Broncos’ Peyton Manning meets with John Elway; no word on return

Peyton Manning’s future with the Denver Broncos remained unclear after he met Thursday with team executives including General Manager John Elway and Chief Executive Joe Ellis.

A decision on the star quarterback’s return for the upcoming season had been expected from Thursday’s meeting, but that decision might not be Manning’s to make.

The 38-year-old, who has undergone two previous neck surgeries and suffered a quadriceps injury last season that limited him down the stretch, will have to pass a physical before March 9, when his 2015 salary of $19 million becomes fully guaranteed.

Manning suffered the injury to his quad against the San Diego Chargers in Week 8. The all-time passing touchdown leader (521) didn’t miss any games because of the injury but he was noticeably limited and saw a dip in his production.

After passing for 22 touchdowns and three interceptions, Manning went 17-12 through the final nine games of the season.

The Broncos were eliminated in the divisional round of the playoffs by the Indianapolis Colts in a game in which Manning completed 26 of 46 passes for 211 yards and one score.

If he is forced out of the game, No. 18 will finish with the second-most passing yards (69,691) and second-most completions (5,927) ever over 17 seasons of play, behind only Brett Favre. Those records could both be his with one more season.

Follow Matt Wilhalme on Twitter @mattwilhalme