Sunday, January 07, 2007

What they didn't say

Peyton Manning was so bad in the first half of the contest between Colts and the Chiefs, I had to make sure I wasn't watching his baby brother Eli.

What was anticipated, was a high scoring game. Both defenses have been criticized all season. They stepped up big time. The Chiefs did not get a first down the first half. Unbelievable.

With three intercepetions in the first half, compliments of Ty Law, the broadcasters were wondering if Manning was choking because it was a playoff game. Manning has racked up Hall of Fame numbers, but has found little success in the post season.

He was forcing passes into double coverage or when there were no Colts to be found. The stuff his brother does.

I am not sure what happened during halftime, but Peyton showed up the second half. He stopped channeling his brother. He used more running plays and short passes. The tight ends were his friends. However, he and Marvin Harrison, his primary target were not in sync.

They better get it together before facing the Ravens in the next round.

The Colts defense managed to shut down, K.C.'s major offensive threat, Larry Johnson. Johnson is the NFL's second-leading rusher this season with 1,789 yards. He did not even break a sweat.

Tony Dungy coaches the Colts and Herman Edwards commandeers the Chiefs, both had stellar careers as NFL players. They have emerged as respected coaches. Both are African-American.

Finally, the broadcasters did not mention it. Art Schell, lost his position as the coach of the Raiders. With a 2-14 record, he should have lost his job. Again, no mention of his race.

This is progress.

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