Some clarity on Peyton's injury

great post, well informed, and perfect for answers to the none believers and taking away andy doubt. now all we have to do is sign him.

one point on the Montana thing: he was 30 at the time … Manning is 36, and according to latest reports his arm strength isn’t even close to where it needs to be

while I have the utmost respect for what Manning has done in his career, I do NOT think he would b a wise choice for the Chiefs, regardless of the common perception that “he’ll be just fine” etc …

a lot remains to be seen, and for anyone to absolutely bank on Manning’s return to even close to 100% is unwise at the least

This isn’t to say Manning can’t play again after his operations. Obviously doctors have told him he can. But at what risk? Can he whip his head from side to side at the line of scrimmage as he once did? Will he be able to turn quickly and spot a receiver deep downfield, look to see his blockers or whirl around to find a tackler just before he’s hit?

Those who saw him in Indianapolis during Super Bowl XLVI didn’t describe a stiff monster walk. But they also didn’t see Manning swirl his head the way he will need to on the field. Nor did they watch him throw. Few have seen him throw, and those who have are keeping those observations silent.

Still word leaks out. Indianapolis Star columnist Bob Kravitz, who has spoken with Manning in recent days, described Manning’s passing arm as "a noodle."

And while Kravitz also said his sources have told him Manning could regain his throwing strength, nobody – not even the Redskins – will spend $20 million guaranteed for a quarterback with "a noodle" for an arm.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;ylt=Ao2WlJTFfYK0S1tyPLRqu5ZDubYF?slug=lc-carpenterpeyton_manning_colts_future_retirement_020912

But as you have stated

The question now is, when and if the nerve will completely heal. This process can take from a few months to a year.

And that is the big question isn’t it. ’’if’’ and ‘’when ’’ the nerves heal . Nerve damage is extremely tricky injury. Nerves can’t regenerate on their own, so it just depends on how bad the nerve damage was. If his nerve ‘’damage ’’ was just caused by a bulging disc in his neck (i.e a pinched nerve) then he should be fine. However, this is actual nerve damage and it is beyond repair. That is why Manning went to Europe to try this stem cell treatment to regenerate his nerves. In the future, neurologists think they will be able to regenerate damaged nerves, but, this type of therapy is at least 5 years away. And by that time MR Manning will be 41. His last neck surgery was Sept 8 of this year. That put s him at the 5 month mark and he still isn’t ready to throw a ball. The operation may have stopped the damage, but what is done is done and I can;t see him regaining the arm strength he had.

To but this into perspective a really good friend of mine had his foot run over by a car. He has nerve damage in his foot that still affects him to this day. He walks with a limp and probably always will. And that is his foot, just imagine if it were his neck. Manning may be cleared to play and wont have anymore damage to his neck.But, that doesn’t undo the damage that has already been done. But, as far as him regaining his strength , I have my doubts ….serious doubts about that.

Not to mention , as you have stated these surgeries have taken there tole in his neck flexibility. How he he supposed to snap his head quick and quickly go threw his progressions? That is pretty important, as any KC fan will tell you after watching Matt Cassel the last few years.

But, lets play fantasy land and pretend Manning has some miracle happen and his neck is 100% . Do you sign him now ? I am in the minority on here , but I still say no

Number one, the guy is 36 years old. He might have 2 maybe 3 years left max. What do you do after that, sign a Tom Brady at the twilight of his career .Then get Drew Brees for a few years then Aaron Rogers. Hey ,that’s it , lets go down the line and sign every HOF QB that is approaching retirement and maybe 1 day we will win a SB. That’s what we’ll be , a retirement home for QB’s. Fact is, no QB older than 38 has won a championship. That gives Peyton 2 more years to do so, if you go by the trend of, I don’t know , the last 45 years. Which brings me to my next grievance

number 2 , Manning is 9-10 in the playoffs. 3 out of the last 4 years he has been bounced out in the 1st round. And this has been going on since his rookie season. Even when he won the SB he didn’t have a great post season. There is no guarantee he will get us to 1 , let alone win 1 ( remember Joe Montana anyone) speaking of guarantees …

Number 3 , the money. Manning is going to cost a minimum of 17 million per year. That’s a lot of cash that can be spent on other pieces for this team. This cap room we have is going to disappear real quick if we sign this guy

Number 4, who says he wants to come here? Joel had a post earlier that said there is less than a 2% chance he come here. We are getting worked up over nothing, The guy has played in a dome in a warm weather division his whole career and now he is going to play outside in snow storms? I don’t see it happening

The way to win championships is drafting a QB in the 1st round. And the sooner this fanbase gets over that phobia, the sooner we can have a parade in downtown KC on Feb. 6th

this in no way makes him immune from re-injury down the road. The guy has a long neck and the turf is mighty hard at Arrowhead in December.

