Top 5 Landing Spots For Peyton Manning

Mike Shanahan loves having a franchise quarterback (i.e. John Elway) and right now he doesn't have one. If his time in Washington is going to last, Shanahan better start driving the "Bring Peyton to D.C." Bandwagon. The quarterbacks the Redskins have, Rex Grossman and John Beck, have been lackluster, combining for 18 touchdowns and 24 interceptions this past season. Daniel Snider is one of the wealthiest owners in the NFL and I think he would be more than willing to pay big bucks to have Peyton Manning come in as the new face of the franchise. In addition, the Redskins have the #6 overall pick in this year's draft and could capture that #1 receiver they desperately need. If all else fails, Peyton would probably make a heck of a politician in the nation's capital.

Aside from the beautiful weather in Miami, there are plenty of other appealing characteristics about the Dolphins that might attract Peyton Manning. Recently hired head coach Joe Philbin is a quarterbacks guy, having just come from Green Bay. Brandon Marshall is still in his prime and is a legitimate #1 target, and Reggie Bush finished the season strong and in doing so, had the best season of his career. All that being said, if Peyton is going to bring his talents to South Beach, he will have to be ok with traveling to Buffalo, Jersey, and Foxboro in December. Brrrr.

When James Harrison hit Colt McCoy with a cheap shot in December, giving him a severe concussion, it may have ended McCoy's time in the NFL as a starting quarterback. McCoy took a step backwards in his second year and much of that had to do with the absence of Peyton Hillis for most of the year. Regardless, the Browns have voiced their desire to find a new gun slinger. Peyton Manning may be their guy. Considering the stock pile of draft picks the Browns have (the ones they acquired last year from the Falcons), they would have a fairly easy time surrounding Peyton with young, explosive, first-round talent.

The New York Jets probably have the slimmest chances of landing Peyton Manning, but the speculation has been there from the moment their season ended. Rex Ryan loves Manning and would love to bring another Manning to the Big Apple. Plaxico Burress may be aging, but he can still hold his own, and if Santonio Holmes can get his act together, he can be as big of threat as there is at wide receiver in the NFL. After taking the Jets to the AFC title game two years in a row, Mark Sanchez floundered last year and it was obvious that his confidence has faltered. New York wouldn't really be Peyton's style but, the Jets are still on the radar.

Last but not least, this team happens to be my personal favorite to land Manning. The Cardinals signed Kevin Kolb to a 5 year, $64 million dollar contract this past year after acquiring him from Philadelphia and he underperformed in his first year in nearly every sense of the word. That is the biggest thing working against the Cardinals, but if they could find another home for Kolb, all the other pieces are there. University of Phoenix Stadium has a retractable roof, not to mention the weather in Phoenix is always predictable. Larry Fitzgerald could be the closest thing to Marvin Harrison that Peyton will ever play with again, and Beanie Wells had a great season last year before injuries.