Peyton Manning has been a poster boy for the Denver Broncos, but there was doubts on whether or not he would be playing for them this season. Part of the doubts were NFL trade rumors that he was going to be traded to Houston, but that did not happen. Now there are new rumors that Brock Osweiler, a newer player could replace Manning.
It was revealed back in March that No. 18 (Peyton Manning) will return for his 18th NFL season with the Broncos. It was agreed that he would accept a salary reduction from $19 million to $15 million for the 2015 season, with an additional $2 million if the Broncos make it to the Super Bowl, according to ESPN.
Then in June, there were several rumors going on that the Denver Broncos were trying to trade Peyton Manning to Houston. Apparently, two sources told Bejamin Allbright of 94.1 FM in Denver that this was the case before Manning signed his restructured deal with the Broncos, according to CBS Sports.
Denver denied any deal like this ever surfacing, but it is possible. Fortunately, Manning has a no-trade clause to his new contract, something that wasn't there from 2012-2014. New coach of the Broncos Gary Kubiak seems pretty confident that Manning can perform this season, and this has given rise to new rumors.
This rumor, according to HNGN, is that Brock Osweiler is the "heir apparent" to Peyton Manning with the Denver Broncos. This doesn't look to be the case, at least from Kubiak and the Broncos GM John Elway.
Osweiler is a Broncos second-round pick of the 2012 NFL Draft, currently entering the final year of his rookie contract and might have a chance of replacing Manning, who is now 40 years old. At the Seattle game last Friday, Osweiler completed 15 of 20 balls for 151-yards and one touchdown.
It would be weird to see Manning, who considered retiring after the Broncos were "unceremoniously ousted in the first round of the 2014 playoffs", being replaced by a player who doesn't have that much NFL experience. Most point to this season as being Manning's last season. If that is true, then Manning is going out strong as he was quoted on NFL.com saying that "he could run any offense".
So far, the Broncos did well with their win over the Seattle Seahawks last Friday. Assuming that the Broncos keep this winning streak, it would be interesting to see them make it to the Super Bowl yet again, like they did back in 2014. It would be even more amazing if the Seahawks were to make it yet again, and it would be a rematch of the Seahawks vs. Broncos. Should the Broncos be the victor, then Manning could retire with honors winning the 50th Super Bowl.
