What If Titans Signed Peyton Manning?

The Tennessee Titans nearly signed Peyton Manning in 2012 before he joined the Denver Broncos.

Dec 8, 2013; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning (18) throws the ball during the second half against the Tennessee Titans at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Broncos won 51-28. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports / Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

It's been 12 years since the Tennessee Titans watched Peyton Manning leave the Indianapolis Colts and the AFC South to join the Denver Broncos in free agency.

However, during the Manning sweepstakes, the Hall-of-Fame quarterback was close to returning to the state he once called home to join the Titans.

"Before the Indianapolis Colts great joined the Denver Broncos in 2012, breathing new life into Mile High City as one of the most prized free agents of all time, Manning was admittedly "pretty close" to joining the Colts' AFC South rivals. Late Titans owner Bud Adams made a public pitch to the star quarterback, who was coming off a serious neck injury at the time, and Manning already had ties to the area, playing college ball at Tennessee. In the end, he preferred Denver's talent, and went on to win it all in 2015," CBS Sports writer Cody Benjamin writes.

The Titans had 2011's No. 8 overall pick Jake Locker ready to take the reins, but the team would have understandably preferred if Manning had taken over instead of the young quarterback. Locker played in just five games during his rookie season with no starts as he was learning behind veteran Matt Hasselbeck.

The Titans ultimately missed out on Manning, and he went to two Super Bowls with the Broncos. He won Super Bowl 50 with the Broncos in the 2015 season, his last in the NFL.

But what if Manning spent his final four years with the Titans instead of the Broncos? Tennessee won just 18 games in the four years Manning was in Denver, and that number certainly would have gone up if he was in Nashville. However, it's hard to tell if the defense would have also upgraded alongside the offense.

Perhaps the front office would have been more willing to push to win with Manning under center, but Denver's Super Bowl win came also because of how strong the defense was. Without an improved defense, a Manning-led Titans squad wouldn't have amounted to much.

There is some solace in not signing Manning. The Broncos have yet to even return to the playoffs since Manning retired, forming one of the longest postseason droughts in the league. The Titans have made the playoffs four times in that span, including a trip to the AFC Championship Game.

So, in hindsight, it may not have been bad for the Titans to pass on Manning.

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