Week 12 Preview
Meet the Colts
Over the past two years, no
team has won more games than the Indianapolis Colts. Led by perennial pro-bowl
player Peyton Manning, this team consistently manages to put together an attack
of offense that often leaves teams scratching their heads. The Colts are
currently 9-1 so far in 2006, and coming off their first loss against the
Dallas Cowboys. Manning and the Colts did not have their A game as they
committed 4 turnovers in
The Colts are coached by Tony
Dungy. Dungy is highly regarded as one of the best coaches in the game, but has
drawn criticism for not being a great playoff coach. Despite making the
playoffs every year since 2002, the Colts have yet to make it to a Super Bowl
in this time span. Dungy drew the same criticisms about his coaching during his
tenure as head coach in
On offense is where the Colts
are their most effective. Despite his inability to scramble when under
pressure, Peyton Manning is considered to be the best pocket passer currently
playing in the NFL. Manning is best known for calling his own plays and
consistently calling audibles at the line of
scrimmage to keep the defenses off guard. This is a very effective strategy for
his team. The receivers for the Colts are also some of the best in the game,
even though they quite often ignored. Their 1-2 punch of Reggie Wayne and
Marvin Harrison is a force to be reckoned with. The combination of
Manning-Harrison is arguably one of the best in NFL history, as they have more TDs together than anyone else (passing Steve Young-Jerry
Rice last year). In addition to Harrison and Wayne, the Colts have other solid
receivers in Brandon Stokley and TE Dallas Clark. Two
guys who serve as secret weapons for Manning. The Colts also have a great 1-2
punch at RB with Dominic Rhodes and rookie Joseph Addai.
After the departure of Edgerin James to the Arizona
Cardinals, the Colts drafted the similar player in Addai
out of
An area where the Colts often
struggle is their defense. Eagles fans will not get to
see former first round pick Corey Simon as he has been deactivated the rest of
the year with an unknown illness issue. Along the line, they have some great
players such as DE Dwight Freeney and DLT Anthony
McFarland. The Colts defense as a whole has often been criticized for being
unable to stop the run and having an inconsistent secondary. This was
especially evident during last week’s game against
Besides the departure of
James, one of the biggest moves the Colts made in the off-season was at the
position of kicker. After missing what would have been a game tying field goal
in the divisional playoffs against the Pittsburgh Steelers last year while
feuding with Manning and management, the Colts released K Matt Vanderjagt (who signed with Dallas and missed 2 FGs last week) and replaced him with Mr. Dependable, Adam Vinatieri. Vinatieri has made a
name for himself while he was with the New England Patriots as a clutch kicker
when the game is on the line. And as far as James is concerned, “The Edge” has
struggled in his new home while Rhodes and Addai have
done a remarkable job filling the void and keeping the running game moving for
the Indianapolis Colts.
The Colts have quite a
lengthy injury report list but no one particularly noteworthy is listed.
What to watch for on Sunday
With QB Donovan McNabb out
for the year, Andy Reid announced that Jeff Garcia would be the starting QB in
Sunday’s game. Many have wondered about why he would go with Garcia over third
stringer AJ Feeley. It is a strange decision, but we think
it is the right decision. Many fans believe Garcia is washed up. This is an
important game for both the Eagles and Garcia. If Garcia does not play well, we
may be seeing AJ Feeley quite soon. Watch how Garcia
performs and acts with the starter out. So far, no one has given the Eagles any
chance at all to win this game, especially with Garcia as the starter and many
are predicting a blow-out. The Eagles will have to play a great game all around
and help Garcia out for them to make this close or even win it. Keep an eye out
for mistakes and how the team reacts to them.
When the Eagles have the ball
As is the case with a lot of
teams, a scrambling QB can be a defense’s worst nightmare. This is very true of
the Colts as Dallas QB Tony Romo proved in Week 11.
That said, a lot of pressure will be on Eagles QB Jeff
Garcia to make plays happen with his legs and his arm. The big thing for the
Eagles to focus on as they prepare is not to rely on the big play. All too
often this season, the Eagles have been 2-D in this regard, relying on big pass
plays to receivers to score points. Garcia does not have the arm power that
McNabb has so they will have to do a few things differently. The first point of
interest is they will have to run the clock more efficiently. This means they’ll
be running the ball more than usual and doing more screen passes and short
slants. Andy Reid’s clock management this year has been less than stellar
(okay, it has stunk) and quite often time management can win or lose your team
a game. The receivers also have to start making plays following the catch to
compensate for Garcia’s arm.
The second important thing for the Eagles’
offense is mistake-free football. The Eagles lead the league in dropped passes
and it is very hard to win games when your receivers can’t hold on to the ball.
The Colts are not a team that will give someone multiple chances. The Eagles
receivers need to catch the balls that are in their reach, avoid turnovers, and
play smart balanced football.
Lastly, the Eagles have to
establish the running game. The Colts’ defense isn’t spectacular, but they aren’t
horrible either. If the Eagles become stale like they did last week against
When the Colts have the ball
As mentioned previously, the
Colts have one of the most feared offenses in the game. Combine that with the
dreadful performance the Eagles defense had last week against the Tennessee
Titans and that could mean bad news. That said, the
Eagles defense has to play solid and simple football. It seems that the Eagles
often times try to get too fancy or try too hard to get the big hit. When they
do that, the results are not too surprising. Personal foul penalties and missed
tackles have been all too common. The Eagles defense was all around embarrassed
last week and will be looking to make a statement. If they are to do that,
making a statement against Manning and Colts would be a great way to do so.
The prime matchups
of this game occur when the Colts have the ball. The Eagles linebackers should
be able to stop Addai and Rhodes, but the cornerbacks
will have their hands full with Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison. Both Sheldon
Brown and Lito Sheppard will have to play smart and
quick football if they are to decrease the big play potential these guys have.
Lastly, Peyton Manning is the
kind of QB the Eagles’ defensive line loves. Manning is a very tall, but very
slow QB much like Drew Bledsoe of the Dallas Cowboys. The Eagles still have a
great defensive line and being able to get pressure on Manning to force him to
get rid of the ball and turn it over could help the Eagles chances of winning
this game tremendously.
Special Teams
Returning kicks for the Colts
is Terrance Wilkins who has not blown anyone away with his abilities or
statistics this year. Doing the kicking for the Colts is Adam Vinatieri, who was mentioned above. For the Eagles, Reno Mahe did a great job returning kicks last week and will be
trying to do the same thing for the Eagles this week. Also, David Akers was 2/2
last week on FG attempts for the Eagles.
Prediction: Colts 35 Eagles 17