Anyone notice that the Broncos have not beat the Colts ever since they drafted Luck and dropped Manning? I think we’ve lost the last 4 or 5 games with them.
As great as Manning has been, and he has been great, taking the Broncos all the way to the big dance last year, although he has also been “one and done” a lot in recent playoff history, I didn’t come to bury him, but to praise him — and the Denver Broncos.
I’m not laying the blame for the loss just on Manning. Most of the time, none of the Broncos showed any shine last night, and the Colts deserved the win. They had figured out Manning, adequately defending the short tosses and most of his other tricks, and just out-played us. Numbers show that Manning has had problems the entire second half of this season, and the team has not shown the sharpness they previously displayed, regardless of the win/loss record for the year.
I also have to admit I didn’t give the Broncos much of a chance in Foxboro next week anyway. We can and have beat the Pats, but at home. But even if we had defeated the Colts at the home-team friendly Mile High Stadium (I refuse to call it anything else), they would have a tough row to hoe in New England.
Any-who, now that my homer team has lost, I’m free to prognosticate with some level of credibility and lack of bias. I am writing this from a desk near Portland, Oregon, so I’m sure that there will be more Seahawks flags out than other teams in the neighborhood, although I gotta say this neighborhood is more anxious about tonight’s big college game. Here in Oregon you either see green or you see orange. It is like being in Ireland. What a great thing it would be if the Ducks win the first ever “play off” college title. Oh, and the Blazers are playing pretty strong too. It’s good to be in the Northwest!
Can the Seahawks win two in a row? That is the question. I think the smart money is on the Hawks, but they’ve still got to get to the big game and Green Bay is not a pushover (although we beat them once!)
The newscast during the game Saturday was filled with the fact that no Super Bowl champ has even made it this far the year after for a decade. So just how often does a team win two-in-a-row Super Bowls?
Well, Green Bay started off that way, winning both Super Bowl I and II in 67 and 68. The Dolphins repeated the feat in VII and VIII, 73 and 74. Then the Steelers with victories in IX and X and then again in XIII and XIV. For those that are roman numeral challenged that’s 9, 10, 13, and 14 from 1975 through 1980.
Guess who? The Broncos were in two in a row, XXI and XXII back in 87 and 88 with Elway under center. Lost both — to the Giants and the Redskins.
The 49ers have their 2-peat with the next two bowls in 89 and 90. Dallas follows up with wins in 93 and 94, Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII. The Broncos round out the century with back to back appearances in XXXII and XXXIII which were played in 98 and 99. This time they won them both. That’s right, the Broncos are in the 2-peat club.
That just leaves the Patriots who have won both XXXVIII and XXXIX (thoroughly x-ing out the competition) in 04 and 05. That was the start of the drought that all the newscasters were referring to.
Now, with a win in XLVIII last year and a possible revisit to the big one for XLIX, who knows how it will turn out.
XLIX! You have my permission to have some fun with that acronym. The best one wins tickets to the Super Bowl. Just send you entries to “Tough Luck Charlie” at the tuna fish address.
Notice the trend of dominance? Two teams have played in 8 Super Bowls. Pittsburg won 6 of their 8 and Dallas won 5 of their octet. The Broncos have been to 7, but only won two and the Pats have also played 7 times with 3 wins. This year may change their statistic too.
Just to be fair to the current combatants, Green Bay has a 4 and 1 record, with their only loss to Denver and the Colts are two and two in Super Bowls if you count both Baltimore and Indianapolis.
So let the battles begin — or continue. Two more will be eliminated next weekend and then we wait for the big one. Who’s your favorite? All time fav? Home team?
It’s root, root, root for the home team. If they don’t win it’s a drag.
(And did you notice the tickets in the window? $1200 bucks a seat, in Indianapolis. Who’s going?)
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