Luck or Manning? Colts Can’t Have Both

Another Sunday goes by and the Indianapolis Colts get closer and closer to having to finally make the decision. With an 0-14 season hanging over their head, they will have to decide by next season whether to cut Peyton Manning, quite arguably one of the best quarterbacks ever, and his $18 million salary or stick by the injured player for the long haul. Waiting in the wings is a quarterback who is being compared to well…Peyton Manning. He is none other than Andrew Luck, and the Colts have the chance to Draft him for next season.

At least manning spent this week able to throw a football, the problem is he has not been able to practice with the team or play in a game all season, and without being able to evaluate his on field performance the Colts will not be able to decide if he is able to play next year.

The Colts General Manager wants to have the best of both worlds, keep Manning and Draft Luck. Unfortunately this doesn’t make much sense for the team.

The Colts are up against the NFL’s hard salary cap, an issue even with less star power than Manning on the roster. Manning makes up for glaring deficiencies elsewhere on the field, but with him starting and Luck on the bench, those deficiencies will be even more magnified as they will have to cut much more talent to keep both in uniform.

In there lies the rub, if you draft Luck (and the ridiculously high salary he will command) just to sit on the bench, where are you going to get the money to give Manning a team he will be able to bring back to the Super Bowl?

This is a familiar situation for the Mannings (and Luck is a close family friend). Archie Manning, Peyton’s father, advised Peyton’s brother Eli against putting himself in exactly the same situation with the San Diego Chargers. When Eli was drafted by the San Diego Chargers, they already sported an established quarterback in Drew Brees. So Eli refused to sign and demanded a trade to the New York Giants where he has won a Super Bowl.

Should the Indianapolis Colts stick with Peyton Manning or go with Andrew Luck?