I’m a Texans fan and therefore hate the Colts, so obviously I’m rooting for New Orleans. There are also more than few Saints fans here in Houston what with the relationship between the cities and the large population of Katrina refugees-made-permanent here, so the whole city is pulling for the Saints. Texans fans have stepped up our usual hatred for the Colts this season since Indy’s wussy, stay-home-with-momma tactics at the end of the season not only kept them from making history, but kept the Texans out of the playoffs too. It makes the football gods angry.
I really like this matchup. Manning and the Colts are pure intellect – careful planners who execute with precision and polish. To them the game is cerebral; it is about control, pacing, planning and patience. The Colts play crisp, clean, perhaps perfect football. But the Saints are dangerous, spontaneous, violent, and dirty. They may not be the smartest or most consistent team, but they have spirit, hunger, and toughness. They have the ability to throw a rusty wrench into Peyton’s perfectly greased gears. It is a tale of two styles that has the possibility of making a truly great game. Here’s hoping. Geaux Saints.
The Colts are a fairly likable team, but when the Super Bowl hype starts they’ll be treated like the football equivalent of the Yankees. No right minded American from outside of Hoosierville will be cheering for them. The bandwagon for the Saints will be absolutely toppling with hangers on. Me included.
Thanks to the Saints and Colts for proving, yet again, what should have been obvious for years:
MOMENTUM DOESN’T MEAN SQUAT!!!
The Saints and Colts started off hot, but stumbled down the stretch, leading most of the “experts” to look for hotter teams to choose. Many went for the Cowboys, Chargers or Jets, who looked stronger in December and early January than the Saints or Colts.
But of couse, the Cowboys and Chargers were frauds and the Jets were still a year away.
Repeat after me: Momentum means NOTHING! Sportscasters and columnists who go on and on about momentum don’t know what they’re talking about.
Actually, you’re right. I hate Farve, but he had been playing some good football this season. I just didn’t expect him to stop in this game.
I did notice that when the Vikings were behind later in the game, he started to try too hard, as he has in the past. When he thinks he has to win the game by himself, he starts throwing the ball harder. (Look for it next season when he comes back out of retirement.)
The football gods are so pissed at the Colts and Saints (who both did this) that they lead them to the Super Bowl? Color me confused. Because it seems to me that out of the two teams that did the most to rest their starters, one of them is going to win.
That Favre pick was about the most foreseeable thing I have witnessed in football in years. But he did get the team this far, and in his defense I’ll say the Vikings were on the 38 and needed yards. An incomplete pass would have left them with a very tough field goal, and I don’t know if he could have scrambled for those yards.
The Saints really didn’t do it…at least not to the extent that the Colts did. The Saints played their starters against the Cowboys, and flat out got their asses kicked fair and square. After that blew the perfect season, with homefield locked up, they rested some starters in the last two games. If they’d won the Cowboys game, I think they’d have played the starters and tried to win the last two.
'67 GB
'67 KC
'68 Oak (Raiders)
'69 NYJ
'69 Bal (Colts)
'70 Min
'71 Dal
'72 Mia
'73 Was
'75 Pit
'78 Den
'80 LA (Rams)
'81 Phi
'82 SF
'82 Cin
'86 Chi
'86 NE
'87 NYG
'91 Buf
'95 SD
'99 Atl
'00 Ten
'01 Bal (Ravens)
'03 TB
'04 Car
'06 Sea
'09 AZ
'10 NO
In the 11-year span from 1987 to 1998: 3 new appearances
In the 11-year span from 1999 to 2010: 8 new appearances
Drew Brees didn’t play at all in the last game. Neither did Darren Sharper, I think. It wasn’t quite to the same degree, and I wish the Colts hadn’t done it at all, but if ‘the football gods’ were trying to make any kind of point, these would not be the Super Bowl teams.
And I don’t think the OP wants this discussion to take up the thread, so we should probably take it elsewhere. I think I’ve said all I have to say on this anyway.
But the key difference is that the Saints did not rest their starters while the perfect season was still a possibility. The Saints played everybody that was healthy against the Cowboys, and got beat. Once that happened, there was no reason not to rest the starters. The Colts pulled their starters when their perfect season was still possible.
I’ve made it clear that I believe it is wrong for any team to rest uninjured starters when there is chance to lose the game. But I guess that’s for another thread.
I will say that the Colts sin was far more egregious than the Saints in that regard. The fact is that the Colts have already lost, no matter what the outcome of the Superbowl. If they lose they will not have the consolation of the grand victory of having had a perfect season; if they win they will live the rest of their lives wondering if they could have gone undefeated. What is a Superbowl win compared to a perfect season anyway? After all, 43 teams have won the Superbowl, but only 2 have gone undefeated. Off the top of my head I know that the New England Patriots went 16-0 in the 2007 season. I have no idea what the standings were for any other team for that season. I know who won the 1972 Superbowl too, but I would have to look up who won 1971 and 1973. Guess why.
I’m just glad it is the Colts that have to carry this millstone around for the rest of time. Though I do feel sorry for Manning, whom I respect and admire in spite of his choice of team. I could see in his eyes how disappointed he was on the sidelines of that Jets game. He knew in his heart it was wrong.
By the way, in case you haven’t heard, I am a football god, and I’m angry.
Others have already addressed the issue that the Saints didn’t quit until they’d tried and blown the perfect season. Another issue is that the teams that NO played in the last 2 weeks did not have any significant effect in the playoff race. I hate when teams lay down and it ends up determining who gets into the playoffs - it’s not fair to either the team that got screwed out of a spot, or the team that didn’t have a chance to legitimately win their way in because you were half-assing against them. The Saints didn’t really give up on anything or cause any harm by doing what they did, but the Colts both shit on a historical achievement and also decided who got to go to the playoffs… again.
Early money is pouring in on the Colts. The line opened at Indy -3.5, it’s already up to 5.5. I doubt it’ll get past six, however, and some buyback over the next 12 days is entirely possible. Also note that it’s a two point swing, but it’s not a particularly big two points, if you follow me. That is, a line move from 2.5 to 3.5 is actually bigger than the move from 3.5 to 5.5, because the margin of victory is so often exactly three, but seldom four and almost never five.
