The Indianapolis Colts won 8 fewer games this season than they did last year, playing an entire season without beloved franchise hero quarterback Peyton Manning. Naturally, this has made the Colts unsure if they should stick with their Man(ning) or take their chances with Luck.

Indy-Ceision 2012... They're even wearing the Republican/Democrat colors to make the analogy that much more obvious!

While Indy hosts the Superbowl this year, they will think about how to get back to the big game… and if their chances are better with Peyton Manning or Andrew Luck under center.

Let’s examine the options…

The Incumbent: Peyton Manning

PROfessional resume:

• 4 MVP awards, an NFL record
• 11 Probowls
• Fastest QB to reach 50,000 yards passing
• Fastest QB to 4,000 completions
• Several dozen other impressive stats that lead many to believe he is one of the best to have ever played the game

CONcerns:

• Old (by football standards), probably 3-4 years left at most
• Neck issues raise concerns that head could fall off if sacked

The Challenger: Andrew Luck

Hype:

• Should be really great!!! Everyone says so! The same everyone that knew Lebron James would be a terrific basketball player. The same everyone that figured Ryan Leaf would be a star franchise quarterback… some of those even thought he should be drafted over… wait for it… Peyton Manning.

CONcerns:

• Rookie with actual ability to be a quality NFL quarterback unproven

Hmmm… what to do…

If Manning and Luck were in the draft, who would you pick? The veteran who will definitely give you a great chance for 1-4 seasons, or the rookie who will maybe give you a great chance for 0-15 seasons?

Don’t answer that. It’s a hypothetical question, anyway.

Here’s the plan:

Draft Luck and have him learn under Manning for a couple of seasons.

But Luck is good enough to play now, you say loudly and emphatically like the passionate sports fan you are.

Sure, Luck is better today than a Sanchez or anyone in We-Won’t-Win-nesota.

But why wouldn’t a young quarterback want to play behind a future unanimous first-ballot Hall of Famer? Worked out pretty well for that guy who played behind Brett Favre in Green Bay. You know, the Superbowl Champion guy whose team had the best record this season. I hear that guy’s back-up is doing well, too.

So…

Have Luck play behind, or perhaps in tandem (daring and different, I know) with Manning for a couple of seasons before Manning retires to become the Colts coach. Then, if Luck lives up to expectations, you could see the most interesting QB/coach relationship in the history of ever.

Unfortunately, I don’t get to make these choices. I will, just as you will, have to wait and see what Luck brings.

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