Cardinals out of running for Manning

Finally the Peyton Manning picture is cleared up for us here in Arizona.

Some got the news they expected, and I’d imagine a great majority got the news they were dreading: the Cardinals are officially out of the hunt for the future Hall of Famer.

It sure made for an interesting and exhausting time didn’t it?

The deadline for giving quarterback Kevin Kolb his $7 million roster bonus has come and gone. According to league sources, the team will pay Kolb his bonus on Saturday.

Whether or not the team will seek to restructure Kolb’s contract remains to be seen.

Head coach Ken Whisenhunt knew the team had to make a run at Manning, regardless of who else was in the race.

“Obviously something very unique and unexpected presented itself,” Whisenhnt said. “We’ve said it many times: if there’s an opportunity to make our team better we’ll explore it; we view the potential of adding a first-ballot Hall of Fame quarterback as one of those.”

You win some…you lose some. For the Cardinals, they move on with Kolb and John Skelton, and see who fights their way into the starting position, which Whisenhunt is fine with.

“Since the end of last season we made it very clear that our plan was to head into 2012 with Kevin Kolb and John Skelton, let the process play out and – like at every position –  go with the quarterback who gives us the best chance to win,” he said. 

“In the end it didn’t work out but from our perspective it was very positive and we certainly don’t have any regrets about it,” Whisenhunt added. 

If you’re a Cardinals fan, you have to applaud the team’s efforts and their aggressiveness in trying to land Manning.

They did all they were supposed to do, then let the process play itself out.

It would’ve been different if they put all their eggs in the “Manning Easter Basket” and did something drastic, like releasing Kolb before Manning made his decision.

Then they would’ve been left with a basket with no goodies in it, and would have to revert to a Plan B.

But they can finally move on, while the Broncos, Titans and 49ers, along with their fans, continue to stay on pins and needles, waiting for Manning’s decision.