The first Peyton Manning retirement report, from an unlikely source
Posted by Mike Florio on January 18, 2012, 3:48 PM EST
2011 CMT Artists Of The Year Getty Images

As questions continue to swirl regarding the future of Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, word has emerged on Twitter that Manning will retire.

Such word comes from Rob Lowe, the actor/Colts fan. Lowe, who appeared last month on The Rich Eisen Podcast, tells his 230,000-plus followers that Lowe is hearing Manning will call it quits.

Lowe says that his “people” say it will happen today. Rosenthal, who actually listened to Lowe on The Rich Eisen Podcast, says that Lowe said he’s “friendly” with Colts owner Jim Irsay.

And so we wait.

Who knows? Maybe Lowe will end up with a Pulitzer to put on the mantle next to all those acting awards he may eventually win.

UPDATE 3:59 p.m. ET: Check out photo No. 10 on this .

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... ly-source/

Actor Rob Lowe says Peyton Manning will retire

We don't mean to contribute to the Peyton Manning retirement speculation fueled today by, of all people, Rob Lowe.

But it's out there, so here you go.

Lowe, the prototypical jerk in such 90's classics as 'Wayne's World' and 'Tommy Boy,' tweeted Wednesday that he's hearing Manning is done playing football.

Lowe's 'report' appeared to be inaccurate after several interested parties weighed in Wednesday. Manning's father, Archie, laughed when told of Lowe's tweet, telling ESPN's Chris Mortensen "He ain't retiring. I think he would've told me." Manning's agent, Tom Condon, says this is the first he's heard about it, per NFL Network's Jason La Canfora.

Still, both "Rob Lowe" and "Peyton Manning" and "#RobLoweIsReporting" were among the top 10 US Twitter trends Wednesday afternoon.

The actor, as it happens, is friends with Colts owner Jim Irsay. Lowe is also the first person Irsay followed on Twitter, before the NFL and commissioner Roger Goodell.

Manning, 35, sat out the 2011 season after enduring multiple offseason neck surgeries. The Colts finished 2-14, earning the No. 1 pick, one they're likely to spend on Stanford QB Andrew Luck.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities ... l-retire/1

Rob Lowe says he got his Manning info from “pretty-darn good source”
Posted by Mike Florio on January 18, 2012, 9:02 PM EST

Actor Rob Lowe turned the football-following world upside down on Wednesday with a series of tweets regarding a rumor that Colts quarterback Peyton Manning will retire today.

Ludicrous on the surface, the fact that Lowe has a friendship with Colts owner Jim Irsay gave the situation a bit more credibility.

Manning’s father and agent have since denied it, and Irsay has fired a shot at Lowe via Twitter.

Lowe has now responded, telling our buddy Rich Eisen of NFL Network that the info came from a “pretty-darn good source.” Lowe said the source wasn’t Irsay, however, or anyone close to him.

The fact that Manning didn’t retire today doesn’t mean he won’t. And regardless of whether he does, Lowe’s foray into the NFL made for an interesting afternoon and evening.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/20 ... od-source/

The Lowe down on Peyton retirement tweet

Never thought I’d use these words when reporting on a story, but …

I just hung up the phone with actor Rob Lowe, who, it should be mentioned, is a big-time Indianapolis Colts fan because he and his sons became huge fans of Peyton Manning years ago. Lowe has appeared twice on my podcasts to talk about his love of the Colts and how he hoped the team would keep Manning (he also thought vice chairman Bill Polian and coach Jim Caldwell should be fired, which they were.)

At any rate, I asked him if his source on Wednesday’s tweet about Manning’s retirement from the NFL was Jim Irsay (the Twitter-happy Colts owner whose first follow was Lowe) and he said: “Absolutely not. It wasn’t Jim or anyone close to Jim.” Lowe did say he heard Manning would retire imminently from “a pretty-darn good source.”

Lowe said he’s shocked by the attention and wasn’t searching for any. He’s just a fan who, as he always has, tweeted about his Colts and figured he’d “let the professionals see what’s true or not.”

http://richeisen.nfl.com/2012/01/19/the ... line_stack

Well I'm not considering Rob Lowe a “pretty-darn good source” so I'm considering this a non-story at this point. Crumble it up and throw it into St. Elmo's Fire.

BTW - that is a double reference to an 80's movie of his and a major steakhouse in Indy.

Well I'm not considering Rob Lowe a “pretty-darn good source” so I'm considering this a non-story at this point. Crumble it up and throw it into St. Elmo's Fire.

BTW - that is a double reference to an 80's movie of his and a major steakhouse in Indy.

Well I'm not considering Rob Lowe a “pretty-darn good source” so I'm considering this a non-story at this point. Crumble it up and throw it into St. Elmo's Fire.

BTW - that is a double reference to an 80's movie of his and a major steakhouse in Indy.