| |  Same story for Manning in the playoffs
By Len Pasquarelli
ESPN.com
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Given the gaudy statistics Peyton Manning has amassed in his short professional tenure, a list of accomplishments that includes an NFL-record four straight 4,000-yard seasons, one might suggest that the Indianapolis Colts star will someday supplant the great Dan Marino as the most prolific passer in league history.
Then again, with the way the Colts played here on Saturday in a devastating 41-0 loss to the New York Jets, it seems Manning could labor a long time and put up mind-boggling numbers, but eventually exit the game the same way Marino did.
With zero Super Bowl rings in the safe deposit box.
That may be gazing way too far into the future. But for the Colts, who lost for the fifth straight time in postseason play, the last thing most players want to do is stare into the rear-view mirror at Saturday's carnage. This is a club for whom any degree of forward thinking will be a welcomed luxury.
|
“ |
He's a great quarterback, no doubt about it, but all those audibles and all that other stuff he does, I think it just confuses their guys. I mean, you can go to the extreme with all the stuff he does, and that seemed to be the case today. It was almost like they stabbed themselves in the back with it. ” |
|
|
— Josh Evans, Jets defensive tackle on Peyton Manning |
"As far as I'm concerned," said Colts offensive tackle Tarik Glenn, "I hope they just burn the tapes. I'm not sure any of us wants to see that (stuff). It's never a good feeling to start with that 'wait until next year' (rhetoric). But that's all we can do at this point."
There are no guarantees, though, that things will be significantly better in 2003 for an Indianapolis team that made some progress under coach Tony Dungy but still underachieved in the eyes of most pundits. And, thus, there are no assurances for Manning that the next campaign will end differently than his first five league seasons.
The conventional wisdom entering this season was that Dungy would bring Indianapolis a competitive defense, something the Colts had lacked during Manning's four previous seasons, and perhaps a run deep into the playoffs.
There were, at least statistically, advances made on the defensive side. The Colts went from the No. 29 unit in 2001 to the eighth-rated defense in '02 under Dungy and coordinator Ron Meeks. But the ascent up the defensive charts was a tad deceiving.
While the Colts permitted an average of 50.4 fewer yards and 6.3 less points per game in 2002, some young players struggled to adapt to the "cover two" scheme Dungy prefers, and Indianapolis still couldn't stop the run. There are Colts defenders who bristled when it was suggested Saturday night that they just aren't tough and physical enough. Those same players, however, were absolutely manhandled by the stouter New York offensive line.
Even on offense, the Colts haven't taken advantage of Manning's presence, and have hardly surrounded him with consistent playmakers.
Tailback Edgerrin James is but a shadow, since offseason knee surgery, of the back who led the NFL in rushing each of his first two seasons. Wideout Marvin Harrison obliterated the single-season receptions record, but he has no complement across from him, and on Saturday looked lax and bored as the game got increasingly out of hand.
The interior of the offensive line isn't particularly strong and right tackle Adam Meadows, a model of consistency in the past, had his worst season and ended up splitting time with Waverly Jackson in the second half of the year. In essence, it is a team whose talent is vested in too few players, and perhaps it is time that general manager Bill Polian be held accountable for what really is a fairly ordinary roster.
Most players were too disgusted by Saturday's all-encompassing pratfall to discuss with conviction why Indianapolis should be improved in 2003. The wreckage of what had transpired over the previous three hours was fresh in their minds and, dazed and addled, even veterans could not make sense of the latest ignominious postseason exit.
The model of comportment and class, Manning brusquely acknowledged he will come under scrutiny, and that is likely the case.
"I'm a pretty wide open target," said Manning, who, ironically, had precious few open targets most of the evening. "I'm sure articles are already written and the shots are going to be fired. All I can do is sit here and take it. But I certainly would have liked to play better and help my team out more."
For the game, Manning completed 14 of 31 passes for 137 yards, threw two interceptions and finished with a passer rating of 31.2. No receiver had more than four catches and James once again struggled badly, notching a paltry 14 yards on nine carries. Not until late in the third quarter did Manning have consecutive completions.
By that time, the outcome had been long settled, and Manning had become a lightning rod for the New York pass rush.
Two more problems for the Indianapolis offense: Coordinator Tom Moore never ordered the speedier, no-huddle scheme he has often used in the past to draw the sporadic unit out of a funk. That there was never a tangible hint of urgency was a surprise to some Colts players, and certainly to New York defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell, as well.
Second, it seemed that Manning always took the play clock under 10 seconds as he altered the calls at the line of scrimmage.
Everyone has seen the trademark Manning gesticulations by now, all of the pointing, the turning to his linemen and receivers to instruct them on where the blitz might be coming from or how to break off a route. Perusing the enemy defense has always been a Manning strength but, on Saturday night, it become a drawback.
By taking such a ponderously long time to check off on a play -- there were at least two occasions Manning milked the play clock to under two seconds and then simply turned and handed the ball to James on an off-tackle run -- the brainy quarterback stifled any semblance of rhythm. And he provided the New York defensive front more than ample time to jump into and out of various looks.
There was one play where, for every Manning action, there was a resultant Jets reaction as the front changed three different times.
"He's a great quarterback, no doubt about it, but all those audibles and all that other stuff he does, I think it just confuses their guys," said New York defensive tackle Josh Evans. "I mean, you can go to the extreme with all the stuff he does, and that seemed to be the case today. It was almost like they stabbed themselves in the back with it."
Actually, a stabbing might have been sweet relief for Manning, who seemed to be cut to the quick by some questions. Asked why the Colts ground game never got on track, he responded, somewhat testily: "I don't know. Any ideas? Any suggestions?"
It sounded painfully like the way Marino answered biting queries late in his career. Manning has always been tolerant to a fault with reporters. Maybe a resume that includes a lot of big numbers, but no postseason victories at this juncture of his career, is finally getting to him.
Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.
|
|
|
Business As Usual
