Smart Football's Breakdown Of Tom Moore's And Peyton Manning's Offense

It's rainy here in New York. My socks are a little damp after stepping in a murky puddle somewhere around 19th Street and 5th Avenue. I'm in the mood for some cheering up.

Thankfully, SmartFootball.com and Grantland writer Chris Brown hooked me up.

Brown decided to write a thorough breakdown of just how beautifully simple, yet fundamentally complicated the Indianapolis Colts offense was during the time Peyton Manning was the quarterback and Tom Moore was the offensive coordinator. The article is, in many ways, a love letter to an offensive system that, in many ways, rivaled the 49ers "West Coast offense" of the 1980s in terms of dominance.

Regardless of how things turn out in 2012 or beyond, this fact remains: The Colts offense of the first decade of the millenium was the simplest, best, most efficient machine in football. There are college offenses that did some amazing things, and the Patriots with Tom Brady certainly had seasons where they decimated the rest of the league, but, year-in and year-out, no offense was more dependably deadly than Manning’s Colts. And that they did it with such a limited number of instruments, each one precision designed for maximum damage, makes it all the more impressive.

For those looking for a little trot down memory lane, I recommend this read.

It's also worth noting that new Colts offensive coordinator Bruce Arians is a disciple of Moore's. Arians was Peyton's QB coach in 1998, when Moore and Manning began installing this juggernaut.