You know, it's kind of funny sometimes.  We devote all sorts of time to talking about the special teams, the linebackers, and everything else.  While they're all important, when all is said and done, it all comes back to #18. 

Sure, Peyton's had some games where he hasn't been at his best and still gotten the W at the end of the day, and there's been other times where he's put on dazzling performances only to have it negated by poor play from the rest of his team.  But many more times than not, if Peyton is successful, so is the rest of the team.  As much as I love guys like Bob Sanders, Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, Marlin Jackson, Joseph Addai, Gary Brackett, no one has a greater impact week in and week out on whether this team wins or loses than Peyton Manning.

Maybe the previous paragraph is the most "well, duh" paragraph in the history of Stampede Blue, but I think it's important to remind ourselves from time to time that we have (arguably) one of the 5 greatest players of all-time playing for us this season.  With all of that said, this is going to be all I'm space I'm going to devote to Peyton in this preview, because we all know that we're going to get another spectacular season out of him like we do every season.  The start of the season might be a little more sluggish than what we've been used to, but Peyton is way too good to let a bursa sac keep him from playing at an elite level.

Now, as for my predictions and thoughts for what we can expect from everyone else...

Continue reading this post »

Patriots WR Wes Welker was speaking at a youth football camp on Friday about his experiences in the NFL, the "dagger" that was Super Bowl XLII, among other things.  It's a great thing that NFL players get out in there communities (this was in his hometown of Oklahoma City).  He also talked about his former teammate Asante Samuel, who signed a $57 million deal with the Eagles in the offseason.  Says Welker:

Welker expressed disappointment that the Patriots weren't able to re-sign Asante Samuel, an All-Pro and Pro Bowl selection last season who won two Super Bowls with New England. Samuel instead signed a six-year, $57 million contract with the Philadelphia Eagles.

"Asante's a great player, so it hurts not to have a guy like that. But then again, it's part of the business of the game," Welker said. "He chose money over championships, and that's the way it goes sometimes."

Here's a stat that even Terry can agree with:

Asante Samuel: 2 Championships

Wes Welker: 0 Championships

Welker has played for New England for 1 season, after spending the beginning of his career with the lowly Dolphins.  He was helped immensely by having a great QB throwing to him, and a great WR on the other side of the ball constantly drawing the defense's best defender(s).  And he didn't win a championship last season, and while they are the favorite in '08, there is no guarantee the Patriots will ever win a championship with Welker on the team.  Samuel has won 2 of them already.  And Philadelphia isn't some bottom dwelling team either.  They are a very good team stuck in a tough division.  They could easily make a run like the Giants did last season.

Samuel is reached the pinnacle of the sport twice.  It may make some players not worry so much about winning a title than others.  New England runs their franchise a certain way, and you can't really fault them for doing it the way they do.  They've had moderate success over the past decade.  Samuel wanted to make more than what New England would pay him, so he left. 

When Welker actually wins a championship, maybe then he can criticize people for "choosing money over championships."

via www.angelfire.com

Game #9 takes us back to November 7, 2005, in a Monday Night showdown between the Colts and the two-time defending Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots.  Manning was 0-7 all time in Foxboro, and had lost the previous two seasons in the playoffs in not-so-spectacular fashion.  People were questioning whether Manning would ever win at New England.  Boston Globe writer Dan  Shaughnessy put it so eloquently:

It is now clear: The Colts cannot beat the Patriots. Manning cannot beat Tom Brady. Tony Dungy cannot beat Belichick. The playoff win gave the Patriots six straight over Indy. Brady is 6-0 lifetime against the Colts and the vaunted Manning never has won a game in Norfolk County. The reigning (two-time) league MVP completed 27 of 42 passes for 238 yards, but couldn't get his team in the end zone. His final, futile heave of the day was intercepted by Rodney Harrison with four seconds left. It was a fine exclamation for a perfect win by New England's almost-perfect team.

Manning not only marched the 7-0 Colts into Foxboro and won the game, but he had one of the best games of his career in doing so, putting a sock in all those idiot writers' mouths.

