That was possibly the most amazing game I’ve ever watched. So, the Colts were down 7 to 3 when I went to help out putting the kids to bed. When I came back downstairs, the Colts were down 21 to 3, and I’ll have to confess, I thought, “Crap. Here we go again.” Then Manning & Co. scored 18 unanswered points in about 11 minutes of game time. Then followed a see-saw, back and forth until the game was 31 to 31. Then the Patriots go up 34 to 31. And then a big drive, punctuated by Joseph Addai just stuffing it into the end zone. To go ahead. Brady has 1 minute for a come back, and the game ends with an interception. When Jackson caught that interception against Brady, I was thinking GO DOWN, GO DOWN, NOTHING GOOD CAN HAPPEN IF YOU KEEP RUNNING. And, that’s just what he did. When he caught that interception, I darn near cried. Wuhoo!
Colts v. Bears in the Super Bowl.
This will surely go down in history as one of the greatest playoff games in history (AFC or NFC). One of my cousins (who lives in Mishawaka, and who is a big Bears fan), has already waged a bet for dinner and drinks. If the Colts win Super Bowl 41 he pays and if the Bears win I pay. Go Colts, the I-65 Super Bowl has come to fruition. Go Colts!!!!
it was AWESOME!
it was AWESOME!
apparently so awesome it was worth repeating. You know what this means, don’t you? Yet another Sunday I won’t be studying for the bar. I should get a dispensation from the Board!
Also, I think it bears mentioning that we have now beaten the Patriots 3 times straight. How long until we hear the talk about how Tony Dungy has Bill Belichick’s number?
Too bad they won’t use that headline in the Indy Star, Doug.
That was probably the best playoff game I’ve seen since Dolphins/Chargers 1981. I am really aging myself with that one.
Yay, Colts!
Ok Colts. Just what we wanted Bears vs. Colts. I know this board, led by its fearless leader Doug are die-hard Colts fans but lets give da Bears some props.
Bear Down, Chicago Bears
Make every play, clear the way to victory!
Bear Down, Chicago Bears
Put up a fight with a might so fearlessly!
We’ll never forget the way you thrilled the nation
With your T-formation
Bear Down, Chicago Bears
And let them know why you’re wearing the crown!
You’re the pride and joy of Illinois,
Chicago Bears, Bear Down!
Absolutely amazing, and the picture of Dungy in today’s Star has made me smile all morning.
Go Colts!
Bengals/Chargers in 81 was also good.
Yeah, that was a hell of a game last night. I learned that if a defender grabs your waist and turns you (granted it was slight, but YOU try running all out while looking up and backward at a moving target and have someone give you a jerk), you damn well better not trip over your own feet or they’ll pick up the flag. Also anatomically there’s about no way that Pats receiver was going to get the second foot in, since his upfield foot barely got in. I suppose he could have crossed his legs and gotten the second foot (the downfield one) in? But improbably there was officiating payback later when our corner had contact with their receiver in the right corner of the endzone about six different times while the ball was in the air. I was in disbelief as the seconds clicked by and no flag appeared. Peyton choked again with a three-an-out on the “final” possession of the game. Then, inprobably, our defense forced All-World glory boy Brady into a three-and-out, to allow Peyton a “seriously, this is your final, final chance” possession where he struck gold after all. What a game. It seemed pretty likely when we punted that we would not be seing that ball again. That’s why Dungy coaches and I don’t, because I would have been tempted to risk it all right there on 4th and 10.
Note to Bears–a chop block/whip kick/tripping combo play is a good way to take Freeney out of the game. Apparently that’s legal now?
Note to refs–if you saw the play and threw the flag, that means you saw a penalty committed. Don’t talk to all the other refs and take a survey of the guilty party’s team to find out what you saw. Do your damn job.
Our defense only blew about five plays the whole game against a great team. Really the yardage tells more about how they played than the score does. One unlikely slop recovery in the end zone (which we duplicated later), a blown forth down defense, etc. Other than that, the defense was totally inspired.
Dallas Clark is a beast. It seems like every game he makes at least one slow-motion cutback that nets serious yardage. Special thanks to Dallas Clark’s knee, which continues to hold up. Without him, we lose that game.
