The Super Bowl was a battle of two great quarterbacks, as most thought it would be. In this case, Drew Brees, was better than Peyton Manning. Tracy Porter intercepted the Colts quarterback, as they were marching to try and tie the game. Trailing by seven, with 3;12 remaining, Porter made his read correctly,and that was the final dagger as it turned out, even with the Colts getting one more drive, before time ran out on them. Brees operated with the accuracy of a plastic surgeon ( a very good plastic surgeon of course), and tied Tom Brady for the most completions in Super Bowl history, with 32 of 39 attempts, for 288 yards,and two touchdowns.
Peyton Manning was 31 of 45 in passing for 333 yards, with one touchdown, and one interception, which turned out to be Porter’s, going back for the touchdown. Both teams had 16 passing first downs, and the yards per pass, were almost identical, with Brees at 7.2, and Manning averaging 7.4. The total yards for the Colts was 432, and for the Saints, 332. In third down efficiency, the Colts were 6 of 13, while the Saints were 3 of 9. In rushing yards, the Saints totaled 51, while the Colts finished with 99. Manning is 1-1 in Super Bowls, and 9-9 overall in the postseason. He also became the third quarterback in postseason history to surpass 5,000 postseason passing yards.
Some of the other memorable aspects of this classic, were the dramatic contrasts, in the first quarter domination of the Colts, and the total domination in the second quarter by the Saints. In the second quarter, Indianapolis had the ball for six plays,for a time total of 2;34. Coach Sean Payton made a brilliant call by going with an onside kick to start the second half, and the gamble paid off, with New Orleans keeping possession of the ball, and scoring soon after. Greg Williams defense, while not shutting down Manning, did do a very good job of preventing any backbreaking plays to Reggie Wayne, or Pierre Garcon , after Garcon got an early touchdown pass. Having said that, Manning and the Colts still had a chance to tie the game with a touchdown, until Tracy Porter made the big interception return for New Orleans.
Brees will also be recalled for the all time great quarterbacks he defeated in this postseason, in terms of Kurt Warner, Brett Favre, and Peyton Manning. It will be fascinating to see if the Saints can be consistent in the coming seasons, now that they will have a target on their back, like all champions do. Based on their history, we know that the Colts will make off season adjustments, as Colts president Bill Polian always does. No doubt, they will likely be in strong contention for a postseason spot next year, as they seem to be almost every year, with their organizational excellence.
I mentioned in my Super Bowl preview,that Dwight Freeney’s ankle, would be one of those game changing factors, and it was in fact just that. He put on a heroic performance, trying to play with a torn ligament in his ankle, but after the first quarter, he couldn’t continue with the same effectiveness, and there wasn’t any pressure on Drew Brees. Freeney was trying to make his ankle work with taping and pain killers, and the look on his face on the sidelines in the second half,was one of agony. He deserves huge accolades for giving his all ,and playing with an injury that must take several weeks to heal. I also made mention in my preview of Jerraud Powers, who underwent surgery on his leg, after the Colts first playoff win. He was one of the best rookie cornerback this season. His replacement, Tim Jennings, was no match for Drew Brees and the Saints receivers. You can’t help but wonder what this game would have looked like, if Bob Sanders, Dwight Freeney,and Jerraud Powers were able to play. None of the television analysts, mentioned these important injury factors,other than Freeney’s, probably because they didn’t want to seem to be taking away from the celebration for the team, and the city of New Orleans It should have been mentioned, however, because it was a very important factor in this game, considering the superb talent of those individuals. When Troy Polamalu, for example is missing from the Steelers, his absence is frequently mentioned by game analysts.