INDIANAPOLIS -- Tony Dungy's reputation preceded him to Indianapolis on all fronts.

His passion for community involvement. The respect he has in the coaching fraternity. His quiet dignity.

More importantly, his reputation as a defensive mastermind made it here just ahead of the worries concerning his no-go offense with the Buccaneers.

The obvious concern was whether the conservative Dungy of the Bucs would somehow attempt to rein in Colts quarterback Peyton Manning with the same approach he used to create a defensive-minded winner with the Bucs.

	Peyton Manning threw 23 interceptions last season.

But Dungy said that will not be the case at all.

"If anything, we want to be more explosive on offense," Dungy said.

Dungy is here because the Colts stumbled a year ago -- sometimes over opponents and sometimes over themselves -- falling from the hierarchy of the NFL at 13-3 in 2000 to an underachieving 6-10 last season for a team many considered a Super Bowl contender.

The free fall ultimately cost head coach Jim Mora his job after he refused to fire defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, whose defense was near the bottom in total defense (29th) and dead last in points per game (30.4).

Now the prized Dungy is at the helm. But at the helm of what? The playoff team of 1999 and 2000 built around the Pro Bowl triumvirate of Manning, Edgerrin James and Marvin Harrison? Or last year's enigma?

Here's the answer, though not a simple one:

Dungy inherits a team with the second-ranked offense in the NFL -- second to the Rams in both scoring and total offense. The Colts' offense managed to perform despite a season-ending knee injury to James in Week 7 at Kansas City.

But that vaunted offense was also strangely erratic, scoring 30 or more points in five of the team's six victories and 29 in the other. The Colts, who got off to a 2-0 start by scoring 87 points the first two weeks of the season, averaged 37 points per game in wins, but only 19.1 points per game in losses.

Manning, who graduated to elite status with 33 touchdowns and only 15 interceptions in 2000, threw for 26 touchdowns and 23 interceptions last season.

And in one of the more bizarre stats of the season, six of Manning's interceptions were returned for touchdowns.

Manning, entering his fourth season, appeared to press at times last year as the Colts' defense became increasingly porous, but his confidence never wavered. That should be the case again as the team begins to arrive in Terre Haute, Ind., for training camp at the end of July.

"I don't think there's a lack of confidence on this team and certainly not with myself," said Manning after last year's loss to Baltimore. "I'm going to keep firing and keep on gunning."

Buchsbaum on Manning

PFW conducted the following Q&A with personnel expert Joel Buchsbaum, asking for his view on Colts QB Peyton Manning and whether or not he will bounce back after throwing 23 interceptions in 2001. PFW: Is there a simple explanation for why Manning threw so many interceptions last season? BUCHSBAUM: Basically, the team was often behind. That forced him to force the issue to try to make plays because his defense was not stopping anyone. PFW: So it wasn't that Manning was doing anything poorly? BUCHSBAUM: No. Before, he always had some cushion. But last year, he felt pressured to score a touchdown every time he had the ball because the defense was playing so poorly. What did that defense give up, 500 points? PFW: The Colts have made some personnel changes. Will any of those moves make a difference to Manning? BUCHSBAUM: It will make a big difference. Especially the development of Reggie Wayne at wide receiver. The one thing that could hurt a little bit is losing Dilger at tight end. He is a very good blocker, solid and smart receiver, and that allowed the Colts to play a lot of two-tight end offense using Marcus Pollard as mostly a receiver, which is his strength.

Last year's lowlights included a 41-6 loss at Miami and a 39-27 loss at Baltimore in which the Colts had four chances to take a fourth-quarter lead but could not make a first down when they needed one.

Still, the Colts averaged 372.2 yards per game in 2001, and offensive coordinator Tom Moore and most of the offensive staff was retained by Dungy when he arrived from Tampa Bay.

"We want to continue to improve and continue to get better," Moore said. "We want to play smart and we want to be consistent."

And explosive, according to Dungy. Moore didn't disagree, and the Colts certainly have no shortage of big-play potential.

Dungy's projection of explosiveness might have garnered applause, if not gasps, in Tampa, but it raises eyebrows in Indianapolis, which already has seen an offensive explosion in recent years.

But if the Colts' defensive-minded draft and offseason acquisitions can bring stability to the team's defense, then the offense should be better by association.

Wide receiver Qadry Ismail was signed as a free agent by the Colts after being released by Baltimore.

Ismail will probably be the No. 3 receiver alongside Harrison and second-year wideout Reggie Wayne, who was limited by injuries last season. Ismail's presence, coupled with the departure of do-it-all tight end Ken Dilger, could mean more three-WR sets and less of the Colts recent two-tight end look. And that could mean more big plays.

It is hoped that Ismail will provide the consistency that Jerome Pathon, who signed as a free agent with the Saints, could not due to injury. Pathon appeared on the verge of a breakout season in September but was nearly invisible through the final 13 weeks of the season after being hurt in Week 3 at New England.

"On offense, you want to get your best 11 players on the field at one time, and now that we have Qadry, we have to see how it works out," Moore said.

If James, who is sometimes overlooked as an outstanding pass blocker, returns at 100 percent, the Colts' Pro Bowl trio will ride together again, something it has not done since last October.

This season, though, Manning will be gunning for some different targets. Ismail and Wayne will both be vital if the offense is going to continue to work.

Dilger, a great blocker and security blanket for Manning in his first three seasons, was a salary-cap casualty. Both starting offensive guards have changed. Right guard Ryan Diem and left guard Rick DeMulling will take the place of the departed Steve McKinney (Houston) and Larry Moore (Washington), marking the first serious offensive line shuffle over the past four seasons.

"The foundation of our offense is set," Moore said. "Each year in the offseason, we want to tweak it and come up with some new things. We want to try and keep ahead of the game and experiment with some things. We want to see what we can add and what we can't. We want to keep moving forward."

And to Moore, part of that means not looking back and continuing to tinker with his offense, which will return with some new and some repaired parts for 2002.

John Clayton covers the Colts for cnhi Media.

Material from Pro Football Weekly.
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