Special teams coverage is a concern going against Chicago.
Let’s enjoy this one for a week, then start worrying about Chicago.
Thanks to Shannon Sharpe for the pregame love. Boomer Esiason–you looked like a putz sporting the Bellichick bum-wear.
Go Colts.
Excellent game! I screamed when the interception happened–it was almost too good to be true. The Colts’ offense v. the Bears’ defense should make for a good Superbowl! (Yes, Torporindy, I remember that Dolphins/Chargers game too.)
On the one hand, yeah. But, on the other hand as the post-game was finishing up, there was an “interview” of Belichick on the field. Belichick mumbled the same canned phrases to the reporter, not even particularly responsive to the questions. They cut back to the studio and as they were panning out to be done with the show, they had Esiason sort of spreading his hands out and asking, “What the heck was that?”
I know it’s hard to lose, and the last thing you want is to talk about it to some damned reporter, but Bill was an order of magnitude worse at it than most coaches I’ve seen. And I say this as a long time, IU/Bob Knight fan.
Yeah, Dungy has done his share of standing at the podium and explaining himself or his team’s performance after a loss. Belichick gets off with a mutter or two. Did he ever end up at a podium? Maybe I didn’t watch the postgame stuff on ESPN long enough? I saw Brady’s postgame interview–I’ll admit he was classy in defeat. But I really wanted more post-game Belichick.
More thoughts: The Pats supposedly lost to us in the regular season because they gave up on the run. I’m surprised that with a lead and good rushing stats in the first half, they went away from the run again.
Also, I can’t recall ever hearing the names Bruschi or Vrabel the whole game. Seems like Bruschi’s been invisible this year.
The Baltimore papers have been good reading today. Baltimore fans wearing New England colors? Mercy. Can we get the Hall of Fame to put “Baltimore” on the old records already? These people seem incapable of stopping themselves from picking that scab on their wounded, jilted hearts. By now it’s an ugly, scary-looking thing, oozing pus, that only a miracle could heal. Throw those losers a bone and shut them up, please!
Great game.I was WORRIED after the first quarter but as their defense tired and Manning figured out what they were doing and started moving the ball I started to feel a little better about things.
T, Belichick did go to the podium and it was the same old Bill a sore loser as always!
Defense played pretty good but kick return coverage cost them 10 points.They will have to do better against Hester.
Heh, I would have bought a Star that read “HOLY SHIT, COLTS WIN”
Honestly, it’s almost too unbeleiveable. we walked out of the dome barely able to process what had just happened. I think it’s only just now starting to sink in…
also, could Belichick have looked any more miserable in the post-game press conference when he had to give the Colts credit? It looked like he was passing a stone…
Tom Brady, after living a full life, died. When he got to heaven,
God was showing him around. They came to a modest little house with a
faded Patriots flag in the window. “This house is yours for eternity,
Tom ,” said God. “This is very special; not everyone gets a house up
here.” Tom felt special, indeed, and walked up to his house.
On his way up the porch, he noticed another house just around the
corner. It was a 3-story mansion with a Blue & White sidewalk, a
50-foot tall flagpole with an enormous Colts logo flag, and in every
window, a Colts towel. Tom looked at God and said
“God, I’m not trying to be ungrateful, but I have a question. I was an
all-pro QB, I hold many NFL records, and I even won a few Super bowls
God said “So what’s your point Tom?” “Well, why does Peyton get a better
house than me?”
God chuckled, and said: “Tom , that’s not Peyton’s house, it’s mine.”
GO COLTS!!!!!
WGN Channel 9 news Chicago today on noon (CT) news had a reporter in Crown Point trying to find where the Colts/Bears rooting divide was in Indiana .Evidently it’s somewhere beyond Crown Point. .It was an interesting report because the CT zone seems to be Bears fans.This is all unofficial of course.
I saw more people adorned in Bears’ items than that other team’s stuff here in Fort Wayne. Perhaps many of us north of say, Kokomo, are still smarting about the Toll Road.
Lafayette seems to be heavily Colts territory. I’d put the dividing line somewhere around Rensselaer.
