The Colts appeared to be on their way to victory early, but the Saints showed their resiliency at Sun Life Stadium for the second time this season on their way to the franchise’s first Super Bowl victory. Nobody on the New Orleans sideline panicked when the Colts jumped out to an early 10-0 lead in the first quarter, or when the Indi defense stonewalled them at the goal line in the second quarter. A 10-6 deficit at halftime didn’t seem remotely insurmountable after the Saints had kept the ball out of Peyton Manning’s hands for much of the second quarter.
In one of the gutsiest calls in Super Bowl history, New Orleans head coach Sean Payton elected to go with an onside kick to start the second half, which was recovered by the Saints. This play swung the momentum in New Orleans’ favor and resulted in a touchdown drive. The Colts responded on the ensuing drive, though, to regain the lead at 17-13. It would be the last time Indi scored. After a late third quarter field goal had cut the lead to one, the Saints took the lead back for good with a touchdown pass to Jeremy Shockey with a little less than six minutes to play in the fourth; the Saints added a two-point conversion to go up seven. Manning and company drove down the field, seeming destined to tie the game and send it to overtime, but Tracy Ported jumped a short hook route and took it to the house to seal the victory. Congratulations to the Saints and the city of New Orleans.
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It all comes down to one game. On Sunday the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints will play in the Super Bowl, the one game that every team in the NFL ultimately wants to play in. The Colts won their first 14 games of the regular season, the Saints their first 13. These two teams appeared to be the best of their respective conferences throughout the season, so it’s fitting that they’ll play for the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Arguably the two best quarterbacks in the league, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees will be pitted against one another in the biggest game of the season.
Most of the talk over the last two weeks has been about the Colts, but it would be foolish to count the Saints out. Brees and company have shown that they can blow teams out, but they can also win close games. New Orleans mounted a huge comeback win earlier this season on the very field on which the Super Bowl will be played. The Colts also played in Miami this season, winning that game despite having possession of the ball for a mere 15 minutes in the contest. There is a lot to like about both of these teams and I’m expecting a tight, entertaining game.
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Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney’s ankle seems to be progressing, as the sack artist said the pain in the joint is subsiding. Freeney has spent much of the week walking the Miami beaches in an effort to strengthen his ankle, but will not practice this week with the team. ”Sometimes walking is good because it keeps things fluid,” Freeney said. ”You hear people say he should be in a boot or something. But sometimes it can get stiff, and you’ve got to get that motion back in the ankle. It gets the blood flowing, so I’ve been walking around barefoot and in the sand.”
The Colts certainly hope that Freeney’s ankle heals quickly over the course of the next few days. Freeney is one of the best pass rushers in the league and the Colts would love to have him penetrating the backfield and giving Drew Brees problems on Sunday. Indi relies on a good pass rush from Freeney and Robert Mathis, but will look to Raheem Brock should Freeney miss a significant portion of the game. The only thing that is certain is that the ankle is healing. “It’s better than yesterday, and yesterday was better than the day before,” Freeney said. ”It’s a slow progression right now, but that’s where it is. Every morning I wake up, and it feels a little better.”
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As if there was any doubt, the Indianapolis Colts will do whatever it takes to keep Peyton Manning in a Colts uniform. Manning’s contract will be up after next season and the team plans to begin negotiations on an extension with the All-Pro quarterback as soon as this season is over. “You know it’s going to get done,” said Colts owner Jim Irsay. “I think it’s clear, and we’ll start on it this summer. That’s been the way we do things [to hammer out an extension when a player is entering the final year of his contract]. And it’ll be the biggest [contract] in history; there’s not much doubt about that.”
Manning signed a $99 million extension in 2004 that ran through the 2012 season. The final two seasons of the contract will be voided, as Manning has met predetermined playing-time incentives, resulting in 2010 becoming the final year of the deal. Whatever deal Manning signs will likely be a record number in the NFL. Manning is widely considered to be one of the best, if not the best, player in the entire league. The franchise is committed to keeping him as a Colt for his entire career.
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The Chicago Bears have hired Mike Martz as their offensive coordinator. The Bears presumably brought in the former conductor of the Greatest Show on Turf teams to bolster Chicago’s passing attack. Martz has a reputation for installing a pass-heavy offense in which a quarterback can thrive, which was certainly a consideration in Chicago given some of Jay Cutler’s struggles in his first season in the Windy City. Cutler threw a league-leading 26 interceptions this past season, but he seemed to be coming on strong toward the end of the year. Martz could definitively help the young signal caller play up to the lofty expectations that the team had when they traded for him last offseason.
The process of finding an offensive coordinator was a long one. Martz noted that he understands why it took so long to finalize the hire. “Lovie was very clear at the beginning of the process that this was going to take time and he was going to go through it step by step,” said Martz. ”That’s always difficult, but he did it the right way - especially since I got the job.” Martz voiced his excitement in teaming up with Cutler and said he expects the quarterback to be one of the league’s elite players for a long time.
