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Coffeee with the Colts: Indianapolis Colts two games ahead in AFC South three weeks into 2009 season
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Indianapolis Colts RB Joseph Addai (AP Photo)
Indy Football Report Editor John Oehser takes a next-morning look at the Indianapolis Colts' 31-10 victory over the Arizona Cardinals Sunday night at University of Phoenix Stadium in Week 3 of the 2009 NFL season . . .
THE QUICK LEAD . . .
Shortly before 6 p.m. Sunday night, I was preparing to do a weekly Indianapolis Colts pregame television show with former Colts CB Jeff Burris and local radio/television personality Greg Rakestraw. This was more than two hours before the Colts beat the Arizona Cardinals, 31-10, at University of Phoenix Stadium and I told Burris that the Colts could clinch the AFC South with a victory in the game.
I was kidding. But only a little.
Because while the Colts obviously clinched nothing with their convincing prime-time performance in the desert Sunday night, they did take a two-game lead in the AFC South, a lead that for any team is encouraging and for the Colts is enormous.
What makes the lead even bigger is that the Tennessee Titans -- the defending division champion and a team many expected to contend for and perhaps win the division -- lost on Sunday, meaning the Titans are 0-3 and three games behind in the division.
The Colts, after their victory over Arizona, said all of the right things, with Colts Head Coach Jim Caldwell saying 3-0 meant the Colts won't finish 2-14 and defensive end Robert Mathis saying, “It's big, but we can't get complacent."
"That gap can close in any given week," Mathis said. "We've got to keep doing what we do.”
True, but it's equally true that the Colts in recent seasons have been the NFL's version of Tiger Woods in recent regular seasons, parlaying early leads into division titles at a numbing pace. The Colts' 3-0 start is their fifth in the last seven seasons. Each of their past four 3-0 starts -- 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007 -- begat wire-to-wire AFC South titles.
LINKIN'
* Phil Richards of the Indianapolis Star says the Colts were perfect in every way. Here.
* Mike Chappell of the Star details the Colts' big plays. Here.
* Phil B. Wilson of the Star weighs in on the Colts' defense. Here.
* Azcentral.com talks about Colts DE Dwight Freeney's effectiveness. Here.
* A game story from azcentral.com. Here.
* Azcentral.com takes a look at Manning's night. Here.
* Vinnie Iyer of the Sporting News says QB Peyton Manning is on a mission. Here.
* A Colts-Cardinals notebook from the East Valley Tribune. Here.
* A game story CBS Sports Cardinals correspondent Craig Morgan. Here.
HOW THE COLTS STAND . . .
1. Indianapolis (3-0). The Colts never led the South last season after winning five consecutive titles from 2003-2007. They now lead by three games over Tennessee and two over Jacksonville and Houston.
2. Houston (1-2). The Texans a week ago turned in one of the biggest victories in franchise history. This week, they lost at home to a Jacksonville team that had struggled in the first two games. The Texans keep coming close to being a contender, but they keep getting in their own way.
3. Jacksonville (1-2). Maybe they're not division contenders this season, but after years of losing unexpectedly to the Texans, they got an upset victory over Houston Sunday.
4. Tennessee (0-3). They're still talented and still capable of a playoff run, but can the Titans rally from a three-game deficit after three games.
WHAT WE LEARNED . . .
1. The Colts' running backs can play. The tandem of Joseph Addai and Donald Brown could be the best RB combination the Colts have had in the last decade. Addai produced early and Brown had a huge reception that gave the Colts momentum in the third quarter.
2. The Colts can rush the passer. Not that we didn't know this already, but the Colts' pass-rushing tandem of DE Robert Mathis and DE Dwight Freeney pressured Cardinals QB Kurt Warner throughout. Colts defensive coordinator Larry Coyer also called well-timed blitzes that gave Warner trouble at times and also helped stifle Arizona's running game.
3. Pierre Garcon may be for real. Not that the Colts ever doubted this, but the second-year receiver twice in the last two weeks has shown the game-breaking speed about which the team talked throughout the offseason. He's not Marvin Harrison in his prime, but he's an improvement over Harison last season and for now, that's what's important.
WHAT WE DON'T KNOW . . .
1. How is Colts DE Dwight Freeney? Freeney had a huge game Sunday, sacking Arizona QB Kurt Warner twice, but he left the game in the second half with a leg injury. Freeney sounded upbeat after the game, and he likely wouldn't have been speaking to the media had the injury been serious, but he said he won't know definitively until a Monday or Tuesday MRI. Freeney told the Associated Press he felt something pop in his right quad while being held.
QUOTABLES AND NOTABLES . . .
* Manning on a three-touchdown second quarter, "We just got hot. We had an aggressive game plan, wanted to spread them out a little bit. It was a little frustrating early, coming out with three three-and-outs. You hate to do that on the road. The defense did a great job of keeping us in it and forcing some turnovers. It easily could have put us in a hole, going three three-and-outs. But we stayed with the plan, stayed patient and finally started hitting some of those deep ones."
* Manning on the running game, "I think the fact that we had some run game was keeping them honest a little bit. We could mix in some first-and-10 runs, some drop backs and some play-actions. It just felt like we were running our offense.”
* Manning on the defensive performance, "They were awesome. I know they certainly felt challenged and felt motivated. NFL players have a lot of pride. They were disappointed in their performance last week, and they really came out and answered the bell. It was really impressive.”
* Manning on second-year WR Pierre Garcon, "I have gotten more reps with Pierre and feel like we have pretty good timing. I have a pretty good feel for where he’s going to be. His speed is a weapon. He can get down the field and when you hit them down the field, you get a guy to start backing up and then you hit him on short passes. As you can see, he’s really good with the ball after the catch. He’s trying to score and is a physical receiver. We’ve just got to keep building.”
* Manning on a 73-yard pass to RB Donald Brown in the third quarter, "Huge play. I’ve got to feel it was some kind of blown coverage. We put (WR) Reggie (Wayne) in the slot on the left, which we do from time to time. He was in there on his touchdown, and it just seemed like it caused a little confusion on their part. Really everybody was over on that left side. Everybody kind of went toward him. Donald has a little option route and great recognition by him in the fact that he saw nobody was on him and he took it up the field. He saw the void in the zone and went up the field. Pierre got a good block and Donald took it down the sideline. That was really a huge play.”
* Manning on the offensive line, "They did an excellent job. Two games in a row with outstanding protection. I don’t know how many pass attempts we had, but it was a lot, and for them to protect that well all night, it’s a credit to them. Those guys are a bunch of fighters. I thought they did a good job in the run game as well.”
* Garcon on Manning having his 18th career game with four or more touchdown passes, "That is amazing because I have been watching him throw those touchdown passes. It’s good to get one from him. It is a great milestone to reach.”
THE LAST WORD . . .
. . . goes to Colts Head Coach Jim Caldwell . . . It was a hard week of preparation for us. I think our guys handled it pretty well. I didn’t see a whole lot of fatigue. It’s a really good football team that we lined up against. They do a tremendous job in the both run and pass and we’re fortunate our guys played well.”
*** PREVIEWING COLTS-ARIZONA CARDINALS. HERE
*** PEYTON MANNING'S TOP 10 COMEBACK VICTORIES HERE.
*** HIS TOP 10 UNDERRATED MOMENTS HERE
*** WHAT DO THE COLTS HAVE TO DO TO WIN THE AFC SOUTH? READ IFR EDITOR JOHN OEHSER'S FIVE KEYS HERE
*** COLTS HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL SAYS MORE TO LATE-GAME COMEBACKS THAN JUST QB PEYTON MANNING HERE
RECENT COLTS NEWS
* Manning says Colts won't change offensive approach because of opponents' style
MAGNIFICENT SEVENS: WEEKLY COLTS THOUGHTS . . .
Magnificent Seven I: Seven training camp thoughts and observations
Magnificent Seven II: On the Colts' defensive tackle position and WR Reggie Wayne
Magnificent Seven III: On the Colts' running backs and offensive line
Magnificent Seven IV: On the Colts' offense, OG Ryan Lilja and WR Anthony Gonzalez
Magnificent Seven V: On S Melvin Bullitt and QB Peyton Manning
Magnificent Seven VI: On RB Donald Brown and the start of the season . . . at last
Magnificent Seven VII: On WR Reggie Wayne, the OL and blitzing
EXAMINER SERIES: TWENTY PRE-TRAINING CAMP QUESTIONS WITH THE COLTS . . .
1) Will Jim Sorgi be the backup quarterback?
2) Will Special Teams be Special?
3) Who will be the Colts' breakout player in 2009?
4) Will loss of former Head Coach Tony Dungy hurt in 2009?
5) What will defense look like in 2009?
6) Will DT Ed Johnson impact the defense in 2009?
7) How important is the return of OG Ryan Lilja in 2009?
8) Will K Adam Vinatieri be ready in 2009?
9) Will WRs be improved in 2009?
11) Will S Bob Sanders be healthy in 2009?
12) Will secondary be one of NFL's best in 2009?
13) Who will start at RB in 2009?
14) What roles will Tom Moore and Howard Mudd play in 2009?
15) Can QB Peyton Manning improve again in 2009?
16) Will the Colts be OK at LB in 2009?
17) Will CB Kelvin Hayden make the Pro Bowl in 2009?
18) Can TE Dallas Clark make the Pro Bowl in 2009?
19) Can OT Tony Ugoh develop into franchise-level LT?
20) Can the Colts win the Super Bowl in 2009?
THE POSITION-BY-POSITION PRE-TRAINING CAMP SERIES:
- The QUARTERBACKS
- The RUNNING BACKS
- The TIGHT ENDS
- The WIDE RECEIVERS
- The OFFENSIVE TACKLES
- The OFFENSIVE GUARDS
- The CENTERS
- The DEFENSIVE ENDS
- The DEFENSIVE TACKLES
- The LINEBACKERS
- The CORNERBACKS
- The SAFETIES
OTHER EXAMINER COLTS TOPICS . . .
- Colts QB Peyton Manning on Steve McNair
- Steve McNair's career often intertwined with the Colts
- QB Peyton Manning omitted from ESPN.com's All-Decade team
- The best of the Indianapolis Colts blogosphere . . .
- Manning: Influence of Tony Dungy still felt around Colts
- Mudd, Moore return inevitable, happy end to long story
- Colts to allow sponsors on practice uniforms
- Why Colts QB Peyton Manning is primed for another big season
- Re-signing DT Ed Johnson makes DT situation even better
- SERIES: Peyton Manning Top 10 underrated moments.
- Breaking Down the 2009 Colts Schedule
- A recap of the Colts' 2009 NFL Draft
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