I'm a football fan.  And by that I mean, I'm a football fanatic.  I would rather watch a broadcast of the local high school teams duking it out on the gridiron than tune in to playoff baseball.  I planned my wedding for the offseason so I wouldn't miss a beat.  Even though I originally subscribed to Sirius satellite radio for Howard Stern, the only station I listen to now on my very short commute is NFL Radio.  So as I'm writing up this edition of Luke Links, and my husband requests that we watch the SF Giants play the Atlanta Braves, in the middle of Monday Night Football and one of my favorite announcers, Jon "He's a Real Football Player" Gruden... I cringe.  Why is there even baseball ON at this point?  Why can't baseball remain in the realm of "the boys of summer?"

This isn't even a rant of "my team isn't in the playoffs any more."  This is just a rant of I love football give me football.  I'll watch baseball when football isn't on.  But it's October for goodness' sake... football time.  Ok, enjoy today's links.

FROM THE SADDLE

Official Team News

• John Oehser (Special to Colts.com)
  • The Colts expected a tough game and are still fighting for their identity
  • reminds us that NFL victories don't come easy
• Jake Thompson (Colts.com) 
  • Colts-Chiefs Notebook, including thoughts from S Antoine Bethea, RB Mike Hart and K Adam Vinatieri
• Craig Hammel (Colts PR) recaps the game's key moments
• Videos / Media
  • Caldwell's post-game comments
  • Caldwell's Monday press conference
  • Sounds of the game

GREEN APPLES AND ROAD APPLES
Positive and Negative Analysis

• Paul Kuharsky (ESPN)
  • offers his rapid reaction to the game
  • the "need for improvement" chatter is believable after this week
• Phillip B. Wilson (Indy Star)
  • The Colts' defense used some bulletin board material to motivate themselves
  • Ryan Lilja was reticent in his interview with Phil B.
  • The Colts are silent on Joseph Addai's injury status
  • believes the Colts will beat the Redskins
  • Catch up with Phil B.'s blog
• Mike Chappell (Indy Star)
  • Despite sitting out of practice a bit, Mike Hart had a good game
  • The Colts had to fight for every yard against a Crennel-designed defense
• Phil Richards (Indy Star)
  • The offense did just enough to win
  • Anthony Gonzalez and Donald Brown returned to practice on Monday
• Bob Kravitz (Indy Star)
  • raises the image of Reche Caldwell in this week's scorecard
  • Something about this Colts team still looks off
• John Oesher (Indy Football Report, AOL Fanhouse)
  • offers his quick thoughts on the game
  • doesn't think there's a "best team" in the AFL just yet, implying the Colts still could acquire the label
  • Reggie Wayne acknowledges that no game is easy
  • The Colts had one of their best defensive games against the Chiefs
• Greg Cowan (Coltzilla) posts his quick thoughts after the win against the Chiefs
• TJ Higley (Coltzilla) rounds up local coverage
• Brett Mock (Coltzilla) looks at the game a second time
• Michael Marot (Associated Press) Mike Hart's TD helps the Colts to a win
• Alex Marvez (Fox Sports) wasn't impressed with the win, but made sure there are busty babes in the article so men will be transfixed nonetheless
• Jim Corbett (USA Today) Time will tell on Addai's injury, now characterized as a neck and shoulder injury
• Andrew (12thHorseman.com) laments the apparent passing of the Colts' defense
• Associated Press The Colts knock off the Chiefs

IN THE PADDOCK
News About This Week's Opponent

Looking left (last week's opponent)

• Bill Williamson (ESPN) looks at the game from the Chiefs' perspective
• Dan Graziano (AOL Fanhouse) thinks the Chiefs got a moral victory (Editor's note: do those count in the standings?)
• Jason Cole (Yahoo! Sports) the Chiefs still showed progress, despite the loss
  

Looking right (next week's opponent)

• Joseph White (Associated Press) The Redskins' defense is better than their low ranking
• The Sports Network The Redskins' tackles are both sore, but likely to play on Sunday

OUTSIDE THE STABLE
Around the League

• David Climer (The Tennessean) KR Marc Mariani played a key role in the Titans' victory over Dallas
  
• John McClain (The Houston Chronicle) Apparently the Texans are also looking for consistency
• Vito Stellino (The Florida Times-Union) doesn't understand how tie-breakers work in determining division positioning
  
• Paul Kuharsky tries to guess what the AFC South teams are thinking
• Bob Kravitz doesn't think you should dismiss the 18-game schedule yet
• Associated Press Ok this may be a college football story, but I couldn't resist