National Football League

Lack of Peyton just one issue for Colts

Published Aug. 28, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

Alex Marvez

Understanding the Indianapolis Colts playbook is less challenging than trying to decipher the meaning of team owner Jim Irsay’s stream-of-conscious Twitter posts.

The eccentric Irsay frequently cites rock 'n' roll lyrics to reflect his mood or something that has captured his fancy. Irsay’s penchant to break news about his notoriously tight-lipped franchise has also drawn attention. A recent reference to Hattiesburg, Miss., sent media and Colts fans into a tizzy thinking the club was in pursuit of retired quarterback Brett Favre.

So read into this Sunday morning “tweet” what you will, but it can definitely apply to the unsettled state of the Colts.

“Ain't it hard, when u wake up n the morning .. n u find out that those other days r gone .. All u have is memories of happiness, lingering on n on,” Irsay wrote.

Referencing the 1974 Neil Young song "Star of Bethlehem" is apt because Irsay’s star quarterback is temporarily gone. And depending on how long it takes for Peyton Manning to recover from offseason neck surgery, Indianapolis’ playoff aspirations might be next to fade.

Arguably the NFL’s single-most indispensable player when it comes to his team’s fortunes, Manning has yet to practice this preseason. Whether he recovers in time to play in the Sept. 11 season opener at Houston and keep intact a string of 227 consecutive starts remains nebulous.

“There’s only one Manning,” Colts general manager Chris Polian said. “You’re not going to replace him.”

Yet to grasp a full picture of the 2011 Colts, let’s temporarily ignore the pink elephant in the room wearing the No. 18 jersey. Manning will be back eventually. He was activated Monday off the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, meaning he is now cleared to practice.

The bigger question for the long-term: What type of team will Manning be returning to when he’s starting once again?

As much credit as Manning deserves for the franchise’s success during his 14 NFL seasons, no player can win a Super Bowl individually. That’s one of the reasons Manning has far more regular-season NFL Most Valuable Player awards (four) than championship rings (one).

For the Colts to become the first team from a Super Bowl host city to play for the Lombardi Trophy, Indianapolis must rebuild its offensive line and re-establish an effective rushing attack. The defense also must improve on stopping the run, especially in a division featuring marquee backs such as Houston’s Arian Foster, Tennessee’s Chris Johnson and Jacksonville’s Maurice Jones-Drew.

The Colts didn’t need a healthy Manning to begin working on those changes during the preseason.

“We don’t have time to sit there and say, ‘Wow, Peyton’s not here!’ ” Colts tight end Dallas Clark said Friday after a preseason loss to Green Bay. “We’ve got to go to work.”

Chris Polian went right to work after the NFL lockout lifted. Besides signing Manning to a five-year, $90 million contract extension, Indianapolis also kept three key veterans — running back Joe Addai, strong safety Melvin Bullitt and kicker Adam Vinatieri — from leaving. The Colts also, uncharacteristically, dipped into the free-agent market to sign four defensive veterans: tackle Tommie Harris, weak-side linebacker Ernie Sims, and ends Jamaal Anderson and Tyler Brayton.

“We were able to get more done probably than I anticipated,” Polian said.

Harris and Sims are expected to make their biggest impact in passing situations. Polian projects Harris as an inside pass rusher with Sims handling the nickel linebacker duties held last season by Tyjuan Hagler. Both newcomers were slowed by preseason ailments, although a healthy Harris (hamstring) had some strong moments against Green Bay with a sack and a pass breakup.

The Colts want Anderson and Brayton to upgrade run support on a unit that ranked 25th in the NFL last season with a 127-yard per-game average. Anderson and Brayton don’t fit the mold of fleet starters Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis in the Colts’ Cover-2 defense. That reflects a rare strategic shift by a club whose philosophical approach has resulted in nine consecutive playoff appearances.

Indianapolis plans to feature Anderson and Brayton on rushing downs to keep Freeney and Mathis — both now in their 30s — fresher for the pass rush.