I can remember being very nervous before this game.  It was hard to get the notion through my head that the Colts could beat the Patriots in Foxboro.  I remember pacing back and forth throughout the entire game, even when up by 3 TDs in the fourth quarter.  I wanted the time to read 0:00 before celebrating.  And I celebrated, thanks to #18.

Manning and the Colts took the opening kickoff, marched right down the field, thanks to a 48 yard pass to Harrison, and threw a 1 yard TD pass to Harrison for the early lead.  The Patriots countered with a TD drive of there own, eating up 6:38 on the clock.  This, however, was the only drive they would have over 4:00 in the game.  The Colts took the ball, and held it for a 17 play, 9 minute drive, capped off by an Edgerrin TD run.  The Colts were 3-4 on 3rd Down, and they converted a 4th and 1 at the NE 46, a very unconventional move by Coach Dungy.  I have a feeling Manning had something to do with that.

Manning made his only mistake trying to force a pass into Dallas Clark, and it was intercepted by Mike Vrabel midway through the second quarter.  The defense (read: Bob Sanders) helped Manning and the offense out by forcing a fumble with 2:07 to go in the half.  Manning marched the Colts right down the field, going 5-7 for 68 yards, and a 10 yard TD pass to Reggie Wayne with 14 seconds left in the half to give the Colts a 21-7 lead at halftime.  Manning's halftime stats:

The key to the first half was keeping the Patriots offense off of the field, and Manning and the offense did a fantastic job of doing that.  The Colts controlled the game, and were moving the ball at will.

The second half was more of the same, as the Colts scored on their first 4 possessions, including a 30 yard TD pass to Harrison, who made Asante Samuel look really bad.  The Colts ended up with a 300 yard passer, a 100 yard rusher, and 2 100 yard receivers, and 453 total yards of offense.  Manning's final stats:

Manning had himself a great game against his nemesis, and is #9 in his all-time greatest games.

Here are the video highlights from the game.  It's fun watching Brady get so frustrated.

Here is the NFL.com GameBook for the game.

In Game #8, Manning goes for "perfection"...

How did I miss this? Pete Prisco wrote his annual Overrated/Underrated article, and it took me five days to finally read it. Per usual, Prisco makes some stupid judgments, like calling Adam Vinatieri overrated. Even Eddie over at Big Blue View thought that was dumb. Prisco tries to save face with his description, but it makes little sense:

Overrated: K Adam Vinatieri. He wasn't his usual self last season, missing six field goals and having two extra points blocked. He's still pretty good, but he wasn't as good as in the past last season.

I mean, for the first time in his entire career, Vinatieri has a sub par year by his standards: He didn't make every big game kick and he was a reason why the Colts lost the game at San Diego. But looking at the season, if Vinatieri had been his usual self, the Colts likely would have been the second seed in the AFC heading into the playoffs (which is what they were in 2007). Adam still converted 79% of his FGs and had 9 touchbacks. The two blocked kicks were because Russ Purnell can't friggin' coach his special teams unit's front line.

Vinatieri is fine, and Prisco needs to go back and actually WATCH the Colts play before he makes another "overrated" assessment.

Now, the Colts aside, Prisco does make good observations for other teams. I can only assume it is because he actually watched them play, unlike the Colts. Prisco is now officially calling Reggie Bush overrated. I said that two years ago and got blasted on this site for it.  Sometimes, being right is not always being popular:

Is two years in the NFL enough to earn somebody overrated honors? It is for Reggie Bush.

Bush came into the league as a player many expected to be a Marshall Faulk-type of runner, a home-run threat every time he touched the ball, a star in the passing game. Two seasons into his career with the New Orleans Saints, Bush is a runner who tiptoes into the hole, a player who is far more hype than production. >

When the Saints used the second pick in the 2006 NFL Draft to take Bush, some speculated he could be a 2,000-yard rusher. They meant in a season. He's just over halfway to that number in two. Bush, who has 1,146 rushing yards in two seasons, gets the nod this year as my most overrated NFL player. In 28 NFL games, Bush has one 100-yard rushing effort. His 3.7 career average per rush is not impressive at all. He does have 161 catches in two seasons, but the Saints expected a lot more with him running with the football when they selected him.

