Peyton is Gone.
Thank you.
Peyton, our love for you is greater than you could possibly know, but it´s still less than everything you gave us. Thank you now, thank you for these 14 years, thank you for those last words, thank you for everything.
I'm at a loss. I've been to two Colts games in my life with the latest one being Manning's last as a Colt. Not sure how to feel about that. Thank you.
2 Like
I've got a paper due Thursday and two problem sets do tomorrow night, but Hell if I'm not going to get drunk and watch great Manning games.
I'm thinking about finishing the Peyton marathon with either the 2006 or 2009 Title Game. Don't know which one, but I'm going to have a celebratory scotch and probably just sob away.
2 Like
@dmstorm22 2006 AFC Championship game. I teach my 4 year old nephews to refer to that as "The Greatest Story Ever Told"
2 Like
@kasey_junk I know that's the obvious choice, and I'm just overthinking this, but Manning's best game as a player in my mind was the 2009 Title Game.
They are both good options. Also up on the list for hte marathon is the Week 2 MNF game against the Dolphins (that'll be quick - 15 minutes:) ), then the 4th & 2. Maybe the 2003 Divisional, or hte 2006 Divisional. God, what a player.
somehow the whole article is not showing up on my PC. I can only see the comments. Can somebody help me here.
Well, first off and most importantly, words can't express how much thanks we owe to Peyton for all the wonderful times (and even the heartbreaking playoff losses because they made the SB win all the sweeter and at least we were perennial contenders). I know I speak for every Colts fan with a soul when I say that we're going to miss having #18 behind center. It certainly seems like WAAAAY too soon to be saying goodbye to Peyton whether it's best for the longterm future of the franchise or not. I'd say my overall mood is melancholy, like when you know your loved one has moved on to a better place after a difficult struggle with some terminal illness, but in your heart you still want them there with you. Maybe a bit steeped on the melodrama, but that's kind of what it feels like.
On a brighter note, I am hopeful for the future with the rebuilding of a new (and probably completely different) franchise. I don't expect it to be a revival of the glory days with Peyton, but I do expect to have a competitive team for years to come that may eventually win us another ring, if we're fortunate (avoiding Luck puns). This may well be what we needed to do to move on, but it sucks. I do, however, look forward to watching Manning continue to school opposing defenses on whatever team he moves to. We love ya, Peyton, and best of Luck (dammit) wherever you end up (hopefully not the Jets...).
Maybe only mostly dead. Big difference. From the Star:
Irsay and Manning are expected to fly back to Indianapolis from Florida tonight on Irsay’s private jet. Both sides remain open to Manning staying with the Colts under a restructured contract, but the source emphasized the difficult dynamics involved. “It’s not that either side doesn’t want it to work out (in Indianapolis),’’ the source said. “It’s almost a perfect storm working against that.’’
2 Like
It pains me that the last throw Manning had in a Colts uniform was a ball one-inch too low for Blair White, that if it was complete, we beat the Jets.
It pains me more that the last throw of Manning in a Horseshoe helmet is in a grainy amateur video at Duke.
1 Like
Even incomplete, they should've beaten the Jets.
The last we saw of him in a Colts uniform was him leaving the field with a lead and a minute to play, then throwing his arms up in disgust at his coach for calling one of the most idiotic timeouts in football history.
2 Like
No matter how much we prepared for this it still doesn't feel good. For long-time fans it's incredibly painful because we remember the rough days. For fans who came with Peyton it may be even harder because losing for long periods of time is something they've never experienced.
I won't pretend to know what the future holds or bother to predict an utter collapse of the team but I know rebuilding is hard and often unsuccessful. No matter what that future may bring I'm incredibly thankful for Peyton Manning because he instilled this city and state a deep sense of pride. No matter how hard the days ahead may be let's remember to hold to that pride.
1 Like
@coltsauth_todd A-freakin-men. I will always be grateful for Peyton for taking this moribund franchise to the promised land. He won more games in his 14 years here than I saw this team win in the previous 21 years I was following the Colts. I know this is a rebuild, but I hope the thing Peyton leaves behind is the intangible of a winning culture.
