UPDATE, 7:01 p.m. ET: Duke HC David Cutcliffe -- a longtime friend of Manning and his offensive coordinator at the University of Tennessee -- tells ESPN that the four-time MVP made 50-60 throws Friday and displayed plenty of NFL-caliber arm strength.

"The National Football League hasn't seen the last of Peyton Manning," said Cutcliffe.

UPDATE, 4:52 p.m. ET: Cardinals HC Ken Whisenhunt offers a statement from the desert now that Arizona is out of the picture for Manning's services:

"Regarding today's developments and our quarterback position, acquiring Peyton Manning is no longer an option for us. "Since the end of last season we made it very clear that our plan was to head into 2012 with Kevin Kolb and John Skelton, let the process play out and -- like at every position -- go with the quarterback who gives us the best chance to win. "Obviously something very unique and unexpected presented itself. We've said it many times: if there's an opportunity to make our team better we'll explore it; we view the potential of adding a first-ballot Hall of Fame quarterback as one of those. The organization quickly put together an aggressive plan to go after it. We're proud of that and feel very strongly about what we have to offer as a team and as an organization. In the end it didn't work out but from our perspective it was very positive and we certainly don't have any regrets about it. "We sit here today in the same spot we were heading into the offseason. That's with two experienced quarterbacks who have both demonstrated positive things in the past and who we feel good about. Like we said at the end of the season when we won seven of the last nine games, carrying the momentum of that strong finish into 2012 is important and that remains unchanged."

***

UPDATE, 4:39 p.m. ET: Broncos VP of football operations John Elway weighs in on Manning via Twitter:

"We enjoyed visiting with Peyton today in N.C. He threw the ball great and looked very comfortable out there. Watching him throw today was the next step in this important process for our team and Peyton. It was a productive visit and went well."

WHITHER TEBOW: Where should Broncos QB go if Manning signs

***

UPDATE, 4:02 p.m. ET: QB Kevin Kolb is still on Arizona's roster ... safe to assume he got his $7 million payout. You can now basically eliminate the Cardinals from the running for Manning's services.

***

UPDATE, 3:45 p.m. ET: The Broncos, Titans and 49ers are now all working on contracts for Manning with a rough framework of five years and $90 million, which would be equivalent to the deal he signed with the Colts last summer, per Mike Klis of The Denver Post; he previously reported the Broncos had started with a five-year, $60 million package.

Manning and Patriots QB Tom Brady both had deals last season that averaged $18 million annually, tops in NFL history. It appears Manning could remain in the same fiscal stratosphere going forward.

***

UPDATE, 2:02 p.m. ET: ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on SportsCenter that the 49ers have already watched Manning work out, visiting Duke on Tuesday night. Schefter characterized San Francisco as a "long shot" to land Manning, but the team is still in the picture.

If true, that would help explain why the Niners have not yet re-signed QB Alex Smith, who happens to be (along with Manning) a client of agent Tom Condon.

Schefter also said the Cardinals have been "advised" to proceed as if Manning won't come to Arizona. They owe QB Kevin Kolb a $7 million bonus in less than two hours, otherwise he becomes a free agent.

***

UPDATE, 1:50 p.m. ET: The Broncos are offering Manning a five-year contract worth $60 million -- half of it guaranteed -- per beat reporter Mike Klis of The Denver Post.

Manning signed a five-year, $90 million pact with the Colts last summer, but Indianapolis terminated that deal last week, opting not to pay the $28 million bonus that triggered the final four years of the package given the uncertainty of Manning's health and the franchise's ability to replace him with Andrew Luck in next month's draft.

***

UPDATE, 1:40 p.m. ET: The van carrying Denver's executives and coaches has parked. Manning will work out and throw at Duke's Brooks Fieldhouse.

***

UPDATE, 1:10 p.m. ET: The Broncos' private plane has touched down at Raleigh-Durham airport in North Carolina; Elway, Fox et al. have deplaned and jumped into a van which has left the airport. Team personnel are expected to go watch Manning work out later this afternoon at Duke in Durham, N.C.