“They give us bigger, longer bodies,” Polian said of Brayton and Anderson. “It’s a different body type than what we’ve had. We think that’s going to be useful.”

The bigger-is-better philosophy applies to the offensive line, too. The Colts used their first two draft picks on a 6-foot-7, 305-pound left tackle (Anthony Castonzo) and a 6-4, 317-pound right tackle (Ben Ijalana). Both are expected to start eventually — Constanzo got that nod against Green Bay — although the first-team unit remains in flux because of injuries and a mix-and-match approach while trying to find the best five-man combination.

Pass protection is rarely a problem for the Colts. Manning has been sacked an average of less than once a game for eight seasons. Indianapolis, though, hasn’t fielded a respectable ground game since the 2006 squad that won Super Bowl XLI. The problems remain encapsulated in one key play that helped cost Indianapolis another title — Mike Hart’s inability to pick up a first down on third-and-1 in the first half of a Super Bowl XLIV loss to New Orleans.

The need for rushing improvement is even more pressing if Manning is forced to miss multiple regular-season games. Such a scenario would force newly signed 17-year NFL veteran Kerry Collins into the starting lineup with the untested Curtis Painter as his backup.

"To compare anyone to (Manning’s) level of production is unrealistic," Polian said. “The thing we have to remind ourselves — and I think this is more easily done internally than externally — is that whoever plays if (Manning) does not is not going to run the same offense.

“You can’t do the things he’s done. He’s played in the same offense for 13 years. He’s had a very stable coaching and support situation. He’s had a stable teammate situation. It’s not going to be replaced.

“You hope to just put that (replacement) in a position where you can match his strengths with what we have in the system to have some success. And then everyone else has to pick up their game around him.”

On that front, Polian is pleased about how the Colts have responded. He notes that other veterans are helping to keep a crisp tempo in practice and displaying some of the on-field leadership Manning usually provides.

“He’s a big part of this foundation but we can’t mope,” Colts wide receiver Reggie Wayne said of Manning. “We have to keep pushing.

“He’s still there. He’s helping out. He’s still in film (study). He’s out there at practice. He’s doing his thing (in rehabilitation). But it’s still the same principles, the same system, the same concepts. It’s still Colts football. That’s what we’ve got to go out and do.”

Wayne is well aware that “doubters and naysayers” are predicting the Colts will finally take a tumble from atop the AFC South, especially if Collins is forced into a long stretch as a starter. Polian, though, feels better about his quarterback situation after luring Collins out of retirement. Painter struggled in two preseason starts, although in his defense, he was forced to play without most of Indianapolis’ top wide receivers and a stable offensive line.

“You think back two years ago when Adam Vinatieri was hurt and we made the decision to bring Matt Stover in,” said Polian, who was promoted to the GM position previously held by his father, Bill, in November 2009. “We were fortunate to have a good enough team that they needed a reliable veteran kicker. When he walked in the locker room, the guys said, ‘We still have a chance to win.’ No slight against anybody else, but Kerry has that as much as any veteran quarterback. He knows the division. Our guys have played against him and know his physical toughness.

“But there’s no question that it’s (Manning’s) team, his offense and all those things. Hopefully, this is something we don’t have to go through. If we do, we’re hopefully prepared for it.”

Polian believes Indianapolis ultimately might benefit from having to prepare for life without Manning.

“Any time you can survive difficulty, it makes you better if you’re strong enough to survive it on the front end,” Polian said. “Nothing we’ve done (in the preseason) so far counts at this point. It doesn’t until Sept. 11. We’ve still got a couple weeks to get ready. Hopefully, (Manning) is ready, but we don’t know that at this point.

“You don’t know when or how you’re going to have injuries. You’re going to have adversity. Some of ours has just come a little bit earlier. Over the course of a 17-week season, you’re going to have to overcome it.”

If they can’t, Irsay will have every reason to tweet the blues.