ESPN is reporting the Indianapolis has fired head coach Jim Caldwell. They initially reported that he was being retained, then aired an update that he was indeed axed. Caldwell was in limbo after Bill and Scott Polian had been let go. Wonder how this will affect Peyton's decision to try and come back to Indy, or go somewhere else.

In all likely hood that decision means Manning is out, a decision made due to financial reason or otherwise.

The decision to clean house and rebuild around Luck could comeback to haunt the Colts. For Luck to be successful, a competent coaching staff, players and management are necessary and that is easier said than done. Dungy and Caldwell were the perfect compliments for Manning because with him you didn't need a rah, rah overbearing coach like a Rex Ryan.

Still think Caldwell is getting a raw deal because he didn't make the personnel decisions, Polian did but the NFL is one brutal business.

Unless Manning's medical condition will keep him from playing next year, the Colts would be nuts to let him go.  If they take Luck, Manning's the perfect tutor for him.  As for Caldwell, sure he didn't make the personnel decisions but their lousy record is partly his fault.  The rest of the team was intact.  Losing Manning should not have caused their tremendous crash.

The Steelers (I know, Hardy compares everything to the Steelers) last year went 3-1 w/o Ben (and ultimately made the Super Bowl) with a combination of Dixon/Batch. I am fairly confident that if they played a whole season without him they'd figure out a way to at least go 8-8

There is no way the Colts should have gone from a 10-12 win team to a 2 win team w/o Peyton. Yes, Peyton Manning is prob. one of the greatest regular season players we've ever seen, but this season was ridiculous. Polian has to take some of the blame for not having an adequate back-up to Peyton Manning in place (no, calling Kerry Collins out of retirement does not count).  However, I think Caldwell should have gotten much more out of his players. Freeny, Mathis, Saturday, Clark, Wayne or all pro-bowl caliber players. There was certainly enough talent on the roster to play close to .500 ball. For that, Caldwell has to take the blame.

Firing Caldwell was not unexpected (especially when Polian was fired). I am not sure what this means for Peyton. If he is healthy, it will be a tough call. But, if they really want to turn the proverbial page, they now have a perfect opportunity to do so. The Colts could blame it on economics, claiming it doesnt make sense to carry two expensive QB's. Thank Peyton for his decade plus of hall of fame service and turn the team over to Andrew Luck. And the Colts better hope that Luck is the franchise QB everyone predicts.

When it rains, it pours.

It appears the Colts are in full blown rebuilding mode. The problem is the AFC is so deep, it might take some time to get back to the top and you wouldn't know how good or bad the decision to clean house is for another 3 - 4 years.

Peyton will also influence those results depending if he plays somewhere else and how well he does.