Peyton Manning Says Owner Will Decide His Future in Indianapolis

(NewsCore) - Peyton Manning believes a meeting with Colts owner Jim Irsay will decide whether he returns for another season as quarterback in Indianapolis.

In a wide-ranging interview reported Tuesday by The Indianapolis Star, the 35-year-old Manning said he has barely spoken with new general manager Ryan Grigson, who was hired earlier this month.

"One thing he (Grigson) kind-of, sort-of told me, without really wanting to tell me, was that Irsay will be the guy I'm going to sit down and talk with," Manning said. "That's going to happen at some point, but we haven't had that conversation yet because we really don't need to have that conversation yet."

As the city prepares to host Super Bowl XLVI between his younger brother Eli's New York Giants and Tom Brady's New England Patriots, Manning is continuing his recovery from a third neck surgery, which forced him to miss all of this season.

The Colts finished 2-14 without him, and are expected to select Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck with the top selection in April's draft.

The Colts owe Manning a $28 million roster bonus in March, but it remains unclear what his health situation will be at that time.

Manning said he has "no idea" what the Colts will decide on his future, maintaining he is going to the team facility every day to continue working his way back to full strength.

"All I know is I'm still under contract to the Colts. I'm still the quarterback of the Colts That's why I'm in the building every day trying to get healthy," the four-time MVP said. "They know where to find me."

But he lamented the fact that the team facility has become a depressing place in light of the organization's decision to jettison the previous coaching staff.

"I'm not in a very good place for healing, let's say that," Manning said. "It's not a real good environment down there right now, to say the least. Everybody's walking around on eggshells. I don't recognize our building right now. There's such complete and total change."

The Colts' offseason began with the firing of longtime front office leader Bill Polian, who drafted Manning first overall out of Tennessee in 1998. The team is still in search of a head coach after firing Jim Caldwell last week.

"I just want to pay tribute to all those guys. It's unfortunate because so many of them have been such a big part of so many big wins here, and this is so ... sudden. Their keys didn't work the next day. There's no other way to do it?

"And I may be behind them. Who knows?"

Manning, who has spent all 14 seasons of his Hall of Fame-caliber career in Indianapolis, said he has not considered calling it quits, but added he was blindsided last week by actor Rob Lowe unexpectedly tweeting about his impending retirement.

"I never thought 'Sodapop Curtis' would announce my retirement," Manning said, referencing Lowe's character in "The Outsiders."

"I always thought I would be the one to announce it. I'm a huge fan of the movie, but that caught me way off guard. I can't explain it. I know he is a friend of Jim's (Irsay), and Jim sounded surprised."

Read more: The Indianapolis Star