SW Indiana as you would presume is all COLTS!
Let’s just pretend, hypothetically, that the Detroit Lions were to play reasonably well. Would there be many fans of the Lions up in Fort Wayne or other northwestern parts of the state?
It brings up how different baseball is from football, sports affiliation not being an equal draw. Once,at Wrigley Field I sat next to a large contingent of Cub fans from Fort Wayne,and one of them said that are lots of Cub fans in Fort Wayne. I know from experience that there are lots of Cub fans in Wisconsin, but these same fans are Packer fans,yet they haven’t adopted the Brewers.So can we assume that there are lots of Cub-Colts fans in Fort Wayne? Also maybe Tiger-Colt fans? Football seems to be more of a regional sport.
Bears beware. The Colts have their own version of Walter Payton. His name is Joseph Addai. Like Sweetness he runs, catches, and blocks extremely well. His stride is even similar to Payton’s. He is a team player and his demeanor is low keyed much like Walter’s was. He is the only runner in NFL history to rush for over 1,000 yards in a season without ever starting a game. I predict that you will start hearing this comparison being made often. Remember where you heard it first.
I agree that the Cubs easily dominate Fort Wayne’s baseball hearts, followed by the Reds, Tigers, White Sox, Indians and Yankees, in that order. That comes down to me from my younger son, who should know, being a through and through Cardinals’ fan and Cubs’ hater. I have the impression that most baseball teams though are followed mostly just around their home city, with a few teams (Yankees, Cubs come to mind) having national followings and a few others having strong broader regional followings (Cardinals, Reds, perhaps the Tigers) This household is divided between the Tigers, Cardinals and Cubs, which, except for the one Cubs’ fan (who is younger son’s little sister), made last October rather, shall we say, uncomfortable around here, this being a rabid baseball enclave. I naturally maintain my eternal hope for the return of the St. Louis Browns.
While I saw more Bears than Colts items around town yesterday I really can’t say I saw much of either, but then I wasn’t really paying attention. The last professional football game I watched on television was 21 years ago, and then only because I had been invited to a Super Bowl party under circumstances that interested me. I’m afraid I rather agree with George Will on the subject of football.
Paul,
Very interesting comments about baseball and football. I’m always suspicious if someone HATES a team more than he likes the one he follows. Is that really fun? I’m a cub fan and really dont care much about other sports,so if Bears win or Colts win it’s no big deal one way or the other.But this year I may actually watch the game at the Superbowl party instead of just talk and eat and drink. I know Cub fans can be very obnoxious because it goes on 24/7, 365 days a yr with my family and I can put on a Cub T-shirt or cap in PA, in Fl or Utah and get a hi-5 from another Cub fan within an hour. It’s quite a phenomenum! And we Cub fans know we’re special which makes us unbearable.But let’s get back to Colts, OK? This is an Indiana BLOG!
Here is some history for you youngsters. Before the NFL and the AFL merged CBS carried the NFL games and NBC had the AFL games. The local network affiliate decided which games to show. In Indy the choices were generally between the Bears and the Bengals. I think these were the choices for most of the state. This explains in part why there are still many Bear fans in the state. The 2 leagues had different styles. The NFL tended to be defense and 3 yards and a cloud of dust while the AFL was bombs away. I enjoyed the Bengals games more than the Bears games and to this day I prefer the AFC over the NFC.
Has anyone heard what the ratings were for the game? I don’t think anyone would have turned the game off in the second half.
The Lafayette paper has an item about the “100 mile house” in Fowler, Indiana. Supposedly it’s 100 miles from Chicago and 100 miles from Indy on US 52. All I know is that they serve up a pretty good burger.
Dougs post that the dividing line is Rensselaer is supported by a story on the front page of today’s (Tuesday) Chicago Tribune sports section. From the story:
…in this northwest Indiana town of about 5,500, which marks the Mason-Dixon Line between Bears Country and Colts Country. Rensselaer is 85 miles from Chicago and 102 miles from Indianapolis.
Additional note from the story:
From 1944 to 1973 the Bears held training camp at St Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, and parts of the movie “Brian’s Song” were filmed there.