Post Date: 03/15/12 09:28
While we wait on a decision by Peyton Manning, it appears that he has at least narrowed his choices down to 4 teams; Arizona, Denver, Miami, and Tennessee. Reports vary as to whether there are clear front-runners between them, but most recently it sounds like Denver and Tennessee have the upper hand. Wherever he ends up, a ripple effect will occur. With that in mind, here are some possibilities depending on which team he decides to play for in 2012.

If Peyton Manning signs with Denver:

What to do with Tim Tebow? Sit him down to learn from Manning the next couple of seasons? Certainly I can't see Manning wanting to come out in specific situations during the game for the Broncos to use special "Tebow Packages". If they don't keep Tebow, they end up having to trade him, and likely getting much less in return than the first round pick they spent on drafting him. If Manning is in Denver, that means the Cardinals keep Kevin Kolb; the Titans keep Matt Hasselbeck; and the Dolphins explore Matt Flynn as a fall back option to compete with Matt Moore or potentially draft Texas A&M QB Ryan Tannehill to compete with Moore.

If Peyton Manning signs with Tennessee:

Goodbye Matt Hasselbeck! The QB competition that was supposed to occur between Hasselbeck and Jake Locker becomes no contest as Locker will sit and learn from Manning and the Titans will release Hasselbeck. If Manning is in Tennessee, the Cardinals again keep Kolb; the Broncos keep Tebow; and the Dolphins could try to get Hasselbeck instead of Flynn to compete with Moore. Hasselbeck is very experienced in a west coast system. But likely the Dolphins would be bidding against the Cleveland Browns as a reunion between Hasselbeck and Browns president Mike Holmgren (who was Hasselbeck's head coach much of his time in Seattle) makes sense. Hasselbeck in Cleveland would likely mean the Dolphins would go back to Flynn. Hasselbeck would likely be handed the starting job over Colt McCoy in Cleveland.

If Peyton Manning signs with Arizona:

Goodbye Kevin Kolb! The Cardinals will release Kolb and Manning will step in as the starter and mentor for John Skelton. If Manning is in Arizona, the Broncos keep Tebow; the Titans keep Hasselbeck and let him and Locker compete; and the Dolphins would turn their attentions to either Flynn or Kolb to compete with Moore. Miami is expected to run a west coast system and Kolb has experience in that. The release of Kolb brings the Browns back into play as Kolb could be reunited with his former QB's coach in Philadelphia, now head coach in Cleveland, Pat Shurmur. Cleveland is not sold on Colt McCoy as their long term answer and appear to be waiting to see what other veterans become available (like Hasselbeck or Kolb) once Manning makes a decision.

If Peyton Manning signs with Miami:

Matt Moore would become the clear backup to Manning. The Broncos stay with Tebow; the Cardinals stay with Kolb; the Titans stay with Hasselbeck. Cleveland would then likely turn their attention to Matt Flynn or David Garrard. The Browns could also look at the draft and consider Texas A&M QB Ryan Tannehill if he continues to have such a meteoric rise on draft boards.

Now if Manning goes into the weekend without making a decision, it's likely the Cardinals will drop out of the race for his services. They owe Kolb a $7 million roster bonus and have to make a decision by 4pm Eastern time on Friday on whether they are going to retain Kolb. If Manning hasn't made a decision by then, I think the Cardinals will keep Kolb, pay him the bonus, and drop out of the sweepstakes. The other option for the Cardinals would be to release Kolb despite not knowing whether Manning is coming and wait for his decision. In this case, they would be hoping he chooses Arizona, but if he chose Tennessee instead, the Cardinals would then likely go after Matt Hasselbeck. If Manning chooses Denver or Miami, the Cardinals would be left scrambling to get a QB to compete with John Skelton for the 2012 season.

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On any given Sunday any fantasy team can beat another, only to still lose Monday night.

Post Date: 03/15/12 11:37
Wow, teams willing to spend big money, arguably for one of the best QBs of all time. But I still see this as a "rent a QB" for a few seasons. AZ gave up a good defensive player to get Kolb, I just can't see them pulling a trigger on this deal. I think you gotta give Kolb a shot. Yeah Cards fans, I know that is what last year was, but they did toss a good amount of money, which leads me to believe they stick with Kolb.

Both DEN and moreso, TEN better fits. Both has potent offensive teams, both feature a good TE position (advantage to TEN on this one), they have a good corp of WRs. Maybe Manning to TEN makes more sense since they do have Chris Johnson in the backfield. Who knows. Guess we wait a bit longer.

I still feel is a short term solution and a very risky move at that.
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Stephen
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