Listen, I understand that a lot of Broncos fans are frustrated with the amount of coverage given to the so-called conspiracy theories floating around Dove Valley, but let me say this: Where there’s smoke, there’s flame.
And while we here at Mile High Sports may have been one of the first to ask the question “Do the Denver Broncos really want Peyton Manning to be their quarterback,” we certainly haven’t been the last.
Whether it’s the Denver Post’s Mark Kiszla, Mile High Report, or Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, everything we’ve heard in the last week has only pushed forward the belief that something fishy is going on down at the Broncos facility; the belief that Manning’s injury is simply the perfect excuse for John Elway and the Broncos to move on to Brock Osweiler.
And today, after informing the media that Manning would indeed miss his second consecutive game, Gary Kubiak did not put the speculation to rest. In fact, he probably raised even more questions.
So let’s read between the lines, and see how today’s press conference was only more bad news for Peyton Manning:
On the decision to start Brock Osweiler:
“We said that we would go back and review the entire situation at the beginning of this week, which we have done. Basically nothing has changed. We made the decision we made last week. We think this is best for Peyton and for our football team right now. That’s the way we will proceed. Like I said, we’re all in on the next football game.”
While it doesn’t really come as a surprise that Brock Osweiler will be starting his second straight game for the Denver Broncos, it does raise another question: If Manning still isn’t healthy enough to play after a week’s rest, how in the world was he healthy enough to play against the Chiefs?
If the Broncos thought that there was even a chance Manning could further injure his foot in the Chiefs game, they should have shut him down right then and there. Instead, they let him play, the injury got worse, and now we have no idea when (if) he’ll play another game for the Denver Broncos.
After last week, at least you could have made the case that Manning just needed a week of R&R before gearing up for the Patriots; now, who knows?
On Manning’s second opinion:
“I guess I should mention that he is getting another opinion on his foot today. He is in Charlotte. It’s something that was decided on Saturday, so he’s not here today. We’re going to wait until he comes back from that. He should be back I think tomorrow morning sometime, so we’re going to evaluate that. [Head Athletic Trainer Steve] Greek [Antonopulos] will evaluate that. We’ll see how that goes and we’ll take it a day at a time, worry about a day at a time and just working and, like I said, staying focused on getting this team ready to play New England.”
Now this is a surprise …
And while Kubiak tried to play it off as no big deal, trust me, it’s a big deal; no player gets a second opinion because they’re feeling fantastic. And more often that not, that second opinion is not more positive than the first.
My guess is that Manning, the Broncos or both have quickly come to realize that this plantar fascia injury is much more serious than a one to two week deal, and now, they’re looking for some clarification on where to go from here — i.e. surgery.
Do not be surprised if the next press conference Kubiak calls is to inform everyone that Manning has been placed on injured reserve. And honestly, that may be the best thing for the Broncos; at least it would kill any talk of a quarterback controversy.
On whether Manning would be the starter when healthy:
“What we do is we go week-to-week. We have made a decision to proceed this week just like we did last week. We feel like that’s what’s best for our team and that’s what’s best for him from a health standpoint, so that’s the decision we made.”
Come on, Kubiak, just give it to us straight. We deserve that.
Again, the question was “When he [Manning] is healthy, is it his job to return to?” If Bill Belichick, Mike McCarthy, or Chuck Pagano were asked that question, they’d laugh and say, “Of course it’s his job. He’s our starting quarterback”; they definitely wouldn’t beat around the bush like Kubiak just did.
So if there’s any question about who the Denver Broncos see as their starting quarterback — healthy or not — that should pretty much answer it. Barring a catastrophe, Brock Osweiler is the man going forward.
And as a long-time fan of Peyton Manning, I couldn’t imagine a more disappointing way to go out. I sure hope this isn’t really the last we see from “The Sheriff.”