Peyton Manning Had Four Neck Surgeries, Not Three [Insider Report]
Peyton Manning had four surgical procedures to correct problems in his neck and not the three surgeries have have recently been reports, that according to an NFL insider with access to Manning’s records.
While there have been conflicting reports about the number of surgeries Manning underwent a source at SI.com says the Indianapolis Colts quarterback underwent a fourth procedure after his May 23 surgery to fix a bulging disk. If that report is correct the surgery would have been just before his Sept. 9 neck fusion surgery.
That same report states that all of the procedures were isolated to the right side of the QB’s neck.
When contacted about the fourth surgery Manning’s agent simply responded:
“I wouldn’t have anything to say about all of that, one way or another.”
The number of surgeries and his ability to still perform as a contending quarterback are very important to the Colts since a $28 million roster bonus is due to the quarterback on March 8 should the Colts choose to keep Manning on their roster or fully replace him with their No. 1 pick in quarterback Andrew Luck.
In the meantime Jim Irsay told ESPN on Tuesday that the choice to stay will be up to Manning:
“We want this to be his decision. We want him back if he wants to come back. We can work out the contract if he wants to work it out. It’s going to be Peyton’s call.”
Speaking of the injury the team’s owner said:
“It’s a two-pronged thing. The first is if and when the nerve regenerates and whether it allows him to play at a high level. But I always want Peyton to understand the risk-rewards about playing. We want to make sure he understands the long-term aspects of his health in trying to play.”
At this point the decision to keep Manning will come down to financial concessions made on behalf of the QB along with a fully cleared medical report.
Do you think Peyton Manning is on his way out or will Andrew Luck have at least a few good years to learn from the veteran NFL quarterback?
