Apparently Peyton has been hurting for quite some time. Going four years with a neck issue, regardless of how minor, was sure taking a big chance. Good thing he has the offensive line like he does. If Manning had been sacked like some guys, 50+ times a year relative to the 65 over the las four years, who knows if he would have been so durable.
Besides Peyton getting his surgery done it appears as if the Colts have been busy in other ways. Super Bowl veteran Marlin Jackson is no longer with the team; Raheem Brock does not expect to be back; until this morning it was not clear that stand out linebacker Gary Brackett would be back.
I find it interesting that the Colts are not more concerned about hanging on to some of there better players. One of the reasons Dwight Freeney is as good as he is is Raheem Brock. Teams must account for both; double team one and the other run’s free. Use just one person to block them and you risk both running free.
As for Jackson, a former first round pick, the Colts better hope that Bethea and Bullitt and Bethea can get it done with Hayden and Powers next season. While the secondary looked better his year than they had in years, largely without Jackson, when healthy he made a pretty good defender- and cheap.
Then again there is a reason why Bill Polian has the reputation that he does. I’m sure he will have a master plan up his sleeve to handle all the issues the Colts may have; a least I hope he does.