Peyton Manning working to be ready for 2015

Peyton Manning hasn’t officially made up his mind about the 2015 season, but the writing is on the wall that the veteran quarterback will be back for at least one more year with the Denver Broncos. While the decision hasn’t been made official, Manning is already working in his home state of Louisiana on being ready for 2015. While many saw Manning’s late season performance as a sign the aging superstar quarterback should hang up his cleats, it was always hard to imagine Manning walking away at this point.

First, it’s difficult to imagine a guy with Manning’s pride to walk away after performing the way he did down the stretch last season. Manning’s sudden and sharp decline in play was so drastic and out of nowhere, that’s it’s hard to imagine it wasn’t spurred on by injury. While it’s hard to imagine him making an excuse for his play, it’s quite easy to imagine him working that much harder to show that he’s not finished.

Then of course there’s history. Manning needs just 2,148 yards to pass Brett Favre for the most passing yards in NFL history. Being that Manning will easily surpass that total in 2016, further cementing himself among the all-time greats, it would be an absolute shock to see him walk away now.

Part of Peyton’s decision will have to come down to whether or not he believes the Broncos can continue to compete at the level they have during the last couple campaigns, and whether or not he wants to hang around if he doesn’t believe they can. Manning’s return is just one of the major questions the Broncos must make about their roster this offseason. The Broncos have some room under the salary cap to spend money, but they must find a way to lock up impending free agents like Demaryius Thomas, Julius Thomas and Terrance Knighton. If Denver can keep the nucleus together and Manning returns fully healthy, there’s no reason to believe they won’t be in playoff contention again next season. That fact, combined with the fact that Manning will certainly become the league’s all-time NFL passing leader if he plays all 16 games, suggests you should fully expect to see No. 18 leading the Broncos onto the field come September.

The Dallas Cowboys non-decision

There’s been a lot of talk about what the Dallas Cowboys should do about their “big decision” when it comes to soon to be free agents Dez Bryant and DeMarco Murray. The assumption is that the cash-strapped Cowboys won’t be able to retain both players as the team is projected to be less than $8 million under the new salary cap with Bryant, Murray and other important Cowboys players all set to become unrestricted free agents at the launch of the new league year.

Bryant had another strong season and displayed how vital he is to future Cowboys success pulling in 88 receptions for 1,320 yards and a whopping 16 touchdowns. DeMarco Murray on the other hand was just named the NFL’s offensive player of the year after rushing the ball 392 times for 1,845 yards with 13 touchdowns. For many, a look at the statistics or the play of Murray and Bryant this season leave the Cowboys with a very difficult decision on their hands. If the Cowboys can only afford to keep one of these key players in the fold, which should it be?

While some have angled this as a huge decision for the Dallas Cowboys, it’s truly one that probably never even needed to be discussed in Dallas. As great as his season was, Murray’s 392 carries are 175 more than his next highest total, and 2014 marked the first time he has remained healthy for an entire 16 game season. While Murray doesn’t have the mileage on him that some backs do, his inability to stay healthy in past seasons as well as the shelf-life of players at the tailback position, make this a pretty easy call for Dallas.

While Bryant has been in the league a year longer than Murray, he hasn’t missed a game since 2011, and he has to give the Cowboys more confidence in his ability to stay on the field, and with the team for many more years than Murray could ever hope. Yes, DeMarco Murray was considerably more productive than any running back in football this season. However, it would be much easier to find a running back who can have a fantastic year behind that Dallas offensive line than it will be to find a receiver with the dynamic ability that Bryant possesses. While some may want to try to sell this as a difficult decision on the Cowboys’ horizon, the fact is there’s no decision to be made here at all. The offensive player of the year award is nice, but there’s absolutely no question that keeping Bryant has to be a much bigger priority in Big D.

Malcolm Butler’s crazy ride continues

Despite the fact that many believed Malcom Butler’s interception was the biggest play in New England Patriots history, quarterback Tom Brady was named Super Bowl XLIX MVP, but that hasn’t stopped Butler from receiving many accolades, and now a super present from his Super Bowl quarterback. Butler may not have received the honor of being named Super Bowl MVP, but after a wild 10 days that included a trip to Disney Land, presenting an award at the Grammy’s and was capped off by Brady handing over the keys to the truck given to him for winning Super Bowl MVP, something suggests Butler isn’t too worried about it! Certainly any concern over who won the MVP was wiped out Tuesday when Brady handed the keys to his new Chevy Colorado to Butler.

“Tom is a great guy for doing that,” Butler said at an event where he was presented with Brady’s Super Bowl MVP truck. “We had a meeting, and he was just like ‘Congratulations on the big play. You can get the keys to that truck.’ I couldn’t have done all that without my teammates, so I’m just thankful to have the truck.

“I’m enjoying the moment. Words can’t explain how my life has changed and how good things have been happening to me. I’m very overwhelmed.

“I just don’t want one play to describe me as a player.  I have more to prove. Just stay humble about it. I have to get back to work soon to get ready for this season. I don’t have much time for playing.”

Butler is clear that he wants to be a player in this league for a long time and doesn’t want to be a flash in the pan or the answer to a trivia question one day. As an undrafted rookie free agent, it’s going to take a ton of hard work, dedication and film study to become an impact corner in the NFL, but Butler’s super play in Super Bowl XLIX show it’s work the young man is willing to put in.