Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay didn’t take kindly to some of the recent comments his longtime quarterback Peyton Manning made about the state of the team, which went 2-14 this past season with Manning out for the year with a bum neck. Both Irsay and Manning have said they want to see how the QB’s rehab goes before deciding his future with the team, but they’ve both made headlines this week.

Irsay was set off by Manning saying the team facility was “not a great place for healing” and “not a real good environment down there right now” in the wake of the firing of the coaches and general manager. On Thursday, the Colts owner was introducing new head coach Chuck Pagano and publicly scolding Manning for issuing false statements and being a “politician,” a big insult in America’s cold, dark Middle West. “There’s not any sort of bad situation around here for healing or anything like that,” said Irsay. “That’s not a correct perspective … keep it in house, in our family. Talk to each other if you have problems.”

Irsay also perhaps gave an indication he was leaning toward dumping Manning when he said “The horseshoe always comes first … I don’t think it’s in the best interest to paint the horseshoe in a negative light, I really don’t.”

Just a few hours after Irsay said that, Manning was already defending himself. “I wasn’t trying to paint the Colts in a bad light, but it’s tough when so many people you’ve known for so long are suddenly leaving,” explained the quarterback. “I feel very close to a lot of these guys and we’ve done great things together. It’s hard to watch an old friend clean out his office. That’s all I was trying to say. … At this point, Mr. Irsay and I owe it to each other and to the fans of the organization to handle this appropriately and professionally, and I think we will.”