There's a lot of where will Peyton Manning go scenarios flying around. Here's my take, with all 32 teams. I'm going to go in reverse draft order so I can knock out all the good teams first.
1. New York Giants - already have one Manning
2. New England Patriots - Tom Brady
3. San Francisco 49ers - There's been a lot of controversy regarding Alex Smith, but in reality, they only thing that prevented the 49ers from going to the Super Bowl was Kyle Williams muffing two punts, otherwise, they would've played the Patriots. They should re-sign Alex Smith, if not, Peyton Manning would be the perfect fit. Great defense, great offensive line, and they can lure wide receivers for Manning to throw to. But if they fail to re-sign Alex Smith, they risk alienating a fan base that was strongly behind them and Smith all year.
4. Baltimore Ravens - more committed to Joe Flacco for the long haul
5. Green Bay Packers - already have Aaron Rodgers
6. New Orleans Saints - depends on whether they will re-sign Drew Brees (odds are, they will)
7. Houston Texans - interesting dilemma with Matt Schaub and T.J. Yates, I think there's more stuff to deal with in-house than bringing someone else in. Besides, T.J. Yates will probably be their QB after Schaub.
8. Denver Broncos - I believe they will be more committed to Tim Tebow for the long haul
9. Pittsburgh Steelers - Roethlisberger has already won them two Super Bowls
10. Detroit Lions - more committed to Matthew Stafford for the long haul
11. Atlanta Falcons - more committed to Matt Ryan for the long haul
12. Cincinnati Bengals - more committed to Andy Dalton
13. Tennessee Titans - already have Hasselbeck and I believe Jake Locker is their future
14. Chicago Bears - here's the thing. The Bears have a great defense, a great running back, and decent WRs. With Peyton Manning in Chicago, that could get the Bears in the playoffs and give them a legit shot at winning a title. However, they would need to lure a few targets for Manning to throw to.
15. San Diego Chargers - more committed to Philip Rivers for the long haul
16. Oakland Raiders - just burned 1st round draft picks on getting Carson Palmer
17. New York Jets - here's the interesting thing. The Jets have talent at every position except quarterback. Mark Sanchez is not the QB the Jets thought they drafted and has shown to be more of a liability under center. Peyton would have great weapons at his disposal with Burress, Holmes, Green, and Keller, as well as LT as a back-up. (Damn, this group would be sick 5 years ago!)
18. Philadelphia Eagles - committed to Michael Vick
19. Dallas Cowboys - committed to Tony Romo
20. Arizona Cardinals - this could be similar to what they did with Kurt Warner. The Cardinals are not a bad team, but they had some shoddy QB play and their O-line is suspect, that being said, the perks are that they play in a dome, their division has some great places to play, he would have Larry Fitzgerald to throw to (who wouldn't want to throw to Fitz?), and they have a young emerging defense that can give the team a chance to win any game. Kurt Warner took this team to the Super Bowl, why can't Manning?
21. Seattle Seahawks - there is a lot of talent in Seattle, and the division is not very strong. The location would be ideal as it never gets too cold in Seattle, and they have a lot of great weapons in Lynch, Rice, and Miller. Let's not forget, this was also a team that knocked off the Saints two years ago in the playoffs.
22. Kansas City Chiefs - another interesting scenario, but not likely, they're committed to Cassel and have a good defense and some great weapons on offense, with Moeaki and Charles returning from injury, Dwayne Bowe staying put for another year, it could be opportunistic for Peyton, however, the only problem would be the weather.
23. Buffalo Bills - just signed Ryan Fitzpatrick to a long-term contract
24. Carolina Panthers - Cam Newton, end of story
25. Miami Dolphins - here's my take: It seems a lot of talent is heading to South Beach. I actually pity Chad Henne because that dude had a solid start to the season, but the team couldn't win, and when he went down, the season was pretty much over. Peyton Manning will most likely be in Miami by the draft. Reggie Wayne came from the U and would be happy to play for Miami. Brandon Marshall is already there. Reggie Bush is already there. Their rush defense was phenomenal last season, their pass defense... not so much. But Miami would be the perfect fit for him.
26. Jacksonville Jaguars - I believe they will stick with Blaine Gabbert
27. Washington Redskins - Another team that would be a great fit for Manning. They have a solid defense, their running backs emerged at the end of last season in Roy Helu and Evan Royster. While they didn't have a 1000 yard receiver, they have talent in Santana Moss, Jabar Gaffney, Leonard Hankerson, Fred Davis, and Chris Cooley. Bringing in another WR like Reggie Wayne or Vincent Jackson and suddenly their offense looks incredibly dangerous. (Edit: I had originally written this before the Redskins decided to mortgage their future in RG3)
28. Tampa Bay Buccaneers -the Bucs just imploded this past season. I think they'll stick with Josh Freeman and try to patch up their defense.
29. Cleveland Browns - there's no way Peyton will play for Cleveland, they need a lot more pieces before he signs with them.
30. Minnesota Vikings - a solid defense, a great running back, one good WR. Peyton could play in Minnesota, but the fact that he's gotta play Green Bay and Chicago in the cold will not bode well for him.
31. St. Louis Rams - I believe they will stick with Sam Bradford.
32. Indianapolis Colts - unless he's willing to take a pay cut, Peyton is not coming back to Indy.
So, the top five most likely destinations are as follows:
1. Miami Dolphins
2. Arizona Cardinals
3. Washington Redskins
4. Seattle Seahawks
5. New York Jets
There's two sleeper teams that could also get him
1. San Francisco 49ers
2. New Orleans Saints (if they dont' re-sign Brees)
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