I really, really love the Peyton Manning's Greatest Games series mgrex30 is doing. It is easily one of the best series I've read in some time on one specific player. He even highlighted a game I always thought was one of Peyton's best: His dismantling of the Patriots in 2000 in the RCA Dome.

• From Hashmarks (via AOL Fanhouse) NFL coaches seem to think that, right now, Tom Brady is better than Peyton Manning. That's fine. In a league that has "genius" coaching from the likes of Jack Del Rio, Mike Nolan, Wade Phillips, and Norv Turner I'm not surprised. Look, Tom Brady threw 50 TDs in 16 games playing on an offense Peyton Manning created. If coaches voted for Brady because he is 2 years younger and just threw 50 TDs, I understand that. But when I look at the two of them, I cannot think of one thing that Brady does significantly better than Manning (and yes, I am a very big Brady fan). One used to say Brady was more "clutch," but Brady in the post-season the last three years has been very shaky. He had an INT returned for a TD in the 2005 playoffs, blew a 24 point lead in the AFCCG in 2006, and choked big time in the Super Bowl this past year.
  
• 18 to 88 has a great contest going.
• Colt Homer thinks Dom Rhodes will get 125 carries this season (8 carries a game). He also thinks Kenton Keith is a goner.
• SI.com has a Salary Cap Roster Challenge thing going on.
• I miss Charlie Weis At My Baby. It was a great blog (and a great blog title).
• It's been a wild first year for Keyunta Dawson. He played DE at Texas Tech. In pre-draft workouts in 2007, he played LB because scouts said he was too small to play DE in the pros. Now, he's a starting-caliber DT for the Colts.
• I highly recommend camping in Ontario and Quebec. That's where I spent my vacation. I also saw the University of Sherbrooke, where Samuel "Guns" Giguere attended school.

If you go to the Colts.com message board, a member has found a way to access pre-written "fluff" articles written by Colts.com writer John Oehser. Basically, Oehser writes these articles weeks in advance and has them in the site's content bank. It's not an uncommon practice. Heck, many SB Nation writers use a nifty feature we have now with the 2.0 platform that allows us to write stuff and designate a time when it gets published.

That said, it is a bit humorous that Colts.com would actually post many of these articles (dated several weeks in advance) and try to hide them. That's not to say the articles are bad. They're not. Fluffy? Sure, but it's Colts.com. Do you expect them to trash their own players?

Of the articles, there's one on Freddie Keiaho and one on Roy Hall that are interesting. One theme that has come through each and every one of these player profile-like articles is summed up best by Freddie Keiaho:

“The difference in the comfort level between this year and last year is night and day,” Keiaho said during the Colts’ organized training activities, 14 days of onfield workouts that concluded recently at the team’s training facility.

“I’m pretty sure that’s true for everybody across the board.”

We've heard this consistently all throughout the off-season, with players like Brannon Condren, Roy Hall, Ed Johnson, and others saying they went into last season "lost." They didn't know what to do, weren't comfortable, and had to play through it. The result was a 13-3 record, another AFC South title, and a defense ranked #1 in scoring. This year, players say they feel more comfortable; the systems are quicker to grasp; they are in better shape, etc.

Be afraid, opponents. Be very, very afraid.

Players can often make a big leap from year one to year two, which is one reason why I often take shots at Vince Young. Players like Manning, Brady, McNabb, and Palmer all started showing signs they were elite players by year two. Vince is supposed to be in that category. If not, why was he drafted #3 overall in 2006? Rookie to second year jumps are not just common; they're expected. It's why teams sign rookies to two or three year contracts. You've either got it or you don't, and if you don't you can go somewhere else and "develop."

Players like Keiaho, Matt Giordano, Kelvin Hayden, Joseph Addai, and Antoine Bethea made huge strides from year one to year two. This year, the expectation falls on Roy Hall the hardest. Tony Ugoh, Keyunta Dawson, and Quinn Pitcock all showed promise last season. They have high expectations as well, but with Hall the expectation is greatest. He hasn't shown anything. This year, he must justify his roster spot. Bill Polian has been quick to point out Hall's improvement. This is significant as Polian will never compliment someone's improvement unless they actually improve.

