Colts owner Jim Irsay announced that quarterback Peyton Manning likely will be out for the remainder of the 2011 season during a Monday breakfast meeting with Super Bowl donors in Indianapolis, according to a report by WISH-TV.

The announcement came not long after the Colts turned to third-string quarterback, Curtis Painter, in the fourth quarter of their Sunday night loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. The loss dropped the Colts to 0-3 on the season, and without Manning, it seems unlikely the Colts will make the playoffs for a 10th consecutive season.

Sources at the meeting told WISH-TV Manning would not resume practice until December and may not play again until 2012.

Irsay later used his Twitter account to clarify his statements at the breakfast.

“I didn’t say Peyton out 4season FOR SURE, keeping him on ActiveRoster n taking it month by month/Outside chance of return n December possible,” he tweeted.

Commissioner Roger Goodell reportedly was at the meeting and did not comment on the matter.

While the tone coming out of Monday’s meeting appears bleak, NFL Network insider Jason La Canfora, citing a team source, reports the Colts currently have no plans to put Manning on injured reserve. They will make a determination on Manning’s status as he continues to progress. How the Colts’ season plays out — if it’s unlikely that they’ll play meaningful football in December — will also factor into the club’s decision.

“There has been no change in Peyton Manning’s status since our last statement on September 8th,” the Colts said in a statement. ”He is in the process of healing and rehabbing from his recent surgery. The team will inform everyone when that status changes.”

La Canfora also reports Colts coach Jim Caldwell plans to address Manning’s situation during his Monday press conference.

Manning underwent neck surgery Sept. 8, and the club has been reluctant to divulge anything definitive in regard to a timetable for a possible return.

Green Bay Packers Pro Bowl linebacker Clay Matthews played the second half of the 2010 season and all of the postseason with a broken leg, the Green Bay Press-Gazette reported.

Matthews, who had 13.5 sacks during the season and 3.5 more during Packers’ run to the Super Bowl title, mentioned the injury while answering a question about how much the Packers will miss departed defensive lineman Cullen Jenkins, who signed with the Philadelphia Eagles.

“I don’t make a big deal of it,” Matthews said Tuesday. “(It happened) some time in the middle of the season. You can’t do anything about it. I was just taking practices off and showing up on gameday and giving it my all.”

Matthews was listed on the injury report every week from Week 9 through the NFC Championship Game as probable with a shin injury, which in fact was a lower-leg stress fracture.

Jenkins’ presence last season seemingly helped Matthews, who had 14 of his 17 sacks during the 15 games that Jenkins played. In the five games Jenkins missed because of injury, Matthews made just three sacks.

“I also had a stress fracture in four of those games,” Matthews said. “But nobody knows that. I had a stress fracture in my leg. A sore shin as you guys call it, but that’s all right. Obviously, I’m not making excuses. Cullen is a terrific athlete, and we’re definitely going to take a hit in our defensive line, but at the same time I think they have confidence in the guys coming up.”

Matthews, who also has struggled with hamstring issues during each of his first two NFL seasons — both of which resulted in Pro Bowl berths, took a different approach to his offseason training this year, including much more cardiovascular work. As a result, he arrived at Packers camp weighing six pounds less than in 2010.

“This offseason, I put an emphasis on really coming in here in great cardio shape and make sure I had done everything that I possibly could to say, ‘Hey, this is how we’re going to prevent injuries,’” Matthews said. “That’s the nature of the beast. You’re going to get injured in this game, but I feel good. I feel good about where I’m at headed into my third year and feel like I can definitely outdo what I’ve put on paper and on film the last two years.”

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson issued a statement Saturday apologizing for using a gay slur on Sirius XM radio last month, phillysportsdaily.com reported Saturday.

“In a recent radio interview a caller got really confrontational with me. I got very heated with the caller, took it a bit too far and did not mean to offend anybody. I meant no disrespect and a better choice of words was needed,” Jackson said through a spokesman.

Jackson made the comments June 30 on the “All Out Show” with Rude Jude and Lord Sear on Sirius XM’s “Shade 45″ — an Eminem-styled hip-hop channel. When a caller identifying himself as “Troy in Tennessee” asked a question that rubbed Jackson the wrong way, the wideout responded with an off-color slur, according to Philadelphia Daily News.

Before filing the statement, Jackson appeared to react aggressively to the growing firestorm on Twitter on Saturday, writing: “WANNA BRING ME DOWN BUT IM OK!! THEY TRYIN KNOCC ME OFF BUT IM STILL ON!!”

Tweeted Jackson: “THEY LOOKN 2 TAKE YA DOWN AT ALL TIMES NO MATTER HOW POSITIVE AND WHAT U DO!! ITS ALWAYS AWAY THEY TRY TO GET YA…. IM STANDIN TALL”

In a later series of tweets on Saturday, however, a considerably more polished Jackson appeared contrite.

“I am sorry for using words that I know to be hurtful and unacceptable in a recent radio interview.” he wrote. “Intolerance is unacceptable and I apologize to anyone I have offended. … I have made a mistake and would like to make it clear that words I used meant no disrespect to the Gay and Lesbian community.”