A WRAL helicopter followed the van along its highway path in a scene reminiscent of the 1994 O.J. Simpson chase ... though thankfully these circumstances are much less weighty.

"If I'm the Denver Broncos -- and I'm going to put a significant financial investment into Peyton Manning -- what I want to see is pretty much what I usually see at the college workouts for the top-level college players," said NFL Network's Mike Mayock. "If I get Peyton Manning, and it's a healthy Peyton Manning, I'm thinking Super Bowl."

Mayock opined that the Broncos officials will likely want to see Manning throw "60 to 70" passes "to see if he still has the same arm strength that he did in the first 20 throws."

***

UPDATE, 10 a.m. ET: Free agent QB Peyton Manning has officially crossed the Dolphins off his list of potential employers and will soon be reconvening with Denver officials.

The Broncos sent their private team jet to Raleigh, N.C., on Friday, per KUSA in Denver. Manning has been working out at Duke University in Durham, N.C. Per The Denver Post, Broncos VP of football operations John Elway is on the flight. NFL Network's Albert Breer says HC John Fox, GM Brian Xanders and team doctors are also en route.

Per ESPN's Chris Mortensen, the four-time MVP will work out for Elway and Co. at the Blue Devils' facilities. The Broncos hosted Manning in Colorado last weekend.

The Titans, who spent most of Wednesday with Manning, will also be invited to watch him work out at some point, per NFL Network's Michael Lombardi.

In addition, the four-time MVP informed Miami officials Thursday night that he won't play for them, per NFLN. Of the four teams Manning met in his free agency tour, the Dolphins are the only one that didn't host him on their turf. However NFLN correspondent and former Dolphins beat writer Jeff Darlington reports owner Stephen Ross did get a chance to personally make a pitch to Manning.

The Cardinals could be the next club out of the race given the $7 million roster bonus they owe Kevin Kolb this afternoon at 4 p.m. ET.

***

The NFL universe still awaits Peyton Manning's next professional move, however it appears his short list may soon be getting shorter.

Arizona must pay QB Kevin Kolb's $7 million bonus by 4 p.m. ET Friday in order to keep him on the roster. If Manning is still undecided by then, the Cards' hands could be forced.

Elsewhere, the Dolphins are preparing to host free agent QB Matt Flynn, though he is in Seattle meeting with the Seahawks today. (Matt's going to have some serious jet lag.) However Miami seems compelled to move on from Manning and toward Flynn (who worked under new Dolphins HC Joe Philbin in Green Bay) and/or Texas A&M QB Ryan Tannehill, who played collegiately for new Miami OC Mike Sherman. The franchise currently selects eighth in the first round of the draft.

Despite early buzz on South Beach, Manning may have never seriously considered the Dolphins. According to The Palm Beach Post, he only met with Miami coaches (albeit in Indianapolis, not the club's Davie, Fla., facilities) as a courtesy to his friend and former Miami QB Dan Marino.

That would seem to leave the Broncos and Titans vying for the four-time MVP's services.

Tennessee owner Bud Adams said he was ready to make Manning a Titan "for life" after he met with team executives and coaches nearly all of Wednesday. Denver was the first team awarded a visit from No. 18 last weekend.

VOLUNTEER TITAN? Adams ready to make Manning a Titan 'for life'

Manning's former college offensive coordinator, David Cutcliffe -- he's now Duke's head coach and has been working out his former pupil in Durham, N.C., recently -- thinks whomever gets the quarterback will be pretty happy with his physical progress despite the multiple neck surgeries he's undergone and nerve damage endured in his throwing arm.

"It's incredible how much progress he's made in throwing the football," Cutcliffe tells The Tennessean. "He's gotten his arm strength back and his accuracy is there. I'm not an NFL coach, of course, but I think I know what it takes to complete passes in the NFL, and it's clear that Peyton can make all those throws.

"From what I've seen, he's right on target. ... Everybody knows what a hard worker he is, and he's dedicated himself to getting ready for the season."

Contributing: Danny Nolan