Mannings Bowl as Colts defeat the Giants
The Indianapolis Colts against the New York Giants game is being dubbed the Mannings Bowl as Colts’ quarterback, Peyton Manning, went head-to-head with Giants’ quarterback, Eli Manning. The older brother came out on top and after the game gave Eli a pat
on the back. In contrast to the Manning brothers' off field courtesy, on the field the Colts defense was downright hostile.
It was as much a question of skill as it was of image. Though, the Giants had emphasized the importance of stopping the rushes but by kickoff their focus was purely on Peyton and trying to stop the pass. Something they still failed to do. Peyton completed
20 of 26 passes for 255 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Giants’ preoccupation with Peyton also opened up the running game for the Colts as they played most of the game with two safeties against Peyton’s deep passes.
In one drive early into the second quarter of the game, the Colts carried the ball from their 38 yard line to the Giants 20 yard line without a single pass from Peyton. Joseph Addai and Donald Brown kept piling up the yards without failing in every play
while the Giants defense looked on rather helplessly. That drive resulted in a field goal.
Giants Coach, Tom Coughlin, expressed his surprise at the consistency of the Colts’ run. “That allowed them to do pretty much what they wanted to,” and that’s exactly what they did. After being considerably tormented by Addai and Brown in the first quarter,
Peyton used the Giants desperation against them. He faked a rush to lure in Giants safety, Michael Johnson, towards the line of scrimmage leaving wide receiver, Dallas Clark, largely wide open for a 50 yard touchdown pass.
The Colts offense practically toyed with the Giants while their defense bullied them. The Giants went without points for the entire first quarter whereas the Colts amassed two touchdowns and a field goal. Although, Eli is a quality quarterback but he was
made to look mediocre against the Colts defense. He attempted 24 passes but could complete only 13 for 161 yards, almost a 100 yards short of Peyton’s 255 yards in just 2 fewer attempts. Eli was also intercepted once. Again Peyton’s presence had a role to
play in that. In the very next Giants’ play after Peyton’s 50 yard touchdown pass, Eli attempted his own, slightly misguided deep left pass at Steve Smith. Unlike his brother’s attempt, Eli’s intended receiver was being hounded by not one or two but 3 Colts.
Smith was surrounded by Safeties, Antoine Bethea, Melvin Bullit and cornerback Jerraud Powers. Bethea and Smith fought for the ball but neither could hold on to it. It eventually ended up with Powers while Bullit took down Smith. Penalties all around but
Eli lost the ball and possibly his composure after Peyton’s 50 yard touchdown pass. Eli’s attempts weren’t always in vain. The first touchdown pass that he threw came in the third quarter from the Giants 46 yard line. It was a neat and clean, deep left pass
to Manningham, who was being covered only by cornerback, Jacob Lacey. The Colts cornerback did get an arm on Manningham but it wasn’t enough to bring him down and he ran clear for touchdown. That was the first of only two times that the Giants would put scores
on the board.
Eli was sacked 4 times by the Colts defense, fumbling the ball 3 times and recovering it only once. Even as Eli threw that 54 yard touchdown pass, Colts defensive end, Dwight Freeney, had broken through the Giants’ offensive line and was within an inch of
taking down Eli when the quarterback released the ball. The pressure was on the Giants. “It's a team that we don't play all that often,” Eli explained. “You're not used to some of the things they do, and that speed, and that offense... We just didn't perform
well.” The scores by the end of the game concur. The Giants lost 14 against 38 to the Colts.
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