the open market, and then if surgery is needed in the offseason, go ahead and get it done.

It helps that team president Bill Polian, who must have one of those magic eight-balls in his office, drafted a bunch of centers in the most recent draft. Rookie Steve Justice gave it a shot Thursday night. At some point, the other rookie, Mike Pollak, might get a look, or Ryan Lilja, normally a guard, will return from his injury and move to the middle.

All of that, though, is secondary.

Manning will be back.

Feel free to exhale.
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Source: Indystar

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