Indianapolis mayor Greg Ballard believes NFL owners and players are making progress on a new collective bargaining agreement and that next year's Super Bowl will still be played at Lucas Oil Stadium. "I like the fact they got the mediator in there, and they're meeting seriously," Ballard said. "I'm sure they're closer than they have been in the past. They're kind of keeping it to themselves right now because they don't want to have any extra pressure on them right now." NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith and league officials have not provided updates on negotiations before federal mediator George Cohen. The current collective bargaining agreement will expire on Thursday.

Talks between the Colts and Peyton Manning on a long-term contract are ongoing, but the quarterback's agent says nothing is imminent. "We're having conversations so that's a positive," agent Tom Condon, said. "But I would agree with [Colts Vice Chairman Bill Polian] that nothing's imminent." Two weeks ago, the Colts designated Manning their exclusive franchise player, a move designed to keep him off the free-agent market.

The Colts and Peyton Manning continue to work on a new long-term contract. "I would say we are simply moving ahead at a steady pace, but nothing is imminent," Colts president Bill Polian said. Indianapolis team owner Jim Irsay said last week he had already offered Manning a deal that would eclipse Tom Brady's record for annual average salary.

The Colts have released former Pro Bowl safety Bob Sanders. "We thank Bob for all his incredible contributions, from his Super Bowl interception to his defensive player of the year honor," owner Jim Irsay said in a statement. After being named the NFL's Top Defensive Player in 2007, Sanders signed a five-year, $37.5 million contract but played in only nine regular-season games the next three seasons.

Jim Irsay and the Colts called a news conference Thursday and said he expects Peyton Manning's new contract to be worth more than Tom Brady's record-setting deal. "I think six years is certainly a possibility, five or six years," Irsay said. "There's not a definitive number that I'm stuck on. You don't know how much longer he can play. You hope that it's five years, maybe six years. Until you get longer down the road, it's really uncertain." Brady had agreed to a four-year, $72 million contract in September.

The Colts have franchised quarterback Peyton Manning and have given him the "exclusive" designation. Of the players given franchise tags by their teams so far, only Manning and Michael Vick received the "exclusive" designation, barring them from talking with other teams. Manning will be due a salary over $23 million under the present formula. The Colts say they will continue to work on a long-term contract with Manning.

The Colts are prepared to use the franchise tag on quarterback Peyton Manning, according to the Indianapolis Star. According to the Star, the one-year deal would pay Manning $23 million next season to stay in Indianapolis. Manning is due to become a free agent and Colts owner Jim Irsay said more than a year ago that he wants to give Manning a deal that would make him the highest-paid player in the league and keep him in a Colts uniform for the rest of his career.

Fans displaced by seating issues for Sunday night's Super Bowl will get another chance next year. The 400 people without seats will be "guests of the NFL" at Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis, commissioner Roger Goodell said on Monday. The fans also received triple the face value of their 2011 tickets, which is $2,400, free merchandise, food and beverages, and were allowed to go on the field at Cowboys Stadium after the game. Goodell said the problems with the seats were "obviously a failure on our behalf," and the league takes responsibility. "Any time you put on an event of this magnitude, you have your challenges," Goodell said in a statement. "We apologize to those fans that were impacted. We are going to work with them and we are going to do better in the future. We will certainly do a thorough review and get to the bottom of why it all occurred, but we take full responsibility for that as putting on this game. "But the one thing we will never do is compromise safety -- safety for our fans, safety for our players, anyone involved with our event."