History Made

by Ian Tasso
Editorial. Photos by AP News

Before the Patriots clashed with the Colts on national television Sunday night, it was deemed to be the game of the year.

When all was said and done, it turned out to be exactly that.

But it was no surprise to anyone. Over the years, the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts have met many a time, each game more exciting and more dramatic then the previous. From an exchange of legends to countless playoff collisions, it seems as if the Pats and Colts are always making history as their rivalry continues to grow.

But how does last Sunday’s storybook game stack up against the plethora of memorable Pats-Colts match-ups? Let’s take a look back as we count down the top 10 Rivalry Moments of the Brady-Manning era:

10. November 4, 2007 - Clash of the Undefeateds

Patriots 24, Colts 20 -- In one of the most recent clashes between Brady’s Patriots and Manning’s Colts, both teams rolled into this week nine match up sitting undefeated; New England at 8-0, and Indy at 7-0. Indy jumped out in this one early, leading the Pats 13-3 at halftime. But the Patriots never flinched, as the Golden Boy led the Pats to two straight scoring drives in the fourth quarter, triumphing over the Colts 24-20. New England went on to win the remainder of their 2007 games, posting the first 16-0 regular season in NFL history.

9. November 5, 2006 - Golden Boy Rattled

Colts 27, Patriots 20 -- Up by a touchdown with just under two minutes remaining, Indy sent out famously clutch kicker and ex-Patriot Adam Vinatieri for a 46-yarder that would have iced the game – had he not missed it. Number four shanked the kick wide-right, putting the ball back in the hands of Mr. Comeback himself and giving the Patriots a chance to win the game. But after a 25-yard completion put New England on Indy’s 39, Brady was intercepted by linebacker Cato June after his pass to Kevin Faulk was tipped away, effectively ending the game. Manning and the Colts knelt the clock out on the ensuing drive. Troy Brown, who also played cornerback in this game, broke the Patriot record for receptions with his catch in the second quarter.

8. September 30, 2001 – Brady Makes his Debut

Patriots 44, Colts 13 -- Tom Brady had never before started in an NFL game. But after the injury to Drew Bledsoe the week before, number 12 suited up to take the field for the first time in his career, ironically against the Indianapolis Colts who were 2-0 at the time. The Patriots didn’t rely to heavily on Brady, but still were able to roll up 44 points on the Colts, thanks in part to Antowain Smith’s 94-yard, two touchdown day. Brady’s first step in the rivalry was a good one for New England, who went on to win their first Super Bowl in team history a few months later.

7. March 22, 2006 – Mr. Clutch to Colts

Vinatieri had quite the legacy with New England. But from the two kicks he had in the Snow Bowl all the way to the winner in Super Bowl XXXVI, New Englanders never thought he would add this chapter to his story.
On March 22, 2006, the Patriots-Colts rivalry got an injection to the arm as one the greatest clutch kicker in Patriot history changed franchises. In a Johnny Damon-esque move, Vinatieri shattered the hearts of Patriot faithful everywhere; signing a 5-year $12 million contract .In retrospect, it’s not as if Vinatieri has come back to haunt the Pats just yet, but seeing number 4 in blue and white is about as bad as it can get already.

6. January 16, 2005 – Dillon and Defense smash Colts in Snow

Patriots 20, Colts 3; AFC Divisional Round -- It was smash-mouth football at its finest. For the offense, Corey Dillon pounded the Colts for 144 yards, including a 27-yard scamper that capped off a 14 play/seven-and-a-half minute drive that started on the New England six and ended with a Tom Brady rushing TD. On the defensive side of the ball, Tedy Bruschi and co. forced two fumbles and knocked the Colts in the mouth nearly every chance they got, highlighted by an Asante Samuel hit on Brandon Stokley that sends shivers every time it’s replayed.
Meanwhile, the NFL’s MVP Peyton Manning, who rolled into the game with a record-setting 49 touchdowns at his back, failed to reach the end-zone once, and was picked off on the goal-line by Rodney Harrison to end the game. With the loss, the Colts were eliminated from the playoffs at the hands of the Patriots for the second year in a row, and Manning’s overall record at Foxboro stadium dropped to 0-7. New England went on to win their second Super Bowl in a row and third in four years.