1 Like
@CrizzleColts @Marc_Indy I believe he's thanking Sean Payton for allowing the bounty system to go on so it could come back to bite them in the ass
1 Like
Incredible... What an awful day to be a Colts fan... Tomorrow will be a day of reflection and thankfulness for everything that Manning meant to me, my family, the state of Indiana, and the Colts. Thanks for everything Peyton, but today is a day of mourning. One of the worst days in the history of sports for me.
Well, I was completely wrong. If it turns out that Manning wanted to work things out at a lower number and Irsay wanted to move on, this will be bad for the franchise on and off the field. If Peyton wouldn't budge on the money, the Colts had no choice. Peyton is going to be great again.
1 Like
I was a Colts fan before Manning ('95 season FTW!) and I'll be a Colts fan long after Manning retires. I'm still more than disappointed in the entire way this played out and how everything was handled. Looks like the Colts and wherever Manning goes are going to be 1A and 1B
1 Like
Nothing I have to say right now is kind, and I'd probably regret writing from raw emotion. So I'll just join Nate.
Thank you, Peyton!!!
:(
Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!
Time to get a new favorite team now. Even though I haven't posted much, I've really enjoyed reading everyone's posts here and at 18to88 over the years. I'll cheer for the Colts still, but I was always Peyton first (even if he will end up on the Pats (ugh, thankfully a nonsensical idea)) from my UT days.
1 Like
@filiusdextris "Time to get a new favorite team now"
????????????????????
Seriously?
You don't belong here.
5 Like
Forget that idiocy. People become fans for all kinds of reasons, all of them arbitrary. To exclude them because their arbitrary reasons are different than your own is silly.
I can assure you the vast majority of people with Colts jersey's in their closet are fans from the post Manning era, and I won't be surprised when they stop being fans now that Manning's reign of success is over.
At least filiusdextrus is being honest about the situation.
@kasey_junk From day one I have always said that I will buy my first Peyton jersey when 18 was no longer a Colt. Looks like that day arrives tomorrow. Bummed.
@Macko I learned to really respect the organization for its class, attention to detail, sportsmanship, and community. Above all, I was impressed by the Christian motif in the clubhouse under Dungy with his twice weekly Bible studies. I was always Peyton first, and some of my other reasons have dissipated in the past couple of years. Did I ever belong here? I won't quibble with you, but I was a Colts fan.
2 Like
Even after preparing for this for months, I am devastated. I'll never stop being a Colts fan, but I'll never stop being a Peyton fan either. I want him to win the next two Super Bowls. I want him to go to the desert and give those fans some of the joy he gave all of us.
I'll join Nate in saying "Thank You". There is nothing more to say. I'll have to find a San Fran fan to figure out how he dealt with Montana playing somewhere else.
1 Like
@dmstorm22 Could not agree with this any more. Every day I've been checking news, waiting to see the headline "Manning released by Colts," and today when it came, it still felt like someone kicked me in the balls and them stepped on my soul. I will forever love Peyton and the Colts, even if they aren't together, something that was once unthinkable. I'm sick just thinking about it.
2 Like
My favorite Peyton highlight video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDpX8JD7uyA
1 Like
My favorite part of that video? Every time he throws to Marvin, 88 is WIDE FREAKING OPEN. That guy could not be covered.
@Coltsheadben I wish I paid more attention back when I actually lived in Indiana to appreciate what Peyton and Marvin did together. Of course, I was a teenager, but still...
Sad day :(.
We were spoiled as hell to get to witness over a decade of greatness, the man is perhaps the best to play the position. I am thankful as a fan for what I was able to enjoy. But at this point, this is the decision that had to be made.
I hope he is able to play somewhere and have some success, and have his career end on a more positive note than this awkward end.
1 Like
Can I just say that, given the past year, I'm kind of glad that it has ended this way? Manning seems to be recovering and hopefully will continue his record-breaking career, and I will root like hell for him WHEREVER he goes. And my home team gets a great QB prospect with the potential to give Indy another fifteen years of excellence. I'd much rather it happen this way than, say, Manning retiring. I want to see 18 throwing the ball, period, even if it can't be in Indy.
I dont agree at all...i wanted him to retire as a Colt. This blows dicks, there is nothing happy or good about this situation.
Those of you who cant wait to see him in another uni have a few screws loose
@Coltsheadben I'll go ahead and agree with that entire paragraph. I'd like to see him finish in Indy, but I knew it wasn't much of a possibility. I just hope he does well wherever he goes next.
