The recent retirement of veteran quarterback Philip Rivers didn't come off as a surprise to the entire Indianapolis Colts organization and head coach Frank Reich. However, in response to the situation, Reich and company still had their work cut out for them to find Rivers' replacement for next season.
He reportedly heeded the opinion of arguably the greatest gunslinger to ever suit up for the Colts in Peyton Manning, who spent his first 14 seasons in the league with the Indy-based squad from 1998 to 2011.
“After Philip retired, I started going, ‘OK, here’s all the quarterbacks who could be out there,'” Reich told IndyStar. “And as we’re talking about who’s going to be our starting quarterback next year, yeah, I called Peyton and asked him his opinion on some of the guys.”
The two individuals previously spent time together with the Colts from 2008 to 2011. Reich started his coaching career in the league as an offensive coaching staff assistant and was eventually elevated to become the quarterbacks coach for the team in 2009. He last worked together with Manning in the 2011 season when he served as the team's wide receivers coach.
Amid the uncertainty, the Colts still haven't hinted on how they will land their quarterback of the future. They have a couple of options though as they can scour the draft for young talent or acquire an established playmaker via a trade.
Nonetheless, the final consensus on their quarterback for 2021 will still rest on the shoulders of Reich, general manager Chris Ballard, and team owner Jim Irsay. The upcoming offseason will certainly be exciting for the Colts as they look to open a new chapter in franchise history. Having Peyton Manning speak his mind certainly doesn't hurt, though.
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