So, Reggie bush is the most overrated player in the NFL. Guess who is the second most overrated?

Overrated: QB Vince Young. He's young and still learning, but you'd think he's a superstar the way the media talks him up. He's far from it.

Ouch! Prisco goes so far to say that Vince young should "thank" Reggie Bush for sucking, because if Bush wasn't the most useless RB in football, all the attention would get focused squarely on Vince and his crappy QB play.

A few other interesting overrated players: CB Asante Samuel, CB Antonio Cromartie,CB DeAngelo Hall, and CB Rashean Mathis. That's pretty much the who's who of corners in the NFL. I guess Pete doesn't think these guys live up to their hype.

My favorite overrated player, Dallas's Roy Williams, got his usual you suck and it's obvious treatment:

They should retire this spot for him. He has been overrated for years -- he won my overall honor a few years ago -- but he still goes to Pro Bowls. How?

Back to the Colts, Prisco says Gary Brackett is the most underrated Colt. I gotta agree with that. Most overrated? No offense, but my suggestion is Joseph Addai. It's not because he sucks or anything (far from it), but the Colts tried to use his as a "feature" back last year, and he broke down. Addai is not a 25 carry-a-game back. He can do 20-25 touches, but not 25 carries, plus 5 receptions a game. Addai's reputation is that he is a 25 carry RB, and I don't think that' true. I think Addai works best when he is splitting carries.

What's your choice for most overrated Colt?

I will never understand Peter King. I mean really! I just don't get it. Peter will surprise me with excellent nuggets like this:

I've got to see Philip Rivers perform at a high level consistently to think this is a Super Bowl winner, particularly in a conference as tough as the top-heavy AFC.

And this:

I want to like Vince Young, and his improvement from 52 to 62 percent in accuracy from his rookie year to his second season helps a little. But this is the year he's got to start being consistent if the Titans are going to make the playoffs again and again. He threw nine touchdowns and 17 interceptions last year.

But then, he'll go a say something stupid, like rank the Patriots ahead of the Colts going into 2008.

Peter cites the Patriots doing nothing as a sign they will be fine in 2008. This is funny compared to last year, when the Colts did nothing and the Patriots went on a shopping spree, prompting people like Peter King to say had gotten better than Indy. Now, with New England bleeding players and doing little to stop it, while the Colts retain theirs and beef up weaknesses... the Patriots are still better? Huh?

Is it so much to ask for a little consistency with one's logic?

Even New England's draft did not address their offensive line (which was overpowered in the Super Bowl), their defense (which is still old, and allowed Eli Manning to burn them in the 4th quarter), or their running game (which is always hurt). Add to this the fact that New England lost virtually their entire secondary (including Pro Bowler Asante Samuel) to free agency. Meanwhile, Tedy Bruschi and Junior Seau are still old and slow, and Mike Vrabel is getting there. Jerod Mayo will help, but a rookie playing in this defensive system is too much to ask for.

Needless to say, New England's defense was not very good in the playoffs last year, in particular the Super Bowl. This puts extra pressure on the offense, which is a pass happy unit that struggles running the ball. Not a good formula for success.

Meanwhile, the Colts are getting Dwight Freeney and Marvin Harrison back. They beefed up their o-line, drafted Mike Hart, and found another speed rusher in Marcus Howard. Their entire starting defense is returning, a top 5 unit that is both young and fast.

So, how is New England considered better?

Speaking of rookie DE Marcus Howard, Tony Dungy really likes his speed.

  Michael Hobson is the biggest fan of the Indianapolis Colts. i believe I saw him at Training Camp last year. Michael goes all out.

If you want to learn more about rookie free agent acquisition Samuel Giguere, click here. However, you might need to brush up on your French. This is the second year in a row the Colts have imported a free agent from Canada. Hopefully, unlike last year's import, Giguere can catch the friggin' football.