Tuesday

Super Bowl Media Day fails to reveal status of Freeney

Strangely, Super Bowl Media Day stayed focused on the game. No psycho “reporters” propositioned Drew Brees, no Kim Kardashian lookalikes accosted Reggie Bush, no wannabe comedians got anywhere near Peyton Manning. The biggest clowns were, in fact, members of the NFL fraternity.

Chad Ochocinco continued to prove he cares much more about his persona than his performance by showing up with a mic and making a fool of himself. Deion Sanders did the same. Former Saints quarterback Bobby Hebert showed up in a dress, making good on his word to do so if New Orleans made it to the big game.

All were only mildly more welcome than the real journalists and in some cases, the serious reporters were shown great respect by the players. Sports Illustrated’s Don Banks sat next to the Dwight Freeney and listened to the Colts’ defensive end sound pessimistic about his chances of playing on Sunday with a torn ligament in his ankle.

The spectacle was forced inside because of the rain in Miami and that may have kept the hijinks at a minimum. Indoors, in tight space, a crazy can be spotted by a PR flack and diverted from his/her intended target a lot easier than in a big, open stadium.

Plus, the teams seem much better prepared for the nonsense. The Saints sent out the backups to arm wrestle and bench press those reporters who can’t resist throwing themselves into the story while the Colts followed Manning’s lead and said as little as they could.

In the end, after all the questions, the most important remained to be answered: Will Freeney play?

It’s a huge question, a potential game-changer. Without facing one of the game’s top pass rushers, the Saints can go with an empty backfield more often and run more screens with Pierre Thomas and Bush. If Freeney does play, the Saints will need to set up in conventional sets and possibly run the ball more than they’d like.

Right now, Freeney’s status hasn’t affected the point spread. The betting line continues to favor the Colts by 5.5 and the over/under remains 56. No matter, the Super Bowl odds for the Saints would increase dramatically if Freeney is indeed on the sidelines.

SUPER BOWL ODDS and GAME INFO

Date: Sunday, February 7, 6:30 p.m. ET; TV: CBS
Point spread: 5.5; over/under: 56
National anthem performer: Carrie Underwood
Halftime act: The Who
Location: Sun Life Stadium, Miami

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