Jackson has emerged as one of the top playmakers in football, both on special teams and as Michael Vick’s favorite deep target. Jackson finished last season with 47 catches for 1,056 yards and six touchdowns.

The NFL lockout reached the 101-day mark Friday, but every indication remains that the league and players have built momentum toward resolving their labor conflict in the coming weeks.

The parties will return to the bargaining table next week for a fifth round of clandestine talks at an undisclosed location. Meanwhile, the NFL Players Association will concurrently stage its replacement for the NFL’s canceled rookie symposium — entitled “The Business of Football: Rookie Edition” — in Bradenton, Fla.

Next week’s talks follow sessions held in suburban Chicago (May 31-June 2), New York’s Long Island (June 7-8), Maryland’s Eastern Shore (June 14-15) and suburban Boston (June 22-23).

As has been the case throughout the last month, talks between the league and players haven’t been limited to face-to-face discussions. And one person involved estimated that at least five hours of work go into each set of talks.

As they departed the latest meeting in Hull, Mass., on Thursday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith stood side-by-side and acknowledged the importance of gathering key people from each side under the same roof.

“Someone asked me if I was optimistic — I think we’re both optimistic when we have the right people in the room,” Smith said. “We know we’re talking about the right issues, and we’re working hard to get it done. It’s extremely complicated. It requires a lot of hard work by a lot of people. But we’re committed to getting something done. And we’re going to keep working at it.”

Smith and Goodell have been joined by Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson, New York Giants owner John Mara, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, New York Jets fullback Tony Richardson, Baltimore Ravens cornerback Domonique Foxworth and Indianapolis Colts center Jeff Saturday, as well as U.S. Magistrate Judge Arthur Boylan (who’s overseeing the talks), as constants.

One NFC team executive said Wednesday night that he believed the sides were “within striking distance” of a deal. However, another AFC team executive said: “There are enough legitimate issues to where it could all fall down still. They’re dealing with that stuff.”

One such issue is the rookie salary system, which was broached for the first time Thursday since the secret meetings began May 31. The parties have spent much of the last four weeks discussing the biggest issue, which is how to split revenue and account for growth in the players’ take.

Trust had long been seen as an issue, but it might not be as much anymore. The “all revenue” model, which takes much of the guesswork out of calculating the split, has quelled many of the players’ concerns. On the other side, league sources indicate Smith has won the owners’ trust and respect over the last four weeks, a major development as the sides work toward a deal.

Austin Collie understands that people have lingering questions about his health, but the Colts wide receiver has been running routes with Peyton Manning and is experiencing “no problems” from the two concussions that unraveled his 2010 season.

“I feel good,” Collie told The Indianapolis Star in a story for Sunday’s editions. “I feel like my routes are crisp and I’m catching the ball well. I’m doing all the little things.”

After what Collie went through last season, Colts vice chairman Bill Polian wants to be sure his wide receiver is healthy before declaring him ready to go.

“I don’t know if you can say that (Collie is back) until he gets on the field and actually plays,” Polian said. “Thus far, all the signs are positive.”

Collie was among the NFL leaders in receptions until hurting his right thumb Oct. 17 against the Washington Redskins. Surgery forced Collie to sit out the Colts next game.

He returned Nov. 7 against Philadelphia but left in the first half after Eagles defensive back Kurt Coleman lowered his shoulder to hit Collie and inadvertently had a helmet-to-helmet collision. Collie lay motionless on the field for about 10 minutes before being placed on a backboard and taken off the field on a stretcher.

Collie, who never had concussion issues prior to the Eagles game, returned Nov. 21 against New England but left in the first quarter with concussion-like symptoms.

He returned Dec. 19 only to suffer another frightening injury late in the second quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars. On that play, Peyton Manning tried to thread a ball between two Jaguars defenders on third-and-12. Collie appeared to catch the ball, but when the second defender, linebacker Daryl Smith, hit Collie in the head with his forearm, the ball came out.

But Collie again stayed down on the field, motionless for several minutes as the hushed crowd watched 10 coaches and trainers huddle around Collie. Smith, Manning and Jeff Saturday — the two longest-tenured Colts — all stood nearby.

Eventually, Collie sat up and walked straight to the locker room, missing the final 67 seconds of the half. Collie was placed on season-ending injured reserve on Dec. 22.

The two-year veteran began training in February on the West Coast and in Indianapolis, according to The Star. After working with Manning in non-contact passing sessions, the All-Pro quarterback told the newspaper that Collie moved with the same focus and dedication he always has.

Collie told The Star there was nothing he could have done to avoid the collisions from last season.

“It was just playing football and unfortunately, that’s what can happen,” he said. “They were just two unlucky incidents that unfortunately I was in the middle of.

“The last thing I want to do is hesitate at any given point. I try to put those things in the back of my mind and not worry about them.”

Collie understands that people want to see how he responds to taking a hit.

“I’m not even thinking about that,” he said.