The Final Football Post (for now)

This is the last of the football posts, if for no other reason than to finish what I started.

Since there's only one NFL team in Indiana, I'll extend the radius slightly to include immediate neighbors Cincinnati and Chicago. No, I won't go beyond to the Rams, Lions, and Browns, because they are further away, don't interest me much, and are pitiful teams anyway.

Fans of "Da Bears" are loving their return to their roots this season. A healthy Urlacher is leading a mean and bruising defense in keeping scores low and occasionally helping the offense with forced turnovers and defensive touchdowns. The running game is back, with Purdue rookie Kyle Orton just asked to protect the ball and hand it off to guys like Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson.

It looks like the 2005 version of the old-time Bears, reminding us of Butkus and Plank, the Fridge and Danimal on defense. Maybe there's no Gale Sayers or Walter Payton on offense, but that ball-control running game does harken back to the traditional Bears.

Fortunately for the Bears, they get to play in probably the weakest division in the NFL. A division championship should more than satisfy their fans this year, because that's about all they will accomplish. They just aren't good enough to make it any further this year. But all the same, it is nice to see "Da Bears" back on the rise again.

Cincinnati has been getting better every year since the brought in Marvin Lewis. He's steadily brought the team from a perennial joke (they used to be called the "Ben-Gals") to a dangerous factor in the AFC. Suddenly they have a quality quarterback who's getting better with experience in Palmer, a pretty good offensive line, and some very good brash young receivers.

They're picked by many as the team most likely to hand the Colts their first loss of this season. There's no question it's going to be a game everybody will want to see, coming up in less than 2 weeks.

But let's get to the man event - the Colts. They are 8-0, just off a Monday night pasting of New England. That finally got them over their psychological barrier, having been unable to beat the Pats in Foxboro.

They look unbeatable, having finally pieced together a solid defense to go with their unstoppable offense. Teams early this season tried to stop Peyton and the offense by focusing on shutting down the passing game. The Colts responded by handing the ball to Edgerrin, who's the top running back in the NFL so far this season.

So teams started trying to stop the run. That was OK with Peyton too, he just tosses the ball to Marvin and Reggie over the top for more touchdowns.

The main question opponents of the Colts have to answer so far is, do we want to lose quickly or slowly? Line up to stop the pass and the Colts will run over you, knock you silly, and use up the clock so your offense can't get on the field. Load up on the line of scrimmage to stop the run and Peyton will run up the score on you with the pass. Neither choice seems right.

Meanwhile, the two best defensive ends in the NFL, Freeney and Mathis, will spend most of their time in your offensive backfield harassing your quarterback. You can complete passes to your wide receivers because the Colts' corners are vulnerable, but that's only if you can set up to throw before Freeney or Mathis knock you to the turf.

As impressive as the Colts are so far, they can be beaten. It will take a very good team with a talented and strong defense and an excellent balanced offense, but it can be done.

To beat the Colts, your offense must use a ball-control offense that exploits the weaknesses of the Colts' defense. Draws and screens can be effective, but you can't over-use them like the Patriots did on Monday night. Freeney especially tends to overrun the quarterback on the pass rush, and you can toss a quick screen to his side or hand off for the draw.

The passing game can also beat the Colts, as long as you can protect the quarterback long enough to get the throw out to a receiver. Quick throws on slant routes work, as do sideline routes. If you've got a mobile quarterback like Vick, you can use sprint-outs to buy time or pick up first downs with a good running quarterback.

Defensively, you have to stop the "stretch" play to Edgerrin. Watch films and practice recognizing and stopping Edgerrin before he makes it outside. Jam the receivers at the line of scrimmage to throw off their timing - New England's stragegy the past few years of jamming the receivers should still work, but be careful; if you miss jamming Marvin or Reggie at the line of scrimmage, they will most certainly end up with a wide-open touchdown catch.

The Colts are really fun to watch, and it would be a huge disappointment if they didn't make it to the Super Bowl this year. Is it possible that they could match the Dolphins' undefeated season? Yes. Is it likely? No.

This season is one for just enjoying while it lasts. It makes for a nice distraction from the drudgery of everyday life. That's why I like football.