Indianapolis Colts

Jim Irsay and Peyton Manning to attend Polian's HOF enshrinement

Published Aug. 7, 2015 3:53 p.m. ET

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Former Colts general manager Bill Polian will be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday night, and two of the men who helped him get there will be on hand for the occasion.

Colts owner Jim Irsay and former Indianapolis quarterback Peyton Manning will travel to Canton, Ohio for the ceremony.

"Bill is someone I have so much admiration for," Irsay said, via the Indianapolis Star. "And I know how much this means to him."

Polian helped transform the Colts into one of the NFL's elite franchises during his tenure with the team from 1998 to 2011, in large part due to his decision to draft Manning with the top pick in the 1998 draft.

In retrospect it seems like a no-brainer, but at the time, Irsay said opinions were divided between Manning and former Washington State quarterback Ryan Leaf.

"I'm telling you, I took a straw poll that morning,"Irsay said. "And 40 percent of teams told me they would go with Ryan Leaf if they had our pick."

Luckily for the Colts, Polian went with Manning, who transformed the franchise in his 14 seasons in Indianapolis.

"I always knew that Bill had my back and that always meant a lot," Manning said to a group of Denver reporters earlier this week. "You like playing for guys that you know are going to have your back and are kind of right in the middle of it fighting with you.

Polian said this weekend's ceremony is the first of many from his era in Indianapolis.

"My only regret is Tony (Dungy) and Marvin (Harrison) won't get to go in with me," Polian said. "But there's no point in trying to handicap it. I know they're going to get in. Indianapolis is going to have a lot of celebrations in the future."

(h/t Indianapolis Star)

Photo credit: Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports