Coffee with the Colts: A next-day look at the Indianapolis Colts'31-9 victory over Tennessee

Indianapolis Colts WR Austin Collie (Wade Payne/AP Photo)

Indy Football Report Editor John Oehser takes a next-morning look at the Indianapolis Colts' 31-9 victory over the Tennessee Titans Sunday night at LP Field in Nashville, Tenn., in Week 5 of the 2009 NFL season . . .

THE QUICK LEAD . . .

A thought in the wake of the Indianapolis Colts' 31-9 victory over the Tennessee Titans:

The Colts might be really, really good.

Beating the Titans isn't all that provokes that thought -- rather, it's how the Colts beat the Titans. And how Indianapolis beat the Seattle Seahawks the week before. And the Arizona Cardinals the week before that. The Colts handled the Cardinals and Seahawks in dominant fashion and on Sunday night -- playing a desperate/talented/capable team that very much needed a victory to save what now suddenly and shockingly seems a lost season -- the Colts dominated yet again.

What's the saying former Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy briefly popularized during the team's run to Super Bowl XLI?

Once is nice. Twice is nice, too. But it takes three to be a trend.

That's not an exact interpretation of Dungy's thoughts on the Colts' defense in the 2006 postseason, but it's close, and it's a point that makes sense now, because after a breath-holding, 27-23 victory over Miami in Week 2, few around the NFL saw the Colts as a dominant team.

Now, after three consecutive double-digit victories -- over Arizona (31-10) in Week 3, over Seattle (34-17) in Week 4 and over Tennessee -- anyone not seeing them that way seems perhaps a bit slow on the uptake, because not only is three-time Most Valuable Player/nine-time Pro Bowl QB Peyton Manning playing at maybe the highest level in his 12 NFL seasons, but four-time Pro Bowl DE Dwight Freeney is, too. DE Robert Mathis, WR Reggie Wayne and TE Dallas Clark aren't far behind.

What's as notable for the Colts, perhaps, is who's not playing. The Colts have one of the NFL's top secondaries, but against the Titans, S Bob Sanders -- the 2007 Associated Press Defensive Player of the Year -- didn't play, and neither did CBs Marlin Jackson and Kelvin Hayden. LT Charlie Johnson and WR Anthony Gonzalez also didn't play.

This is a team not close to full strength, and yet, they're pulling away from teams on a routine basis. That's rare in the NFL, and it's something the Colts didn't do consistently last season. But this much is clear thus far this season:

The Colts are a drastically different team this season than a year ago.

And they might be really, really good.

LINKIN'

* Pete Prisco of CBS Sports goes against his instinct and heart by not writing about Colts QB Peyton Manning. Instead, he writes about how Colts President Bill Polian's eye for talent has helped keep the Colts on top for a decade. Here.

* As usual, Phil Richards of the Indianapolis churns out a quality deadline game story. Here.

* The Associated Press game story. Here.

* Bob Kravitz of the Indianapolis Star believes in the Colts. Here.

* Phillip B. Wilson of the Indianapolis Star weighs in on Colts WR Austin Collie. Here.

* Colts President Bill Polian liked what he saw from the defense, writes Mike Chappell of the Indianapolis Star. Here.

* David Climer of the Nashville Tennessean says the Titans' problems go beyond QB Kerry Collins. Here.

* Bryan Mullen, an old colleague, writes about Manning having his way with Tennessee. Here.

HOW THE COLTS STAND . . .

1. Indianapolis (5-0). The Colts have dominated their last three games, and at 2-0, they're not only leading the division, their three games ahead. The Titans looked overmatched Sunday, and the Colts looked as dominant as they have in some time.

2. Houston (2-3). The NFL is a cruel league sometimes. The Texans were a yard away Sunday from a forcing overtime and squeezing out a potential season-turning, come-from-behind victory. Instead, they're three games behind the Colts in the AFC South.

3. Jacksonville (2-3). It's dangerous to attach too much importance to one regular-season game in the NFL, but that was a bad loss by Jacksonville Sunday. A 41-point loss to an average Seattle Seahawks? Even with the return of Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck, that's inexcusable and you wonder if the Jaguars can recover.

