Well, if you were in our open thread watching Peyton Manning and Jim Irsay's pres conference, you already know the news - Peyton Manning will no longer be a Colt and he is confident he will play in 2012.
Joel transcribed a bunch of quotes from the press conference. You can find most of them in the Peyton Manning free agent StoryStream at SBNation.com. Here are some highlights:
On playing in 2012: "I am confident. I don't know what these next steps are. This is all new to me. This is the only team I've ever known and I've always known the month of March as the offseason, getting ready to go play for the Colts. This is uncharted territory for me."
On being released from the Colts: "I've been a Colt for almost all of my adult life. I guess in life and in sports nothing lasts forever. Times change, circumstances change and that's the reality of playing in the NFL. Jim and I have spoken extensively about where we are today and our conversations have led both of us to recognize that our circumstances make it best for us to take the next step."
Colts owner Jim Irsay on the split: "The 18 jersey will never be worn again by a Colt on the field. This process has been a long difficult process. I know Peyton and I have had numerous conversations over the months and we always kept trying to come back to the circumstances that were before us. We tried to put each other in each other's shoes and tried to realize what the situation was for the franchise, what it was for Peyton and in the end those circumstances were too difficult to overcome."
Nothing really new here except to say that Peyton Manning seemed quite confident he will be ready to play come late summer.
Let the speculation continue!