Last month, Peyton Manning said he’ll be back in 2015, if the Broncos want him. This month, Manning isn't so sure.

Which means fantasy football owners should prepare for this year's biggest (though by no means its only) soap opera.

“I can’t answer every what-if circumstance," Manning said when asked about playing next season after Sunday's Divisional Playoff loss to the Colts. "What if you’re not as healthy? What if certain coaches leave? I can’t answer every what-if situation. I think I’ll have to take some time to see how I feel, see how I feel physically.”

As for that last angle, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Manning played Sunday's game and the past month of the season with a torn right quadriceps.

Manning had one of the worst performances of his postseason career during Sunday's loss to the Colts. He finished 26 of 46 passing for 211 yards and a touchdown in the 24-13 loss.

Manning initially injured his thigh when he rolled out right to throw a 12-yard completion to Emmanuel Sanders late in the first half of Denver's Dec. 14 victory over the San Diego Chargers. Broncos doctors knew about the injury and Manning did what he could to intentionally conceal the injury from as many people as he could, sources told Schefter.

Sunday's game was Manning's fourth-lowest yardage total in a postseason game in his career and it left the quarterback mulling his future after the game.

In the second half of the season, particularly since the Broncos' Nov. 16 loss in St. Louis, Manning topped 300 yards passing just once -- in a Monday Night Football loss in Cincinnati -- over the last six games of the regular season.

Over the last nine games of the season, six of those on the road, the Broncos went 6-3 as Manning -- who has two more years left on his contract -- threw 17 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

Pressed further after the Colts game as to whether he could definitely say he was still planning to return to the Broncos next season, Manning said, after a short pause:

"Uh, yeah, I guess I just can't give that simple answer. I'm processing it. I can't say that. I could not say that.'

As Profootballtalk.com's Mike Florio suggested Sunday night, the Broncos will want to know sooner than later whether he’ll be back, so that they can make plans accordingly. Both regarding who’ll play quarterback and how they’ll spend the $19 million that otherwise would go to Peyton.

I'll go ahead and suggest that Manning being noncommittal after a disappointing loss isn't a huge surprise.

In addition, the reports suggesting John Fox's job might have been in jeopardy with a loss to the Colts (which appear to be unfounded) as well as the interest offensive coordinator Adam Gase is drawing as a head-coaching candidate -- as well has how his injury heals -- all add to the mix. ...

Again, we haven't head the last of this one.