After listening to many of you, there are several areas of this team that fans are interested in when training camp opens. While I love 18to88 and the Zombie brothers, they did say something interesting that I take bit of issue with:

With all due respect to the good guys over at Stampedeblue.com (who I enjoy), I'm not interesting in parsing out who will be the 5th receiver. I'm not curious to see who makes the roster. I'm only very mildly interested in who wins the right guard slot. These things are nice distractions, I guess, but they aren't very satisfying. I'm ready for football season.

Now, of course, speculating whether Mike Pollak or Charlie Johnson will win the RG spot is not as satisfying as watching an actual game. However, I don't think most fans share Desmond Zombie's interest (or lack thereof). Many care who the 4th or 5th WR is because tht player is one injury away from starting. If last season told me anything, you absolutely must have solid, starter-like quality depth behind most positions if you want to win a Super Bowl. Teams must be creative and innovative in finding this depth, but it must be there. We can speculate all we want about how losing Dwight Freeney and Marvin cost Indy a chance to repeat, and it did. If Freeney and Marvin were healthy, we'd have a 2007 trophy to go with 2006.

However, the other side to that is Indy should have had someone compitent to step up and take their places. Not dominant. Not all-world. Not Aaron Moorehead and Jeff Charleston. Just good, competent players who know what to do. This year, I get the sense that Indy has that depth. And yes, just like Desmond, I'm ready for the season to start already.

Colts fans are no obsessed with Indy's new "mystery" tackle, a guy no one drafted but many are talking about: Eric Foster out of Rutgers. For many of you, you thought Indy should have signed or drafted someone like Howard's Rudolph Hardie, a 6'1, 270 pound DT. Hardie (signed by Detroit) offered speed and pass rushing ability from the DT position, something Indy has not had since Booger McFarland got hurt last year. For you Hardie lovers, I get the feeling you will like the potential Eric Foster offers.

Foster, like Hardie, is roughly 6'1 and 277 pounds and is known as a pass rusher from the DT position.

Not much is written on Hardie in terms of scouting reports. In the draft, he went as "experts" though he would: Undrafted. But Foster signed with a team that likes undersized d-linemen, and will give undrafted rookies a fair chance. The one scouting report I found said this:

Strengths:
Excellent quickness...Is pretty strong...Offers a lot of versatility...Has a terrific first step...Does a nice job in pursuit...Relentless with a non-stop motor...Nice instincts and awareness...Good athleticism...Nice production...A hard worker...Team leader.

The team lader part cannot be over-stated. Foster was the glue that held the 2007 Rutgers team together, and he was a big part of Rutgers' resurgence as a significant college football program. Here's a taste of Foster;s outspoken leadership at Rutgers:

Eric Foster Locker Room Chant (via biglou77)

The familiar "weaknesses" we see applied to players like Foster are he's too small and not bulky enough. However, consider last year's 7th round pick out of Texas A & M: DE Keyunta Dawson. Key was drafted weighing 270 pounds. We all assumed he would play DE, and Dawson was converted to DT and excelled at the position in 2007. Remember this from SB Nation's Texas Tech blogger?

Strengths:  I've always loved Dawson's motor, he is a tireless worker, and understands that you can't take off any plays.  Despite double teams, Dawson was still a very moderately effective pass rusher.  In 2005 Dawson only had 2.5 sacks, but had 62 tackles.  In 2006 Dawson was much more effective where he had 63 tackles, 9.5 tackles for a loss, 6.0 sacks and 11.0 quarterback hurries.  Dawson's 40 time (4.76) is comparable with other defensive ends in this draft:  Gaines Adams ( 4.64), Jamaal Anderson (4.75), Adam Carriker (4.9), Jarvis Moss (4.7), and Anthony Spencer (4.73).  His general quickness in comparison to his size will be his greatest attributes, and would think that the Indy coaching staff would simply allow Dawson to be a rush end in the same mold as Freeney.  Dawson is a better than average athlete which would allow him to make plays, as a defensive end, but maybe not athletic enough to play linebacker.

