Friday

Manning, Colts beat Saints to win Super Bowl XLIV

[At NFLPosts.com, we like to do things early. So here’s our post-game report from Super Bowl XLIV – 48 hours before it kicks off.]

When Peyton Manning hoisted the Vince Lombardi Trophy on Super Bowl Sunday, you figured he was going to throw it to Reggie Wayne. Instead, one New Orleans boy handed it off to another, marking the shortest but most poignant completion between Manning and Wayne all night.

The Indianapolis Colts throttled the New Orleans Saints 41-24 in Super Bowl XLIV, winning their second Super Bowl in four years as Manning threw for 400 yards and five touchdowns, including two to Wayne. Manning finished 25-for-30 passing and Wayne had 110 receiving yards as the two natives of the Crescent City sent their hometown team back to the French Quarter empty-handed.

“I’m not going to Disney World,” Manning said after the game, shaking his head and the stupidity of the suggestion. “I’m going home to study film in my basement. I missed five passes today. I have to find out what went wrong before mini-camp starts in less than four months.”

Indy exploded for a 21-point second quarter and took a 24-7 lead into halftime. Manning, the game’s MVP, hit Wayne with TD throws on back-to-back possessions then Joseph Addai scored on a 12-yard screen pass with less than a minute to play.

After The Who belted out a three-song set highlighted by a raucous rendition of Baba O’Riley, Drew Brees briefly gave Who Dat Nation some hope when he found Marques Colston behind the Saints’ defense for a 42-yard touchdown.

But Manning killed any notions of a comeback in a hurry as he methodically led the Colts on a 10-play, 71-yard drive that finished with a TD pass to Dallas Clark, giving Indy a 31-14 lead late in the third quarter. Indy went up 38-17 when Manning connected with Austin Collie for a fourth-quarter TD.

Reggie Bush returned a punt for a touchdown with eight minutes to play, giving the Saints their final touchdown. After the score, Bush pointed to girlfriend Kim Kardashian in a luxury box at Sun Life Stadium. No one could tell if she pointed back. TMZ reports that she was checking her email to see what Alex Rodriguez was doing before spring training remain unconfirmed.

The game opened with the teams exchanging scores as Manning drove the Colts inside the Saints’ 25-yard line before settling for the first of Matt Stover’s two field goals in the game. Brees responded quickly, leading the Saints on a 80-yard drive capped by a 3-yard Pierre Thomas touchdown run.

The Saints’ defense forced the Colts to punt on their next two first-quarter possessions and New Orleans led 7-3 after the first 15 minutes. But by then Manning had figured out defensive coordinator Gregg Williams’ scheme and ripped apart New Orleans in the second quarter.

On the way, the Colts made their NFL bettors happy by covering the 5.5-point spread with ease. The two teams also combined to send the game over the betting total of 56 points. The 65 total points were 10 off the record set in Super Bowl XXIX when the 49ers beat the Chargers 49-26.

The win gives the Colts’ their third championship (they won one in Baltimore) and cements Manning’s legacy as the greatest quarterback of the current era and probably of all-time.

For the Saints, the loss ended a glorious season that marked the franchise’s first Super Bowl appearance and helped the team lift the spirits of a city still struggling to overcome the damage wrought by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

[What do you think? Are we close? Read our real post-game report immediately after the big game on Sunday night.]

SUPER BOWL ODDS and GAME INFO

Who: New Orleans Saints vs. Indianapolis Colts
Date: Sunday, February 7, 6:30 p.m. ET; TV: CBS
Point spread: 5; over/under: 56
National anthem performer: Carrie Underwood
Halftime act: The Who
Location: Sun Life Stadium, Miami

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