Indianapolis – As the steaming masses departed the RCA Dome on Sunday, the mix of anger and sadness over the Colts’ lost opportunity at becoming just the second undefeated team in NFL history wafting down upon them like fresh falling snow, the most upset person in the joint might have been Peyton Manning.
The Indianapolis quarterback had certainly borne the physical brunt of the beating meted out by the San Diego Chargers, and, as he trudged through a dingy passageway to his postgame news conference, he clearly looked like someone in need of a hug. However, as he passed his father, Archie, barely a word was spoken between the two, let alone a tender embrace.
“He’s a big boy, he’ll be all right,” Archie said. “He may be disappointed, but he won’t be as disappointed as the 24 or 25 teams that will be going home in a few weeks.”
Archie Manning has a point. The loss didn’t eliminate the Colts from the playoff picture, as is already the case for woebegone franchises such as Houston and Detroit. And they’ll still be the No. 1 seed in the AFC, which means they’ll be chilling when the first four playoff teams drop out of the picture the weekend of Jan. 7-8.
But …
Indianapolis might indeed reach its season-long goal – a victory at Detroit’s Ford Field on Feb. 5 in Super Bowl XL. But their loss Sunday allowed a glimmer of hope for opponents for the first time since the season’s opening weeks.
“I still think that on any given Sunday, anything can happen in the NFL. Look at us against the Dolphins last week,” Chargers linebacker Donnie Edwards said Sunday, referring to his team’s stunning home loss to Miami just a week earlier. “Going 13-0 was awesome, and when you have that kind of success, you have to gain a kind of swagger. But now …”
Now the thinking is that there’s a horse race for Super Bowl XL. Now there’s hope in Cincinnati. Now, if you’re a certain orange-clad team based in the Rocky Mountains that has served as Peyton Manning’s personal whipping boy the past two postseasons, you can begin to envision a scenario in which you wouldn’t have to face the Colts at all in 2005.
All it would take is clinching the second seed in the AFC, then watching New England, perhaps by then riding a five-game winning streak, beating Jacksonville in the opening round. That likely would send the Patriots to Indy for the divisional round. Given their dismal playoff showings against Bill Belichick and Tom Brady the past couple of seasons, don’t think for a minute that wouldn’t rattle around in the Colts’ collective psyche.
Of course, the Broncos would have to take care of business in their opening round, and then try to stop a peaking New England team from reaching a third consecutive Super Bowl, but hey, at least the game would be played at Invesco Field at Mile High.
Perchance to dream … all from one game.
On Monday, however, the Colts were insisting they had moved on from their setback. Peyton Manning, who scowled and spoke as if he were chewing nails the day before, smiled and joked as he bounced to and fro around the team’s complex. Similarly, his teammates were doing their best to treat the San Diego game the same way that they did the previous 13.
“What we try to do here is not worry about how others perceive us,” offensive tackle Tarik Glenn said. “Getting caught up in other people’s perceptions is a distraction. It was a humbling experience to lose the way we did, but we realize that’s how it’s going to be from now on. People are going to be trying to knock us off. Now we have a sense of urgency.”
And perhaps a focus that comes from a more relevant place than chasing history.
It just might be that while other teams might believe it’s now open season on Indy, the Colts are now in better position to go on the hunt themselves.
NFL
Game of the week
San Diego at Kansas City
Having ended the Patriots’ 21-game home winning streak earlier this season, and of course laying waste to the Colts’ run at history Sunday, the Chargers have an opportunity for a unique trifecta – ending the Chiefs’ run of 17 straight home victories in December. With both teams playing for their postseason lives, the battle should be fierce.
What ifs
There hasn’t been an 11-5 team that’s failed to make the playoffs since the 1985 Broncos, but that’s what the Chargers are possibly looking at this season. A win by Denver over Oakland on Saturday would clinch the AFC West, and two wins by the Pittsburgh Steelers would eliminate San Diego from the wild-card chase even if the Bolts win out. If that happens, there will be a lot for the Chargers to chew over – their five losses have come by a total of 14 points, with the team leading in the fourth quarter in all but one of them. There also have been five trips to the Eastern time zone.
Anthony Cotton can be reached at 303-820-1292 or acotton@denverpost.com.
