NFL Rumors: Peyton Manning named among favorites to land new NFL coaching gig
Yesterday, the Indianapolis Colts fired their head coach Frank Reich, and their former MVP Peyton Manning is the favorite to be the next full-time head coach. The Colts replaced Reich with Manning's old center, Jeff Saturday, for the interim role in the meantime, and it seems like many expect the five-time MVP to land the job next season.
According to Nate Atkins, there are four candidates that stand out right now. These are Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh, Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, and Hall of Fame quarterback Manning, who is currently the slight favorite.
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The Colts moved quickly to fire Reich after a poor outing against the New England Patriots on Sunday. They followed that up by naming ESPN analyst Jeff Saturday their interim head coach within hours.
It's the first time a coach has made the jump from broadcasting to head coaching without having any prior NFL coaching experience. It doesn't seem likely that he will earn the full-time job over Manning and the rest of the candidates.
Is a head coaching job in store for Peyton Manning?
It's no secret that the retired quarterback loves the NFL. He remains heavily involved, doing routine broadcasts with his brother Eli for Monday Night Football games.
He has also expressed a strong interest in owning a team. The Washington Commanders will probably be available soon, but Manning isn't currently a top candidate to own them.
Being a head coach would be a nice alternative, but it would prohibit him from owning a team any time soon. If it's truly his dream to own a team above anything else, then it's not likely he'd accept the position for the Colts.
Additionally, while he has plenty of playing experience, he hasn't coached yet. NFL teams are often more interested in candidates with coaching experience, which is why Kafka, Moore and Harbaugh are being named as potential candidates.
However, they hired Saturday without any experience, so they could do it again with the quarterback next season. Whether or not that's a good idea that will return them to prominence remains to be seen, though.