NFL Rumors: Four bidders reached out to Peyton Manning for new role with Broncos
The Denver Broncos are still working out the finer details to wrap up the team's auction. However, most expect Rob Walton to officially win the Broncos for the price of $4.5 billion. Former quarterbacks Peyton Manning and John Elway had been a part of the auction at one point on two separate bidding groups.
With Walton now the favorite to win the team and with the Manningcast set to continue in 2022, most expected Peyton Manning's involvement with the team to wind down. Instead, all four remaining bidders have apparently reached out to the quarterback about coming on board. This means that the quarterback can still join the team in an official capacity.
According to Mike Klis via CBS Sports, all four groups approached Manning to gauge his interest in becoming a minority partner or advisor. The quarterback hasn't publicly leaned one way or another on the opportunity. Of course, going from a potential part-owner to a minority partner or advisor could be a tough pill to swallow.
Klis wrote on Twitter:
"According to multiple sources, all four bidders have spoken to former Broncos' star quarterback Peyton Manning to gauge his interest in joining their ownership groups as a minority partner or advisor. No word on Manning's next move if he makes a move."
According to multiple sources, all four bidders have spoken to former Broncos' star quarterback Peyton Manning to gauge his interest in joining their ownership groups as a minority partner or advisor. No word on Manning's next move if he makes a move. #9sports twitter.com/mikeklis/statu…
However, the move wouldn't be made in a vacuum. While Manning would initially start in this position, one could guess that he could work his way up from there. In other words, the position would simply get his foot in the door and keep him around for other opportunities. Additionally, it would serve as a way for Manning to get his feet wet without jumping directly into a massive commitment.
The quarterback has been retired from a full-time job since leaving football after the 2015 season.
Ten years ago this week at Broncos OTAs … the late Demaryius Thomas was catching passes like this from Peyton Manning. https://t.co/eI7eSKGthm
Peyton Manning's career with the Denver Broncos
Manning spent his last four years with the Denver Broncos after suffering a season-ending neck injury in 2011. The Indianapolis Colts, the team that had drafted him at the turn of the century, chose this moment to move on in favor of Andrew Luck.
Manning landed with the Broncos in 2012 and immediately caught fire. In his first two years with the team, he took the team to the Super Bowl and set an NFL record for passing touchdowns in a season. Of course, those years also gave the most infamous performance of his career in Super Bowl 48 against the Seattle Seahawks, losing 43-8.
In 2014, he went 12-4 but lost in his first playoff game of the post-season. In 2015, the quarterback helped the team reach another Super Bowl after missing six games due to plantar fasciitis. After defeating Cam Newton in Super Bowl 50, he called it quits and essentially went incognito with limited public appearances before starting the Manningcast with Eli Manning in 2021.
He was added to the Pro Football Hall of Fame the same year.