Former Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt reflects on Peyton Manning’s message

INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) — Former Colts kicker Mike Vanderjagt is coming back to Indianapolis to be the head coach of the Indianpolis Capitols in the Continental football League.

Colts legend Peyton Manning recorded a video congratulating Vanderjagt on the new role.

Vanderjagt shared the story behind the video.

“I called him the day before, and I cold called him,” Vanderjagt said. “I didn’t text and and go hey are you around. So I called him. He answered, which is cool. We have the same birthday, so we wish each other happy birthday every year, so we’ve stayed in touch. People might think that’s crazy that we actually do like each other. So I said to him, ‘This is what I got going on.’ He’s like, ‘Wow man, congratulations.’ And I said, ‘Listen, we need to squash this whole thing, what do you want to do?’ He’s like, ‘Dude, I’m up, let’s do something fun.’ So anyway, before you know it, he’s like, ‘How’s this video look?’ And I was just like, alright, cool, let’s go with it.”

“I know first-hand how competitive you are, how much you understand the game and how much you love the sport of football and the city of Indianapolis,” Manning said in the video. “So, I’m very excited to see you take on this next challenge.”

Vanderjagt played with the Colts from 1998-2005. He was a perfect 37-37 kicking field goals in the 2003 season.