And Then There’s Peyton… In an unperfect world….

The Indianapolis Colts lost their first game of the 2009 season in week 16 to the New York Jets…. In the 3rd quarter with about 7:36 left, Peyton Manning walked to the sideline and never returned to the game…. Not just him but a few other starters were also resting on the bench…. The whole theory was that if an injury happens to a starter, what will the team do?…. If Curtis Painter would have been in with the starting offense…. He would have succeeded better…. Manning wasn’t the only starter that was claimed to be pulled….
Now here comes the left wing….. I’ve always known Peyton Manning to crack under pressure…. At Tennessee when they played the Florida Gators for the SEC Championship… (Cough cough)….
Manning was certainly a bright spot in 1998 for the Colts, but he also threw a league high 28 interceptions and the team “reached” for a 3–13 record…. Then in 1999, the Colts started the season 2-2 without any consistency in a winning product….The Colts responded by winning 11 of their remaining 12 games, finishing 13–3 and the AFC East champions….. The 10 game turn around from the previous year set an NFL record…. The Colts lost to the Titans in the AFC playoffs….. Then losing to the Patriots in the AFC championship games in the new millenium…. Pressure is something Peyton doesn’t handle well…. He’s good, but big games shake him alittle…. The pressure of going undefeated can sometimes break you….
My opinion is that Peyton didn’t want to lose a tussle, or risk an injury, with a team that would not make the playoffs and struggling…. They didn’t care about injury in the first half…. So if one starter decided not to go back in…. You know you would have to pull the other starters…. What could head coach Caldwell do?

Dungy’s Dynasties

Anthony Kevin “Tony” Dungy has made his mark in coaching history by creating a team that pulled off a 12 wins season for six years in a row…. Since the day he joined the Indianapolis Colts, he revived that franchise into a winner…. Dungy is known for turning around teams as he did with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers…. Reaching the playoffs with the Bucs in the late 90′s was as difficult as finding a needle in a haystack…. Along came Dungy and burned the haystack, so to say…. He found the right combinations to create a winner…..
With the Indianapolis Colts, Dungy’s challenge wasn’t an easy stroll…. The Colts too were in a struggling phase with spurts of greatness, but didn’t have the right man at the helm to guide them….. After being fired by the Bucs…. Dungy went on a ” ha ha, I told you soo” Run on the Bucs and the NFL with winning 75% of his games for 6 years straight…..Dungy won Superbowl XLI against the Chicago Bears 29-17…There are many great coaches that have been, or is still, coaching in the NFL but no other coach has kept such a degree of consistancy with winning as Tony Dungy…. Even the coaches that were appointed by Dungy to continue after him as guided the Colts right on course… Congradulations to the Colts on going seven seasons with atleast 12 wins….. Here is a look at Tony Dungy’s coaching history….
University of Minnesota (1980)
(defensive backs coach)
Pittsburgh Steelers (1981-1983)
(defensive backs coach)
Pittsburgh Steelers (1984-1988)
(defensive coordinator)
Kansas City Chiefs (1989-1991)
(defensive backs coach)
Minnesota Vikings (1992-1995)
(defensive coordinator)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1996-2001)
(Head coach)
Indianapolis Colts (2002-2008)
(Head coach)

Battle of the Undefeated

Wow…. New Orleans keeps finding a way to pull out a victory…. In OT or on TO on downs, New Orleans will find a way…. Playing from behind is something that has plagued them the last couple of games they have played…. But they still find a way to win….
Indianapolis is business as usual to them as they win their normal 13 consecutive game in a row…. The Colts 2nd team fits into the starting lineup without missing a beat…. Signs of a solid team….
So how sweet would it be if the Superbowl hosted two undefeated teams in the city where the records stands ?