Should the Colts trade the No. 1 pick?

Yes. Or draft Trent Richardson or Justin Blackmon.

 

With that $28 million bonus staring everyone in the face, Manning will not get traded. The Colts either pay him, which means they're keeping him, or they're cutting him. And if they cut him, that means Manning is a long, long way from playing. So Manning might, say, land with another team in a year or two if he gets healthy, but he's either playing for Indianapolis next year, or he's playing nowhere.

 

Manning cannot be traded. The bonus is due in March and trades cannot be made prior the when the bonus is due.

 

You follow this team daily so you would know better, but are those the only two options? Isn't there a lot of in-between where he's a reasonable risk at, say, $4 million for someone else if the Colts cast their lot with Luck? I see the $28M being as big of a hurdle as his physical condition.

To clarify: I am not suggesting a trade. I am suggesting there will be a decent market for him in free agency when the Colts cut him.

 

They are as talent poor as their record suggests. Hence the no wins.
Manning makes them better, but even with him they're not making the playoffs this year.

 

The only way for the Colts to keep Manning while not paying the $28 million is to renegotiate the deal, and no way in hell that gets done before March. We're already in December, and nobody knows if Manning will be able to throw the ball, all the time, like the Manning of old. Plus, even if the Colts renegotiate, they're still paying a sizable bonus, as you always do the first year of a contract. And if Manning is ready to throw like a superstar, it's not like you can talk him out of that contract -- or that you would.

My sense of my fellow Colts fanboi loosers is that it would be sad to see Manning end things like this, that it would be great to have him back to the Manning of old. But everyone understands -- and Luck's availability makes it easier to feel that way -- that you can't keep Manning around if he can't throw, and that the Colts need to start now with the post-Manning rebuilding, even if he CAN come back. Manning's loss really exposed how awful the Polians' talent-searching and the coaches' talent development has been.

 

If I were DeMaurice Smith and the Colts tried to convince Manning to waive that bonus and renegotiate a more team-friendly deal, I think I'd shit a brick.

As Bob (and I, and others) have said again and again, he's not getting traded. The options are:

1. Retire a Colt.
2. Get released and play elsewhere.

 

I understand that, Bob. My question, though, is: Your earlier post seemed to be saying either the Colts pay him $28 million or he doesn't play for anyone in 2012. But there seems to be a large chance that the Colts decide the bonus isn't worth the risk, the sides can't agree on a renegotiation, Manning becomes a free agent, someone else takes a chance, and he is on the field in 2012.

 

I guess there is always someone who will take a chance. But I think if Manning can throw, the Colts keep him. I also have a hard time seeing Manning himself agreeing to a deal elsewhere if he can't throw, even if someone else wants to take a chance on him. The trouble is, say he's "halfway" there. Well, how long does it take for him to come back? What team wants to count on that? The 0-13 Colts should tell what happens when you think that way.

 

Unless Manning retires, I don't think Andrew Luck will wind up in Indy.

 

This is probably where my question about teams looking for a first-round QB should have gone.

I only see four teams who would chase a QB without a second thought -- Washington, Miami, Seattle and Oakland. Everyone else either has a veteran presence or an uber-kid already running the show.

 

You really believe Jacksonville wouldn't take Luck if they could trade up?

If he is as good as people say I would say there are a lot more than 4 teams that would pursue him. You should probably add San Fran, KC, Cleveland and Miami to that list