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Indianapolis Colts QB Peyton Manning (Phil Coale/AP Photo)
As Bill Polian sees it, there's a perception the Indianapolis Colts care little about winning late-season games with their playoff seeding decided.
Polian said that couldn't be more wrong.
Polian, in his 12th season as the Colts' President, said this week the Colts very much will play to win on Sunday when they play host to the New York Jets. What Polian said does remain a question is just what Colts players will be deemed healthy enough to play.
“You do want to win every time you take the field,” Polian said Monday night on his weekly radio show on 97.1 Hank FM in Indianapolis.
“There are a lot of misnomers and misinformation floating around about how to approach it and how we should approach it. Every time you go out on the field you want to win, whether it's a scrimmage, whether it's a preseason game, whether it's a regular-season game. Whether it has meaning in the standings or not, you always want to win.
“Everybody plays to win.”
The Colts, the NFL's last remaining unbeaten team, clinched the AFC's No. 1 seed two weeks ago. While Polian and Colts Head Coach Jim Caldwell each have said in recent weeks 16-0 is not a priority, the Colts played all healthy players last Thursday against the Jacksonville Jaguars in a 35-31 victory this past Thursday.
Polian said such an approach is not a break in philosophy, and pointed to a victory over Arizona in the 2005 regular-season finale.
“We've done that on numerous occasions in the past, most notably a couple of years ago against Arizona here in a very exciting finish,” Polian said. “That part of it is a given and people should not think that no matter who is playing that we don't care about winning the game. We do, greatly. In professional football and professional athletics of any kind, if you're going to play, you better go out there and give it 100 percent. Otherwise, you run a very, very serious risk of injury. So, whoever is going to play has to be ready to go 100 percent physically and emotionally.”
Polian said the primary question for the Colts will be, as it always is late in the season, who is deemed healthy enough to play.
“We have issues that have to be determined and that are yet to be determined as to who can play and who can't physically,” Polian said.”Because of the situation where the game doesn't count in the standings, you then apply a different medical barometer than you would if the game had playoff implications or something of that nature.
“Basically, players who have been playing hurt who can use the rest get the rest. I don't think it will go much beyond that, being truthful. That's our only concern. Everybody else has to get ready to play and go 100 percent and we want to win the game.”
Polian on Monday also addressed:
*Whether the Colts' preparation will change in the last two games: "Not one iota. (Former Head Coach) Tony (Dungy) coined the phrase, 'Just do what we do.' We live by that. We're going to continue to practice exactly the way we practiced all season. We're going to continue to prepare the way we've prepared all season. We'll continue to structure the roster the way we have all season. Nothing will change in that regard and nothing will change in the way we play the game. The only thing is if people aren't healthy, they won't play. It's that simple."
*DT Eric Foster playing as a game-time decision Thursday and how that compares with this week's decisions: “He went and warmed up. The doctors took a look, conversed with him and he decided he was OK to go. That was about an hour and thirty-five minutes before game-time, which is five minutes before you have to put in the roster. We decided to put Eric out there, and he had a great game: two sacks, a caused fumble and what have you. Which is usually always the way. He had a very sore back and was very questionable to go. I think that same thing will hold true here. We'll go all the way to Friday, I'm sure, before we finalize what plans we're going to make in terms of who can play and who can't. Obviously, we're always structuring as the week goes on, but there are so many questions to be answered as the week goes on, so I'm sure it will be Friday before we have an idea exactly where we are.”
Reviewing Colts President Bill Polian's weekly radio show . . .
* Part One: WR Anthony Gonzalez likely will be game-time decision this week. Here.
* Part Two: Polian: You want to win every time you take the field. Here.
* Part Three: Polian: "16-0 is not a goal." Here.
* Part Four: Polian: "Whatever our opponents' concerns are, are their concerns." Here.
Reviewing Colts President Bill Polian's weekly radio show . . .
* Part One: WR Anthony Gonzalez likely will be game-time decision this week. Here.
* Part Two: Polian: You want to win every time you take the field. Here.
* Part Three: Polian: "16-0 is not a goal." Here.
* Part Four: Polian: "Whatever our opponents' concerns are, are their concerns." Here.
COLTS COVERAGE.
CALDWELL VAGUE ON PLAYING TIME VERSUS JETS. HERE
COFFEE WITH THE COLTS: NEXT-DAY LOOK AT COLTS-JAGUARS. HERE
COLTS BEAT JAGUARS, 35-31: HERE
MAGNIFICENT SEVEN: DEBUNKING A MYTH ABOUT HOW THE COLTS MIGHT APPROACH THE REST OF THE SEASON. HERE.
QUOTING THE COLTS. HERE.
MANNING ON PLAYING STARTERS THURSDAY: "THAT'S WHAT WE WANTED TO HEAR." HERE
DOES PEYTON MANNING GET TOO MUCH RESPECT? HERE
POLIANS' CONTRACTS EXTENDED. HERE
COLTS FANS OWE RB JOSEPH ADDAI AN APOLOGY. HERE
*** CATCH UP WITH ALL THINGS COLTS ON INDY FOOTBALL REPORT. HERE
*** READ JOHN OEHSER'S INDIANA PACERS COVERAGE. HERE.
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