Peyton is no more likely to “break his neck and be paralyzed” than anyone else in the league.

This is very refreshing rather than the usual,

“SIGN HIM AT ALL COSTS! SUPERBOWL BABEEEEE!!!”

or

“NO HE SUCKS HE’S DONE THAT WOULD BE RETARTED!!!!!”

Thanks for the “insider info”. If you ever need some Chiefs-related info you know where to ask.

I’m constantly amazed that so many people think that they type of surgery Manning had done is so simple that it’s like mending a broken pinkie or somesuch … it isn’t that simple when it comes to the neck and spinal cord, as your comment here attests

as for Manning’s doctors “clearing” him to play, they might well be saying no more than "the vertebrae in your neck have healed together, you may now play touch football with your children …

thank you again for posting this and your clear, concise and truly first-hand informed knowledge

Signing Manning when he is a free agent to a deal that makes sense and pays him tons if he performs. No brainer.

We could draft for OL, resign Bowe, Carr (or go get Routt), and still find room for Manning IF he would be interested in playing here. We have lot to offer talent wise, and Manning would find success here IMO. But I think that’ll be up to him and the 20 other teams bidding for him as well.

Great write up, Rec’d.

My injury is much lower than Mannings but in terms of nerve regen, it’s still relevant IMO. My injury is at the T12 area. Below the injury I have total (complete) paralysis. However, initially I was paralyzed from the belly button down. The doctors/surgeons told me I would recover partially over the next 6 months but after that, regeneration is pretty much done. Anyway, 6 months passed and my paralysis line was about 2 inches lower. It wasn’t until 2 years that I recovered as much as I was going to recover which was at the waist line. My point is, those nerves above the spinal injury were only damaged due to things like bruising, swelling, lack of circulation etc, and it took 2 years for them to recover. Yes my injury is more severe than Mannings but, the nerve damage is still relevant. Right now, there is absolutely no way for a doctor or Peyton himself to know if he’s going to recover completely. It simply is not possible. IMO, it’s too much of a risk to base your decision of signing Peyton based purely on hope and wishful thinking. At the very least he should be given 2 full years of rehab before determining what he will or won’t get back. Although for all we know, he will have it all back before the first game anyway. In my experience, I seriously doubt that.

Whether its Manning, Luck, Rg3. We are not in the running or in Manning’s case we don’t want to be. Manning is done, Luck is going to Indy, and yes we could sell the farm and get RG3 but Pioli won’t. You know it , I know it. So let’s move on. Tough love,…I know. But just remember this my AP brothers,…if they can make chicken soup out of chicken salad…or is it chicken shit, I forget, anyway we can obtain that qb of the future with a late round pick! Just look at our ancestorial draft picks! And I helped!

He will again light up defenses and has said that right now money will not be the issue, if you read the artilce on peyton it eluded to the fact that the same thing happened to Montana and he went on to win two more superbowls and and MVP.
So one of the best Quarterback of this era your telling me that he would not deserve a chance to come back and become the Peyton he was before the injury is ridulous, and 4 to 5 years of manning would give the Chiefs time enough to ready a backup Quarterback.
How many fans at Arrow head would not do hand stands to have, number 18 in a Chiefs jersey. Pioli i hope you listen, to your fans again as peyton himself said it would not take any money out of Clark’s pocket right now until he proves himself, problem solved there’s your Franchise Quarterback and one of the most elite players to play that position in sometime. Not just that the mechanizing how many #18 years would be sold, how many, seats would be filled not just in Arrowhead but on the road with the Chiefs, Mondaynite football,all the perks Etc.