Colts say Manning out for Week 1

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ― The numbers tell it all.

Exactly 227 consecutive starts.

Eleven playoff appearances.

Eleven double-digit winning seasons.

Eight division crowns.

Two AFC titles.

One Super Bowl championship.

Peyton Manning has quarterbacked the Indianapolis Colts every Sunday since Sept. 6, 1998.

He won’t this weekend.

Manning will be in street clothes when the team opens the season at Houston, still recovering from neck surgery while Kerry Collins starts in his place.

“It’s going to be a little different without Peyton,” coach Jim Caldwell said. “He’s one of a kind. When you look across our league, most teams have had quarterbacks that have missed time. Ours has just been highly unusual.”

The streak is the second longest in history among NFL quarterbacks behind only Brett Favre, whose 297-game run ― 321 including the postseason ― ended last season just before he called it a career.

Colts left tackle Anthony Castonzo was 10 years old when Manning’s streak began. Veteran center Jeff Saturday has never snapped the ball to another quarterback to start a game during his pro career. In fact, no player on Indy’s roster has participated in a regular-season or playoff game for the Colts without No. 18 at the controls.

Giants quarterback Eli Manning, Peyton’s younger brother, now holds the longest active streak for a quarterback with 110 starts, including postseason play. He said he had not talked to his brother for a few weeks.

“I know he was dealing with a lot,” the younger Manning said. “I don’t know how he is feeling and what’s going on. I know he wants to be out there. He gave his all and he will give his all to be back out there.”

The Colts had hoped the 35-year-old Manning would recover while developing a backup plan. Collins, who was brought out of retirement just two weeks ago to run the Colts’ pass-heavy offense, has been preparing as though he would start.

“I expect to run the offense, bottom line,” he said. “Make plays when they’re there, be smart with the ball, make good reads, good decisions, get us into the right plays when the situation calls for it. I’m going into this week thinking I’m going to run the offense as best I can.”

Defensive end Dwight Freeney said the Colts still expect to play at a championship level.