INDIANAPOLIS — Jim Irsay expects to meet with Peyton Manning in the next seven days, and the Colts’ owner told The Indianapolis Star the return of the four-time MVP depends on his willingness to restructure his contract.
Manning has spent the past five months recovering from his third neck surgery in less than two years, and there have been conflicting reports about how much progress he has made.
The Colts owe Manning a $28 million roster bonus by March 8.
Irsay told the newspaper on Tuesday the Colts would love to have Manning finish his career in Indianapolis “if he can get healthy and we can look at doing a contract that reflects the uncertainty of the … healing process with the regeneration of the nerve.”
• Indianapolis completed its coaching staff by hiring eight assistant coaches and making Clyde Christensen quarterbacks coach.
Gary Emanuel will coach the defensive line, Jeff FitzGerald will coach linebackers, Mike Gillhamer is in charge of the secondary and Brad White will be in charge of defensive quality control.
Christensen will stay on the staff as quarterbacks coach.
Joe Gilbert takes over as assistant offensive line coach, Frank Giufre is in charge of offensive quality control with Alfredo Roberts in charge of tight ends and Charlie Williams leading the receivers. Giufre was the offensive line and tight ends coach at UMaine.
First-year head coach Chuck Pagano already hired Bruce Arians as offensive coordinator and Greg Manusky as defensive coordinator.
CHIEFS: Coach Romeo Crennel announced the rest of his staff, which includes quarterbacks coach Jim Zorn, who was passed over for the offensive coordinator position.
Brian Daboll was hired recently to coordinate the offense, which led many to question whether Zorn would be back. He was retained along with assistant head coach Maurice Carthon, tight ends coach Bernie Parmalee, strength coach Mike Clark, wide receivers coach Nick Sirianni and virtually the entire defensive staff.
Jack Bicknell Jr. was hired to coach the offensive line and Jim Bob Cooter was brought in as the offensive quality control coach. Tom McMahon and Derius Swinton will handle special teams.
RAMS: St. Louis hired Les Snead as its new general manager.
Snead spent the past 13 years with the Atlanta Falcons, the last three as director of player personnel.
VIKINGS: The team appears locked in to one more season at the Metrodome, with a team executive saying the club has no plans to file a notice of relocation with the NFL ahead of today’s deadline.
Vikings vice president Lester Bagley said the team remains optimistic that state lawmakers will approve a plan for a new publicly subsidized stadium.
With no apparent other market available, the Vikings had not been expected to file the notice.
JEFF FISHER is back in the NFL as a coach, and back on the prestigious NFL competition committee.
Fisher was hired last month by the St. Louis Rams after sitting out the 2011 season. While coaching the Tennessee Titans, he was co-chairman from 2002-2010 of the committee that reviews rules.
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