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[Wolf]

As Manning threw one of his patent pathetic playoff interceptions that was returned for a touchdown, I could feel Kiefer’s know-it-all smirk all the way from my house in Jenkintown! At that point, Indianapolis trailed 21-3 with 9:25 remaining in the first half. It was all over! Manning had choked again! How could the Colts come back from 18 points down with only 40 minutes left in the game against the Patriots immortal dynasty, led by their head coach, GOD, and their legendary QB Jesus Christ? It would be absolutely impossible for big game choke artist Peyton Manning to ignite the greatest comeback in AFC title game history against a New England defense that hadn’t let any team score more than 27 points all season!

Well, all Manning did to that legendary defense was light them up for 32 points in the second half alone! Manning’s best starting field position of the entire game was the Indianapolis 33!! However, he still led scoring drives of 80, 76, 76, 67, 59, & 80 yards in the last 33 minutes of the game!! He scored on 5 of his 7 second-half possessions (An amazing 4 TDs & 1 FG.) Manning moved his team a ridiculous 438 yards on those last 6 scoring possessions. While, at the same time, “Touchdown” Tommy moved his team a whopping 83 yards total on their 3 scoring drives of the second half!!!! (21 yds. [TD], 33 yds. [FG], & 29 yds. [FG]) If it weren’t for the Colts absolutely pathetic kickoff coverage, Indy would have won this game pretty comfortably! Brady should thank New England’s Offensive MVP (lol) cornerback Ellis Hobbs, who had an obscene 220 yards in kickoff returns, for keeping the game close!

But, even with Manning’s BIG GAME playoff performance and perfectly orchestrated 7-play, 80 yard go ahead TD drive, the Colts weren’t out of the water yet! With 2 timeouts left and 60 seconds to work with, of course Tom Brady was going to be a hero again! This is exactly what he does & was born to do, right? Wrong! After a couple of completions, Brady threw a Peyton Manning-like pick and the game was over. What? Jesus did what? I don’t believe it! But, smart football fans know that Brady doesn’t lead game-winning touchdown drives! He leads game-winning or tying field goal drives! I’m not trying to sell this ability short, because it is still a very difficult task. And his ability to do this is why he is the 2nd best QB in the NFL. He moves them just close enough to where Adam Vinatieri can make him look like a hero! Likewise, a field goal is all that Manning needed to tie the game & send the game into overtime, but he decided to leave Vinatieri on the sidelines. He didn’t need a 160 lb. kicker to win the game for him. MANNING DID IT HIMSELF!! (No kicker needed)

[CK]

Manning proved a lot to the world yesterday. Again, I feel like if he wins a title this year, I wasn't really wrong about him, because he should have already won one. If he wins it this year, it will rid him of that stigma in the future, and it will validate him as a top 5 quarterback of all time, arguably top 1.

What impressed me the most is he did the exact opposite of what I thought he'd do if the Colts were going to have a chance to win this game. I thought they had a chance to win going into the game, but I thought he'd have to jump out to a 14-0 lead. When he threw the pick, I actually felt sorry for him. I told my brother, who also thinks Manning is the best QB of all time, that Manning was probably going to be embarrassed to even have to continue this game. I was sure he's much rather go film a commercial than go back out on that field. Much to my suprise, he came up enormous at a time when I, and most other people, thought he was least likely to.

One more thing. Last week, you said that this game was the defining game of the Manning argument. I agreed, but if he's the greatest QB of all time, I fully expect him to win in two weeks as well. If he doesn't, his legacy is still very tainted.

[Refs]

Peyton, why haven't you payed me for not calling that pass interference in the end zone?

[Wolf]

That non-call pass interference was pretty brutal, but there are calls/non-calls in every big game that you could look at & blame things on! (One call I remeber being pathetic was Zooks calling a 25 chip bet with second pair (J-4 of hearts) on a K-J-5 rainbow board. Of course I had (KQ) and was overbetting pots all night just so this exact situation wouldn't happen. Then, a 3 of hearts comes on the turn, and I go All-In for my last 30 chips! And, of course one awful call by Zooks now picks up a pathetic flush draw so he has to call now! (lol) So obviously, the river brings a heart and genius Zooks gets all of my chips!)

But, I digress. The fact of the matter is simple: Colts 38 Patriots 34! However, I agree 100% with you Chris on his legacy still being tainted if he doesn't beat the Bears! I guess I just viewed the dominant AFC of the last 6-7 years & the dominant team of the decade that has completely owned Manning his entire career; as the MAJOR obstatcle that Peyton Manning had to overcome! And now, with 2 weeks of preparation (that's A LOT of classroom time for the studious Manning) and that huge weight of beating the Patriots, finally winning a huge game, & making it to the Super Bowl; I can't see how the Bears are still in the game in the 2nd half! But, its still the NFL, which makes it impossible to predict! So, I may be wrong. And if I am, then of course Manning still has alot to prove. But, I WON'T BE WRONG! I know it and you know it! The Colts are winning this game! And if you think otherwise, you are probably over-thinking! But, will they cover? Now, that's a different story!