Injury news on Peyton Manning explains some of his struggles

It turns out Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning was dealing with a pretty serious injury.

ESPN's Adam Schefter, citing two sources, reported that Manning tore his quad against the San Diego Chargers on Dec. 14. The Broncos knew about the injury, but Manning "did what he could to intentionally conceal the injury from as many people as he could," Schefter said. In that game Manning went straight to the locker room after trying to throw a block on a run by C.J. Anderson, but Schefter said Manning hurt his thigh rolling out right on a completion to Emmanuel Sanders earlier in the second quarter. He stayed in the game after that play.

On the other hand, Vic Lombardi of CBS 4 in Denver emphatically said sources told him it was not a tear, just a strain. Either way, a serious injury could change the perception on Manning and his future.

If Manning had a serious quad injury that could heal in a long offseason, could he return and play like he did in the first half of this season? It's possible. That is, if he decides to return. He sounded very unsure about whether he wanted to play again next season, although that might have been due to the emotions of a heartbreaking 24-13 playoff loss to the Indianapolis Colts.

Manning was asked if he was healthy after the game on Sunday. He did not divulge that he was seriously injured, and in fact downplayed the thigh injury.

"It’s hung around but I felt like I tried to manage it," Manning said. "I felt like I could manage it. Completed some passes, won some games with it. So just — it hung around, just that one thigh, but there is nothing more to it than that. And I thought — felt good with it coming into the day." Why he didn't say anything about the severity of the injury can be interpreted in a number of ways. Maybe he didn't want to make excuses for a performance in which he was dreadful throwing downfield, and only passed the 200-yard mark on the last play of the game.

If Manning's struggles can be attributed to the quad injury — and there can be some debate there, because the Broncos started to dial back his role in the offense and give more to Anderson well before Dec. 14 — then that might change the outlook for the 2015 season. If he wants to come back.