ESPN should stick with this type of thing, really.

Excellent piece. Must read

It’s great to read about Caldwell’s early career since the only thing most people know about is Wake Forest. I loved the part where Bill McCartney at University of Colorado said he actually cried when Caldwell said he was leaving. Also, it’s good to see that it wasn’t Caldwell’s fault for the diaster at Wake since he turned Wake’s offense around, but how did he end up being a offensive guy when he started out being a defensive back at Iowa?

After seeing his constantly stoic looks, I had wondered / worried about his ability to fire up the team and honestly thought more of the drive was coming from Manning than from Caldwell. It’s clear that Caldwell is at least as much in the thick of it.

Peyton still has like a “Still, I’d rather have Dungy instead” feeling?

It’s nice that Lilja brought that up in the article about rewatching the Ravens game to ‘relive it’. The first thing I noticed in the highlights that shocked me was after the Colts made the huge interception, it showed a clip of Caldwell business-like, poised, stoic and thinking about how to close that game out while players and assistants all around him were still reacting to play. You see guys like McDaniels jumping and flailing like a Male Cheerleader caught up in the emotion and then compare that with the cool, calm, collected Caldwell who is focused on how to channel the moment and finish the job.

I think we’ve got a keeper here looking beyond even the omni-impressive 10-0 start. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have just a little “what if” concern about the transition from a Legend in Dungy to an underappreciated coach in Caldwell, but “In Polian I trust”, “In Tony I trust”, and with their nod to the ‘next man up’… “IN CALDWELL I TRUST”. He learned from the right Head Coach, was brought up through the system, saw how the system can be implemented and carry over to the field, knows the players, and had the respect of the right people and his team.

Coyer needs to get some attention here as well. This defense has really impressed me. Still has the Big Play capability, an efficient Run/Pass D balance, and just keeps teams out of the end zone and forces the FG. A little more aggressive too, which is a fresh change.

The best part… for all the annual skeptics and critics that always seem to claim “the Colts lost too much to continue there elite sucess (year after year after year) and no way can they overcome losing Dungy and Harrison” they now have to scratch their heads again in amazement saying “how do they keep doing this at such a high level?” Some Franchises find ways to lose and some just know how to win.