INDIANAPOLIS -- Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy expects star quarterback Peyton Manning to play in their NFL regular-season opener against the Chicago Bears next week.
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"I would be shocked if he's not there (a week from) Sunday," Dungy said Thursday after the preseason finale. "He would have to have a dramatic setback. Right now, every step we've taken has been good."
Manning, who has never missed a start in his 10-year NFL career, has made significant progress in the past week, six weeks after having surgery to remove an infected bursa sac from the knee.
He was activated from the physically unable to perform list Tuesday and then did some light work at practice. When he returned Wednesday, with no soreness in the knee, coaches increased his workload.
On Thursday, he was in uniform and warming up for the first time at any of the Colts' five preseason games this year. He didn't play but now, it appears, he'll be ready to go when the Colts play their first regular-season game at the new Lucas Oil Stadium.
"What we wanted to do was really kind of simulate what he was going to do on game day, see how everything felt and see if he wanted to alter his routine for next Sunday," Dungy said. "I think he came away feeling pretty good about it. He told me on the sidelines that if he started, he would have felt in good shape and ready to go."
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