Peyton Manning's pay cut not as much as Broncos first asked for

Even when Peyton Manning loses $4 million, he doesn't really lose.

The reworked contract is done, and Manning made it official that he'll be back, telling the Denver Post's Mike Klis he's excited to return for another season with the Denver Broncos. Manning's base salary was reduced from $19 million to $15 million, but it's not that bad for Manning.

The Broncos asked for a "far more severe pay cut" when negotiations started, Klis reported. The Broncos need cash for signing bonuses, not necessarily salary-cap relief, Klis said. The team and Manning settled on the $4 million cut. But that's not even too bad, potentially. Manning can make the $4 million back through team incentives, the Post said.

So the Broncos came to Manning hoping for a pay cut of larger than $4 million, and Manning ended up taking a $4 million cut that he can make back. Not a bad negotiation.

Giving the team $4 million back is a nice gesture but it's not a game changer for the Broncos as they enter free agency or anything. Especially if they don't have a ton of cash on hand, as the report suggests. But it's something.

[Check out Shutdown Corner's full 2015 free agent rankings – click here for offensive players, and click here for defensive players and specialists]

Either way, the Broncos have their quarterback back for another year, and that's their best-case scenario. Manning talked about being excited to work with new coach Gary Kubiak and looking forward to learning a new offense. The Broncos will still be one of the contenders in the AFC, assuming Manning's play doesn't really slip next season, when he'll be 39.

They'll be closer to a Super Bowl if they can figure out how to re-sign some key free agents, and Manning's pay cut should help a little bit. Just not as much as the Broncos hoped going in.

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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab