Manning will always need to be the man

In the frenzy around the Patriots improbable 16-0 season in 2007 and the Eli Manning’s emergence with the New York Giants, most football fans seem to have forgotten about the Indianapolis Colts. The experts have not. They consistently mention the Colts as the team to beat in the AFC, whether they have a star quarterback getting back into Pro Bowl form or not. The Colts have earned the right to be feared by every team in the NFL. The franchise has been consistent since 2003 in their excellence. Peyton Manning can lead the team along the postseason schedule to the Super Bowl every year. His ability to find the open man anywhere on the field with an arm that has both strength and precision and a mind that can deftly read any defense is unmatched in football. The games at Lucas Oil Stadium are truly a treat for Colts fans. Rarely does any franchise get to watch such a great player perform. He works with whatever the defense gives him and whoever the front office finds to put on the field. Manning simply made player like Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison, and Dallas Clark stars. He is in the process of molding Anthony Gonzalez into a go-to receiver. The only knack on Manning is that he is not mobile. I do not mean not-exactly, or any other degree of less than stellar speed. I mean the man can move in the pocket, but get him outside and the defensive tackles can mow him down. Manning is a reminder why an offensive line is sop important. Jeff Saturday does the job of wrangling the guards and the tackles together to make sure Peyton is allowed to play every down of offense of every game on the Indianapolis Colts schedule. Every NFL season teams know that when the play the Colts they are playing one of the most dangerous teams in the league. The defense may not always show up, especially against the run, but the offense will make the game a good one. The defense has been built to be fast. While this has helped suffocate the passing game, running backs have been able to take advantage between the tackles. With great speed comes a light line. A light line can be dominated by the modern offensive lineman. When 300 pounds meets 260 pounds in a confined space generally the 300 pound man is going to win. How far Indianapolis Colts tickets go in the postseason often times comes down to the defenses ability to stop the run that game. If they cannot then Manning must put up big numbers and Joseph Addai must make an impact of his own as the Colts running back. If they can, then the Colts can bring back the Lombardi Trophy that they won in 2007.