Amazing how similar Dawson sounds compared to Foster. In college, Foster had 6 sacks in 2006 and 7 in 2007. Foster has impressed Colts coaches at both the rookie and mandatory minicamps, and if he can display his talents at Training Camp, there will be a place on the 53-man roster for him.

Foster (like Ed Johnson, Keyunta Dawson, and Quinn Pitcock) might be another Bill Polian gem at DT.

It's been kind of weird this off-season. For the first time in God knows how long, there are more questions about the Colts offense than about the defense. In fact, of three main areas of the team, the defense is the one that has the fewest questions. Now obviously, this is relative to us Colts fans. The "questions" we have about our team focus on depth and versatility. Let's be honest: We're lucky these are our "problems." Elite teams like New England have serious questions about who will start in their secondary, and San Diego doesn't know if their starting QB or their best playmaker in the passing game (Antonio Gates) are healthy.

With the Colts, in particular their defense, there are no current questions about who will start where. Really, if you think about it, there aren't even any big position battles. The only one on defense I can think of is SAM linebacker Tyjuan Hagler fighting off rookie Philip Wheeler, but since Wheeler is a rookie learning an entirely new system, I doubt Hagler will lose his job to him. Gary Brackett is a lock at MLB, and Freddie Keiaho would have to royally screw up to lose his starting WILL spot to the very solid Clint Session.

This means that, essentially, the entire starting defense from the 2007 season will return. This includes Dwight Freeney, who is ahead of schedule on his lis franc rehab. In fact, the Colts seem to think Freeney could play in pre-season, but are holding him back just to be safe. I realize that the Colts injury report is often a load of crap, but seeing Freeney himself say it reinforces it for me. Also expected back at 100% are Robert Mathis and Raheem Brock. Added to their arsenal of DEs are rookies Marcus Howard and Curtis Johnson; both with demon-like speed off the edge.

The key area that will warrant a close look is the secondary. Marlin Jackson, Kelvin Hayden, Bob Sanders, and Antoine Bethea are all locked in as starters. This group in one of the best secondaries in football; top 5, easily. The depth is the area that warrants attention, and not in a bad way. Third year CB Tim Jennings took over the nickel corner spot last season after then-rookie Dante Hughes went down with an injury. Hughes is now back and recovered, and both he and Jennings will battle it out in camps for the nickel back spot. Also lingering are TJ Rushing, Michael Coe,  and Texas free agent rookie Brandon Foster. I don't think Keiwan Ratliff (currently listed on the roster) will last on the team.

Rushing really stepped up his coverage game in 2007. Drafted primarily as a return specialist, he has grown into a solid nickel or dime coverage DB. Because Rushing can return kicks and cover, he has likely locked down a roster spot. If Hughes is healthy, he could win back his starting nickel spot, leaving Jennings as a potential odd man out. Still, even with Jennings potentially getting lost in the shuffle, this is a very deep secondary. I mean, I haven't even touched on players like reserve safety Matt Giordano, or rookie Jamie Silva. This is a touch, hard-hitting, big play group that will flourish in 2008 if the Colts pass rush can stay healthy.

All this talk about defense, and not one mention about the DTs and the run. What difference a year makes. Last year, we were practically down on our knees, begging God Almighty not to get Booger McFarland hurt. Then, Booger went down in the first week of Training Camp. He was replaced by a group of tough, smart rookies like Ed Johnson, Quinn Pitcock, and Keyunta Dawson. Each played magnificently in 2007, and the Colts run defense improved dramatically. Teams like Jacksonville didn't run all over Indy, and even great backs like LT had a hard time gaining yards. This group is now a year older, a year wiser. With Raheem Brock returning to DT, this is a solid group.

I expect big things from this defense in 2008. They have the reigning Defensive Player of the Year in Bob Sanders and a (hopefully) healthy Dwight Freeney. This group should dominate.