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Photo (cropped): Colts.com |
Here's the difference here, I think we can all agree that there isn't much difference, talent-wise, between the Broncos and the Giants. During the Broncos game, the Colts lost Marvin Harrison, Joseph Addai, Ben Utecht, Rob Morris, and Bob Sanders during the game. By the time the third quarter started, when the score was still very close at 14-13, Sanders, Morris, and Harrison were out for the game. Those are substantial loses.
The Colts still won handily 38-20.
Prior to the start of the season, the Colts had their premiere LT retire and their best interior DT go down with a season-ending injury. Everyone on this site started freaking out, including me, because we'd all said that losing McFarland would be catastrophic. Since then, two rookies have taken their place and played brilliant football. Ed Johnson has played amazing at DT, and Tony Ugoh continues to impress me, especially on run downs where he is better than Tarik. Yesterday, Denver deployed a defense designed to pressure the tackles. Tony did not surrender a sack yesterday, and most of the day he was one-on-one with Simeon Rice.
This is the difference between a team like Philly, who does not seem to have good depth, and the Colts. Injuries are part of the game, and injuries can certainly affect the game. But one of my constant criticisms of Philly is how bad a general manager Andy Reid is. He's a great coach, but like Mike Shanahan he is horrible at addressing weakness on his team. He's also terrible at the draft, just terrible. Because of this lack of depth, Philly is now starting out 1-3, losing two division games already. Meanwhile, the Colts (who have played a comparable level of talent as the Eagles) have also battled injuries but have started out 4-0. A major reason for that is their great depth which is a result of excellent drafts and smart signings.
So, yes, this is yet another slurp job on my for Bill Polian. If I had a picture of Polian ala the Vinatieri beefcake pic, I'd post it. Hey, when your GM makes magic, you'd love him too.