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It has been revealed that Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney’s injury is a torn ligament in his ankle, and his status for Sunday’s Super Bowl is in question. Freeney is officially listed as questionable as of this morning, but his status will be monitored closely throughout the week. “He is under the care of our athletic training staff,” said Colts spokesman Craig Kelley. “Nothing we have seen changes our diagnosis that he is questionable. He has a third-degree, low basketball sprain.” This level of sprain implies the tear of a ligament.
One could argue that Freeney is the Colts’ best defensive player; missing him for the Super Bowl wouldn’t definitely hurt. Freeney is an excellent pass rusher, using his patented spin move to blow by offensive lineman. He’s smaller than most players at his position in the NFL, but makes up for it with great speed off the outside. Freeney figures to be a big part of the game if he plays, as disrupting New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees has t be a high priority on the Colts’ to-do list for the big game. You won’t hear any excuses from the Colts camp, though, no matter what happens with Freeney.
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The Super Bowl isn’t until a week from Sunday, and this weekend we get the Pro Bowl, so let’s touch on some news and notes around the league. With Tom Brady sitting out of the Pro Bowl and Peyton Manning unable to compete due to his team reaching the Super Bowl, Vince Young and David Garrard have been named as replacements on the AFC roster. Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney has missed two consecutive practices with a sprained ankle. Team president Bill Polian assured media members that the sack artist will partake in the Super Bowl.
Kurt Warner is expected to announce his retirement later today, ending what was an impressive and rather unorthodox career. He’s one of only two quarterbacks to reach the Super Bowl with different teams and looks like a likely Hall of Famer. New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez is considering knee surgery after visiting Dr. James Andrews earlier this week. Sanchez injured the knee late in the season against Buffalo and missed one game due to the ailment. There are rumors floating around that the Cleveland Browns will look to bring in a new quarterback for the 2010 season after team president Mike Holmgren was noncommittal to either Brady Quinn or Derek Anderson in a recent interview on the Dan Patrick Show.
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Thomas Jones may be the odd man out in the New York Jets’ backfield next season; in fact, he might not even be there at all. Jones, 31, is coming off two consecutive seasons in which he eclipsed 1300 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns, but, as we know all too well, running backs usually don’t last too long into their 30s. With Shonn Greene appearing to be the real deal, and Leon Washington still in the mix, Jones services may no longer be required. Greene was the star of the show during the Jets’ recent playoff run, not Jones, and appears to be the future of the New York ground game.
The Jets probably wouldn’t have too difficult of a time shipping Jones out of town, as there are several teams in need of running back help. One team that could covet Jones’ bruising running style could be the San Diego Chargers. LaDainian Tomlinson is expected to be released this offseason and Jones would be a nice replacement to share carries with the speedy Darren Sproles. Houston is another destination that would make sense for Jones, as Steve Slaton had some fumbling and injury issues in 2009. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Jones change teams this offseason, and the Jets can probably get a nice asset or two in return.
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The Oakland Raiders hired Hue Jackson as their offensive coordinator yesterday in the hopes that he can help develop franchise quarterback JaMarcus Russell. To this point, Russell has been a franchise quarterback only in salary and name, not game. The former number one overall pick has struggled mightily throughout his short NFL career, prompting a benching this past season and speculation that he could be on his way out of Oakland. Russell’s physical tools are what made him the top pick a couple of years ago, but his work ethic has been consistently questioned. Jackson helped develop Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco, whose skill set is similar to Russell’s, and the organization hopes that he can help Russell turn around his career.
Though the Raiders have not officially announced that they’ll retain the services of current head coach Tom Cable, the Jackson hiring signals that they probably will. The two coaches worked together coaching a pair of California college teams in the 1990s. Cable’s job appears to be safer by the day. “I think it’s a good decision by the organization,” Cable said of the Jackson hiring. ”It’s someone that I’m familiar with. It’s someone that I think can help us take the next step, so we’re all pretty excited about it.”
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Brett Favre stated that he’s going to talk to his family about his NFL future before making any decision on whether or not to retire, but also said that it’s highly unlikely that he’ll return for the 2010 season. Favre led the Vikings to the NFC Championship game this season, where they were ousted by the New Orleans Saints in overtime. Minnesota had their best season since reaching the NFC title game in the 2001 season. Favre set career bests in completion percentage and interceptions, putting up what may have been his best statistical year as a pro.
Favre has been known to be indecisive concerning his retirement, but this offseason could be different. The jarring hits that he took in the NFC title game might have been enough to convince him to hang it up. Favre is the all-time leader in touchdown passes and passing yards. He has one Super Bowl title and will certainly go down as one of the greatest signal callers of all time when he does decide to retire. Surely the Vikings hope he returns, as they’ll be vying for a third consecutive NFC North title, but they’ve got to start considering contingency plans in the event Favre chooses not to come back.
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