4. Tennessee (0-5). Entering the Colts' game Sunday, it was vogue to say the Titans were a very, good 0-4 team. They're 0-5 now, and you know what? They just, plain didn't look like a good team Sunday against Indianapolis.

WHAT WE LEARNED SUNDAY . . .

1. Colts LT Tony Ugoh hasn't quit. The season has been difficult for Ugoh. He lost his starting job to LT Charlie Johnson in the offseason and was inactive in Week 4 after tweaking a knee the week before. He started against Tennessee, and after giving up some pressure early to DE Kyle Vanden Bosch, he played well as the game went on and did not allow a sack.

2. The Colts' run defense really has improved. Following a Week 2 victory over Miami, there were a lot of questions about the Colts' run defense. Allowing 239 yards rushing will do that. In the next two games, Indianapolis allowed 24 and 49 yards rushing to Arizona and Seattle, respectively. But neither of those teams had a runner like Titans running back Chris Johnson. On Sunday, the Colts answered a lot of questions, holding Johnson -- the NFL's leading rusher entering the game with 434 yards and a 6.3-yards-per-carry average -- to 34 yards on nine carries.

3. Colts WR Austin Collie is the real deal. A week ago, he caught his first touchdown pass. Against Tennessee, he was a huge reason for the victory. He caught eight passes for a game-high 97 yards, and his 39-yard touchdown reception late in the first half broke the game open. He also caught a six-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Manning has expressed concern several times in recent weeks about the attention being given to Collie and second-year veteran Pierre Garcon. Manning expressed the same concern to NBC's Andrea Kremer Sunday night when Collie was being interviewed by Kremer. It appears Manning may have to get used to Collie getting attention.

4. Colts CB Tim Jennings has guts. Jennings often is criticized by Colts fans, but somehow, he has a knack for making plays. Against Tennessee, he made another -- a third-quarter interception that led to the touchdown that all-but ended the Titans' hopes.

WHAT WE DON'T KNOW . . .

1. Can the Colts run? To be fair, it's hard to find much to question about the Colts right now. But although the running game has been effective at times this season, it hasn't been as productive as the Colts might like. On Sunday, the Colts rushed for 58 yards on 23 carries. The Titans are a quality rushing team, and thus far, Colts have rushed well enough to allow Manning to function in the play-action passing game. That's all the Colts need from their running game, but part of the focus during the bye week likely will be focusing on this area.

THE LAST WORD . . .

. . goes to Colts Head Coach Jim Caldwell:

"We were extremely pleased with the way we played. That's a good football team, even though a lot of people were saying, 'Well, they were 0-4 before our game.' They still have weapons. They still have firepower. They're not a much different team than what they were last year from a personnel standpoint."

HERE.

*** PRE-GAME PRIMER. INDY FOOTBALL REPORT EDITOR JOHN OEHSER PREVIEWS TITANS-COLTS. HERE.

*** THE TOP FIVE SEASONS OF COLTS QB PEYTON MANNING. HERE

*** COFFEE WITH THE COLTS: INDY FOOTBALL REPORT EDITOR JOHN OEHSER'S NEXT-DAY LOOK AT COLTS-SEAHAWKS HERE.

*** COLTS QB PEYTON MANNING CALLS 4-0 RECORD A GOOD START: INDY FOOTBALL REPORT EDITOR JOHN OEHSER'S GAME STORY. HERE

*** COLTS QB PEYTON MANNING ON THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF FORMER COLTS RB EDGERRIN JAMES HERE

*** WR PIERRE GARCON AMONG FIVE KEY EARLY-SEASON DEVELOPMENTS FOR 3-0 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS HERE ***

*** WHAT DO THE COLTS HAVE TO DO TO WIN THE AFC SOUTH? READ IFR EDITOR JOHN OEHSER'S FIVE KEYS HERE

*** REVIEWING COLTS PRESIDENT BILL POLIAN'S WEEKLY RADIO SHOW HERE. PART ONE

*** REVIEWING COLTS PRESIDENT BILL POLIAN'S WEEKLY RADIO SHOW HERE. PART TWO

MAGNIFICENT SEVENS: WEEKLY COLTS THOUGHTS . . .

Magnificent Seven I: Seven training camp thoughts and observations