Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning has a looming decision to make about his playing career following the season, with team officials unsure what he will decide and no shortage of post-playing options available for the future Hall of Fame quarterback. Manning has expressed an interest in owning and operating an NFL team, something well known throughout the league, and is interested in pursuing a second career along the lines of Broncos’ executive John Elway.
Manning remains close to Browns owner Jimmy Haslam -- the two spoke frequently in the past about potential ownership of the Tennessee Titans prior to Haslam ultimately purchasing the Browns -- and, with league sources believing the Titans could end up on the market at some point in 2015, his presence there would be a boon to not only the current ownership (in terms of what it could do for a sale price) but also to perspective new owners who would covet Manning as well. Longtime Titans owner Bud Adams passed away last year, and his son-in-law, Tommie Smith, has served as the majority owner since then, but sources said not all members of the family are as intent on keeping the team long term, and the high sale price the Bills fetched -- roughly $1.4 billion despite the team lacking an adequate stadium -- has led to investment bankers and potential dealmakers swirling around family members.
Some believe the Titans could fetch upwards of $2 billion, and with the NFL pursuing teams in Los Angeles and London, seeing a smaller-market franchise come close to that range would only be a boost to the overall valuations of those top markets as well. Manning and his family have strong ties to Tennessee, where he played college ball, and one of the reasons Manning came so close to picking the Titans to play for when released by the Colts was the potential to one day be part of an ownership group there (at the time, with Haslam eyeing the franchise). Haslam is likely to approach Manning again about such an option should he end his playing days, and Manning’s interest in ownership is not lost on potential Titans buyers as well.
Fred Smith, CEO of FedEx and a minority owner in Washington, has strong interest in the Titans, sources said. He is based in Memphis, has long been seen as a leading candidate to own his own team, and would leap at the chance to bid for the Titans. And Steelers minority owner David Tepper, with an estimated wealth above $10 billion as a wildly successful hedge fund manager, is also viewed by the league office as a strong potential owner.
There will be no shortage of interest in this franchise should it hit the market, and the pace with which deals have closed recently for the Browns and Bills will have interested parties circling this offseason with the hope of being able to take over control of the franchise by the October league meetings should the family opt to sell in the winter or spring.
Manning will be heavily courted by various media outlets as well, but many close to him believe the opportunity to have an ownership stake in a team, and help control its operation, strikes closer to his ultra-competitive core, and its something he could quickly transition into should he opt to hang up his spikes. Sources said he has not expressed an intent one way or the other to the Broncos -- “no one has any idea if this is it or not,” said one source close to him. “I don’t even think he knows” -- but it would not come as a shock should he opt to retire after the playoffs.
