NFL Rumors 2015: Is Peyton Manning Thinking of Retirement?
Peyton Manning is entering his 18th NFL Season and questions about his retirement plans are circulating again. It basically began when he signed with Denver Broncos in 2012 after missing the entire 2011 season due to multiple spinal surgeries, as reported by ESPN.
In an interview with Yahoo, Manning was asked if he would be retiring. The 39-year-old quarterback replied, "I don't have those thoughts. I think about playing football to the best of my ability in 2015."
Manning had been avoiding retirement talks and his future plans, especially after his sluggish performance last season and the Broncos asking him to take a pay cut. According to Scout, the five-time NFL MVP signed a five-year, $96-million deal in 2012 but accepted a $4-million pay cut for 2015.
In a shocking interview with Sports Illustrated's MMQB, Manning revealed that he could not feel anything in his right hand's fingertips, saying, "I can't feel anything in my fingertips. It's crazy. I've talked to a doctor recently, who said, 'Don't count on the feeling coming back'."
"It was hard for me for about two years, because one doctor told me I could wake up any morning and it might come back. So you wake up every day thinking, 'Today's the day!' Then it's not," Manning added.
It was down season last year for Manning, and this might be the cause of it all. But that down season saw him finish second in touchdowns, fourth in passing yards and fifth in passer rating among starters last season, according to another report from Yahoo.
Even if Manning gave no specific timeline for his retirement, he would consider a coaching position in Tennessee if he was asked to. In a guesting on the "Dan Patrick Show," he was asked if he was willing to be serve as the head coach at his alma mater.
"Head coach? Absolutely not. People in Tennessee like me right now, Dan — I don't know why. But you become the head coach and cut that in half right away. ‘Why are you throwing it on 4th and 1? Why did you punt there; you should go for it.' Cut it in half — it's like being in politics," Manning replied, as quoted by Sporting News.
Instead, Manning wants to be a quarterback coach. "Quarterbacks coach, I would do at Tennessee," he said. "Quarterbacks coach, you probably could stay under the radar. You get your quarterbacks throwing a lot of completions. You probably could stay in good favor. Maybe if they call, that'd be something."
He also said that he enjoys working in their family's Manning Passing Academy and can see himself coaching quarterbacks. "I enjoy teaching football. That's kind of what I feel like I do at our football camp. I enjoy talking about football and teaching things that I've learned as a quarterback through the years."
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