It's not the same Patriots team of the old days and anyone who isn't a Patriot fan won't deny that. They have flaws on both sides of the ball and the Colts are just the team to exploit them. And if Harrison doesn't play, hahaha! Good luck stopping that receiving corp. If Dallas Clark has another gigantic game, then I expect the Colts to walk away with the victory. If the Ravens defense had trouble with him, there's no reason to believe the Pats linebackers will be able to handle him.
Bears don't have the offense to hang with the Saints, nor is their defense able to stop anyone running up the middle.
Very good points, this is what I would say to counter some of that (obviously there are strengths for the colts that can be applied the same way, this is just the perspective of a NE fan).
When the two met during the regular season the pats only lost by 7 while committing 5 turnovers. I was shocked at how many chances they gave the colts. The secondary was in worse shape then it is now, so I think the key for the pats is to use the weapons they have on the line ( Wilfork, Warren and Seymour) to get Manning out of the pocket and make him throw on the run. Brewski, Vrabel, Banta Kain and Colvin can reek havoc on the passing lanes if Manning is pressured. He has always trouble with this. If he has all day you are right tho, without Harrison and with the injury's back there the colts ob have an advantage. Harrison, Wayne and Clark are the best in the biz. Lets not forget about Asanti Samuel and the impact he can have in a game. Expect the pats to give Manning some throws anyway. The guy will get his yards. The pats d was second to the ravens in total points allowed a (12. 8 ravens - 14.8 pats) average. Statistically the pats D was very good all year. So, that is a strength for them. The colts have been great, but will they revert back to ther old ways if they have to stop not only the run, the pass also? Trent Green and Steve Mcnair are not Tom brady.
The colts have faced one dimensional teams up to this point imo. The colts defense has been playing freaking
awesome. I feel they have to come back down to earth at some point. The pats have far more offensive weapon then kc, or the ravens. Lets start with the 3 running backs. Three backs, three totally different looks. I am still waiting for Maroney to blow up like he was (before he got hurt), Faulk has been a monster and old Dillon can still rumble a bit. They have the other best QB in the league and the ability to spread it out. They can go long, they can stay short. During there season there was speculation the new receivers where not have there timing down until playoff time. With the late season emergence of Gafney and Caldwell this seems to hold true. Caldwell has better stats on the year then the man he replaced in Deion. Troy is troy, and you can always count on him. I wish jackson did not get hurt in the preseason. This rookie is 6'4 , and fast. I feel when he gets some actual expierence he will be a great weapon. No idea iof they plan to use him.
This will be close game imo ( close in the sense it will prob come down to a score or so). It will come down to who executes better. It will also depend on that Indy d. If they come out like they have in the last two games it is going to be a tough game. But, if they soften up due to the offensive capabilities the pats have in the air, and let that running game get going I think the game will be won by the patriots. Same goes for ne. Harrison's injury was said to take 3 - 4 weeks to heal. This is week 3, we shall see. They are playing Manning so if he plays well this is going to be a tough, tough battle. Forgot to mention the colts running game. The backs have been playing well, need to contain them.
