Manning expected to miss camp opening

Peyton Manning never misses a game and hardly snap. That's in the regular season.

The Indianapolis Colts expect to begin training camp practices Monday without their star quarterback, who not only is coming off neck surgery, but doesn't have a contract.

Coach Jim Caldwell said Friday that Manning is "not ready right now" and that the team will "turn him loose" when he is ready to play.

Manning is in the midst of negotiations on a new contract that Colts owner Jim Irsay says will make the four-time league MVP the highest-paid player in NFL history. Manning has never missed a start -- the streak is at 227, including playoffs, the longest active one in the league.

"I've told him to be as cautious as he needs to be because the last time I checked, we don't count preseason games," Pro Bowl center Jeff Saturday said. "I can tell you this, there's not a player that works harder than he does."