While watching the game in the dorm, I had to endure the Colts and Bears faithful screaming up and down the halls at every big play. Part of me was jealous because I haven't been able to watch the Bengals in the Super Bowl since I was one year old. I wanted the opportunity to see my team in the biggest game on the biggest stage of all. Some Bengals fans will resent their neighbor to the west for winning the most coveted trophy in all of sports, but something good did come from the game last night for Cincinnati. It shed light on the path to the Super Bowl and how to do it.
Consider this: The Colts have an All-Pro Quarterback, two Pro-Bowl receivers, a solid running game, a veteran offensive line, and a defense that just two years ago was surrendering 370.6 yards per game. Sound familiar? It should, its the Bengals of 2006.
The Bengals have an All-Pro Quarterback, one Pro-Bowl receiver, one receiver that should be, a Pro-Bowl running back, a veteran offensive line, and a defense that allowed 355.1 yards per game this year.
What has made the Colts champions two years later? It has to come down to two things: the concept of team first and a defense that plays solid and won't lose the game for you.
Tony Dungy and Bill Polian, the Colts president, worked together to build a defense full of talented players with the intention of propelling them into the NFL title game along with the already established offense. Players like Bob Sanders, Dwight Freeney, and Robert Mathis were all on that defensive unit in 2004 that allowed 370.6 yards per game, but all of these players headline their defense that shut down Larry Johnson, Steve McNair, the New England running backs, and the entire Chicago offense. I guess this shows you what two years of playing with the same guys will do. The defense simply needed time to gel and learn each other's tendencies so they could compliment each other and the desire to perform up to their potential for their teammates.
Tony Dungy convinced his players to play as a team instead of individuals. This isn't just limited to the defense. Peyton Manning didn't need to have the ball in his hands on every play to prove himself. He gladly handed it off to Joseph Addai or Dominic Rhodes and watched them tear up the Bears for 190 yards on the ground. Both of his receivers don't complain for the ball because they understand that they can't have it all the time. To every member of the roster, the Super Bowl wasn't the Peyton Manning show or the Joseph Addai show, it was the Colts show.
The Bengals envy the Colts because they are where the Bengals want to be. They are what the Bengals want to become. Maybe it clicked for some of the Bengals as they were watching the game last night, realizing that is what it takes to hold up the Lombardi trophy. The Bengals are where the Colts were, now they have to take the next step and follow their lead. The Super Bowl is not that far off for Cincinnati, can you feel it yet?
Consider this: The Colts have an All-Pro Quarterback, two Pro-Bowl receivers, a solid running game, a veteran offensive line, and a defense that just two years ago was surrendering 370.6 yards per game. Sound familiar? It should, its the Bengals of 2006.
The Bengals have an All-Pro Quarterback, one Pro-Bowl receiver, one receiver that should be, a Pro-Bowl running back, a veteran offensive line, and a defense that allowed 355.1 yards per game this year.
What has made the Colts champions two years later? It has to come down to two things: the concept of team first and a defense that plays solid and won't lose the game for you.
Tony Dungy and Bill Polian, the Colts president, worked together to build a defense full of talented players with the intention of propelling them into the NFL title game along with the already established offense. Players like Bob Sanders, Dwight Freeney, and Robert Mathis were all on that defensive unit in 2004 that allowed 370.6 yards per game, but all of these players headline their defense that shut down Larry Johnson, Steve McNair, the New England running backs, and the entire Chicago offense. I guess this shows you what two years of playing with the same guys will do. The defense simply needed time to gel and learn each other's tendencies so they could compliment each other and the desire to perform up to their potential for their teammates.
Tony Dungy convinced his players to play as a team instead of individuals. This isn't just limited to the defense. Peyton Manning didn't need to have the ball in his hands on every play to prove himself. He gladly handed it off to Joseph Addai or Dominic Rhodes and watched them tear up the Bears for 190 yards on the ground. Both of his receivers don't complain for the ball because they understand that they can't have it all the time. To every member of the roster, the Super Bowl wasn't the Peyton Manning show or the Joseph Addai show, it was the Colts show.
The Bengals envy the Colts because they are where the Bengals want to be. They are what the Bengals want to become. Maybe it clicked for some of the Bengals as they were watching the game last night, realizing that is what it takes to hold up the Lombardi trophy. The Bengals are where the Colts were, now they have to take the next step and follow their lead. The Super Bowl is not that far off for Cincinnati, can you feel it yet?
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