In a much-hyped battle between the offensive firepower of the Indianapolis Colts, and the tenacious defense of the New England Patriots, the old adage of “defense wins championships” held true.
Additionally, the idea that dome teams (like Indianapolis) perform poorly in less-than-ideal conditions also held true, as the snow fell, and so did the Colts offense.
After lighting up Denver and Kansas City for eight touchdown passes and a perfect 158.3 passer rating in the two previous games, NFL co-MVP Peyton Manning looked ordinary against Bill Belichick’s defense, completing less than 50 percent of his passes and throwing four interceptions, three of which went to cornerback Ty Law.
New England’s defense also held Indianapolis on just three downs forcing the Colts to punt, something the Colts had not done in either of its two previous playoff games.
Manning struggled against mixed blitz packages and constantly changing defensive formations, whereas New England quarterback Tom Brady made it look easy against the Colts’ defense.
Brady, who is 5-0 in playoff games in his career, went 22-for-37 for 237 yards with a touchdown, and one interception. Brady hooked up in the end zone with receiver David Givens in the first quarter, which would be New England’s only touchdown of the game.
Adam Vinatieri added five field goals for New England, which also got a safety when Indianapolis punter Hunter Smith had to boot a bad snap out the back of the end zone.
