Peyton Manning is in demand, but would he be good fit with the New York Jets?

It’s tempting to say that teams have been salivating at the idea of Peyton Manning becoming a coach or front-office employee since the presumptive Hall of Fame quarterback retired following the 2015 season. Except the speculation and anticipation had already been running rampant for years while he was still an active player.

This makes sense, as Peyton has long been heralded as one of the most knowledgeable players in the history of the NFL, his obsessive preparation the stuff of giddy legend among football analysts. As a player, he was committed to molding teammates into the version of themselves most amenable to his tendencies, and he often identified available players who would work best with him.

Yet here we are, more than three years into his retirement, and Peyton is still off doing his own thing and not involved with any franchise. He last month reportedly turned down an announcing job with Monday Night Football, where he would have replaced the un-retiring Jason Witten. With the obvious Tennessee connection, Manning has been linked to the Titans the past few years as a potential GM and even a potential part-owner, but so far nothing has materialized on that end.

And now we have a new rumored suitor: the Jets. The team made the shocking move to fire general manager Mike Maccagnan after the draft and free agency. There are a few troubling suggestions as to why: a rift and lost power struggle with new head coach Adam Gase, and the indecisive thinking of CEO Christopher Johnson that resulted in the poor timing of the move. What we know for sure is that the team needs a new GM.

One can certainly debate how attractive the Jets job is, and some NFL sources have reservations about specific aspects of it, including what the power dynamic would be with Gase. That the team is interested in Peyton has become the stuff of rumor around league circles, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

With current circumstances, it’s easy to see the fit. Manning has had a good relationship with Gase dating to their time working together in Denver. Manning’s reputation as a savvy talent evaluator gibes with what Johnson said he wants in Maccagan’s successor. It would drive publicity to a franchise that is often in the shadows of the other NFL franchise in New York. That the Jets' roster is more or less set for the 2019 season might discourage veteran front-office personnel who prefer to put their mark on things right away. A first-time GM like Manning could benefit from being eased into the role a little gradually.

Manning’s entry into the world of front-office personnel would be likened to that of another former star player, John Lynch, who has served as GM for the 49ers since 2017. Lynch’s tenure is still a little tricky to evaluate at this point, and a lot depends on Jimmy Garoppolo’s ability to bounce back from a season-ending injury in 2018. Former player Ozzie Newsome had considerable success in the position with the Baltimore Ravens. Lynch is a much more contemporary hire, as is Mike Mayock, if you want to factor in the nine games he played in the NFL. Suffice it to say, teams are becoming more comfortable turning the evaluation process over to former players, after years in which the likes of Matt Millen, who was a disaster in Detroit, might have scared some organizations off the idea.

There’s no word on Manning’s interest, which is of course the key here. A lot of teams, media organizations, and even big-time companies would love to have Peyton Manning on board in some sort of high-level capacity. This means there’s little pressure on him to rush to commit to something. Most likely, the ideal fit will end up coming to him anyway. The Jets' offer an intriguing possibility that makes sense in some ways, but for now, that’s all it is.