While it's two days before the real Christmas, the NFL Christmas (free agency) is a few months away and this year there will be a gift available aiken to that of turboman in Jingle All the Way.
A pair of multiple time pro bowlers that have played together for over a decade, won a Super Bowl together, and are one of the most prolific QB-WR combos of all time are possibly going to be hitting the market together. The combo is Peyton Manning and Reggie Wayne. Wayne is almost certainly going to be available while a lot of signs are pointing to a very realistic chance of Peyton being available as well. There is no historical precedence for this, it's very rare that a team allows its future Hall of Fame quarterback to leave the team but to also let his number one receiver move on, well that's never happened. A comparable situation would be when the 49ers traded Joe Montana to Kansas City if they would have included Jerry Rice in the deal. In a quarterback starved and pass happy league there is a deal to be had here that could immediately jump start a team's offense to top 10 level. While it's not a certainty that Peyton will be gone there is a real enough possibility that I think it's fair that we speculate a little bit here.
Assuming Peyton and Reggie wanted to play together and I'm thinking that's a pretty good assumption where could they wind up and how would it go? Here they are ordered by best fit.
1. 49ers - Currently with a mediocre Alex Smith at QB along with a less than superb receiving corps they are positioned at number two in the whole NFC. Sporting one of the top defenses in the whole league with a brilliant offensive minded head coach adding Peyton and Wayne could take this team to a whole different level. The offense would feature Peyton, a work horse runningback (who may be wearing down a bit but would still be on par with what the Colts have had recently) in Gore, Wayne, Crabtree, and a Dallas Clark type tight end in Vernon Davis. They'd also play in a weak NFC West that doesn't seem to be improving any time soon which would allow Peyton and Wayne to finish the next 3-4 years of their careers with almost guaranteed playoff trips. So 3-4 more chances to win a title with a stronger defense than they ever had in Indy. Peyton and Wayne to San Fran would be a win-win for both sides.
2. Jets - Mark Sanchez has not been making noticeable strides as a passer and may be the thing that is holding back the Jets from breaking through to a Super Bowl. It's a tough division but if they can get a ticket to the dance, Peyton with a Rex Ryan defense in the playoffs could give him a shot at a few more titles. If the Jets defense returns to form with a Peyton Manning led offense they could have a shot at being the best team in the league. Peyton throwing to Wayne, Holmes, Burress, and Keller would even be an improvement from previous receiving corps he's had(circa 2010 when he was throwing to Wayne, Collie, Tammie, and Garcon). Tom Moore his old offensive coordinator would also be there as an offensive consultant and would almost surely implement a system Manning was familiar with. Add in the fact we'd get to see two Peyton VS Brady games every year for the rest of Manning's career and this would be my favorite place to see him land.
3. Redskins - Perhaps the most likely scenario is Peyton heading to the nation's capital. This would be an okay fit, the Skins have a pretty good defense, a two time Super Bowl winning head coach (Mike Shannahan), an offense with a young pass catching back in Roy Helu, a great secondary receiver to Wayne in Santanna Moss, and an arguably top five tight end in Fred Davis. The only thing that makes this not such a great fit is the competition in the division. The Eagles have an electric offense and what should be a much stronger defense next year, the Cowboys have a pretty nice offense as well and a defense featuring Demarcus Ware, and finally the Giants offense is a top offense too and a defense that can really get after you, Peyton can just ask his friend Brady about that. Even with Peyton Manning and Reggie Wayne the Redskins would still be in my opinion the fourth best team in that division.
4. Dolphins - Their owner would love to make a big splash like this, and with the Dolphins late season play they've played their way out of position to take a top passer. Peyton would have Reggie Bush who looks like he's having a bit of a career resurgence, then Wayne and Marshall as excellent receiving options, and a pretty strong defense. Again we'd also get the Brady-Manning Bowl twice every year. This is probably not the most ideal situation though as it'd be a tough path to the playoffs with both the Patriots and Jets to compete with.
5. Vikings - They've tried this before with an even older quarterback and it worked pretty well. I highly doubt they'd be willing to go this route again especially when they have what looks like their quarterback of the future in Christian Ponder but after a 2-14 season Frazier may get desperate enough. Peyton has never had a runningback like Peterson (Edge was good but obviously no Peterson) then add in Wayne and Harvin and that would be a very formidable offense. The only problem is he'd have an all too familiar defense as the Vikings are horrid against the pass. Also this is Rodgers division, the Lions are playoff caliber and just getting better, and the Bears are still good. I'd probably pass on entering that division.
6. Browns - Colt McCoy just doesn't have it, and the "Dawg Pound" is getting desperate for a winning season. This would be a tough sell for Peyton and Wayne. While the offense does have Hillis, who was great a season ago, they have little else (pun intended). The defense is okay but even with Peyton and Wayne running the offense I don't think they could compete with the Steelers, Ravens, or even the upstart Bengals.
7. Saints - While this would be a nice fit, I rank it so low because it has next to no chance of happening. If contract talks with Brees head south and things got messy, you couldn't write a better story than Archie's son coming back home to lead his father's old team. They have multiple weapons and on offensive genuis in Sean Payton, but this is never going to happen. No way the Saints will ever part with Brees not even for Peyton.
EDITOR'S NOTE: After last night's Colts' victory this whole article is getting close to being null and void. If the Colts move out of the one spot in the draft I see no way they'd let Peyton go anywhere, and while they may still draft a quarterback, it'll be someone like RGIII who could use some time to sit.
- Michael Gibson
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