5. September 3, 2004 – Patriot’s Season opens with a bang

Patriots 27, Colts 24 -- Brady once again led the Pats to victory in the 2004 opener, throwing for 335 yards and three touchdowns - but the biggest play of the day was made on defense. With New England up three and just over a minute left on the clock, the Colts had the ball on the Patriot’s 17 and were threatening to take the lead. But on a third and eight, Patriot linebacker Willie McGinest burst through the line and nailed Peyton Manning for a 12 yard loss, dropping the Colts towards the limit of their field goal range.

Mike Vanderjagt, who had made 42 consecutive field goals to this point, then strolled onto the field with a chance to tie things up. But Vanderjagt, who had been sliding his fingers together making the “money” symbol on the sidelines all throughout the final drive, taunting the New England defense, pushed his kick wide left and the Colts fell to the Pats in the final minute, 27-24. The two teams would meet later in the postseason, and New England would end up winning that game as well.

4. November 15, 2009 – Belichick’s Genius?

Colts 35, Patriots 34 – In a move that surprised and shocked most of the football world, Head Coach Bill Belichick elected to keep his offense on the field for a crucial 4th and two on their own 29 yard line. He risked it all, and in the end it cost him not only the game, but also what might have been a home playoff game.

In a game that was totally dominated by offense, including numerous big plays by Randy Moss, in the end it was Brady and co. that failed to get two yards when the team needed it the most. As a result, New England will most likely end up heading to Indianapolis again in the postseason, should they make it that far. But judging by the caliber of team they have, you can bet they will. Just another page turned in the storied rivalry…

3. January 21, 2007 – Patriots Blow Lead, Fall on Goal Line

Colts 38, Patriots 34; AFC Championship Round – The Patriots took a 21-6 lead into halftime, but it just wasn’t enough. Closing out the half on an Asante Samuel interception return for a touchdown, it seemed as if New England was destined yet again to wipe out the Colts in the postseason. But there’s a first time for everything.

Trailing by 18 at one point, Manning brought his Colts all the way back to a tie game, when Pats’ kicker Stephen Gostkowski nailed a 43-yard field goal to put New England back on top, 34-31. A three-and-out by the Colts immediately after gave the ball back to the Patriots, with a chance to close out the game. But an early false-start penalty cost New England, who was forced to punt the ball back to Indianapolis on a 4th and four with just over two minutes remaining.
That’s when Peyton took charge. Manning and the Colts drove all the way down the field, and punched the ball in on a 3-yard touchdown run from Joseph Addai, giving Indy a 38-34 lead with only a minute remaining on the clock. It wasn’t enough time for Brady and co. to amount any type of threat, as the Patriots fell for the first time to Manning and his Colts in the postseason, and Indianapolis went on to win their first Super Bowl in the Peyton Manning era.

2. January 18, 2004 – Law Picks Three

Patriots 24, Colts 14; AFC Championship Round – For what seemed like the 600th time this decade, Peyton Manning and the high flying Colt offense stormed into New England with Super Bowl aspirations.

But for what again seemed like the 600th time this decade, the Patriot defense turned them away with a tremendous effort. This time it was Ty Law who led the Patriot’s defense, intercepting Manning three times, meanwhile Antowain Smith and the New England offense continued to carve up the Indy defense as they seemingly always do in snowy conditions.
After the Patriot’s first drive resulted in a 7-yard touchdown pass to David Givens, Manning and the Colts looked to swiftly rebound. But New England safety Rodney Harrison intercepted Manning in the end-zone, one of four picks the co-MVP would throw on the day. Meanwhile, Jarvis Green supplied constant and heavy pressure on Manning, recording three sacks on the day.
After the Harrison interception, the Colts wouldn’t threaten again until midway through the third quarter and then again in the fourth – but by then it was much too little far too late, as Adam Vinatieri booted five field goals for the Patriots, who once again ruined Indianapolis’s playoff hopes. The Patriots meanwhile went on to win their second Super Bowl in three years. Thus began the Foxboro curse for Peyton Manning.

1. November 30, 2003 – The Goal Line Stand

Patriots 38, Colts 34 -- To this day it remains, and will most likely always stay, as the greatest Patriots/Colts game of all time. In a game that was dominated by the offense through and through, featuring 650 total yards of combined offense, it all came down to the defense.
Thanks to a Bethel Johnson 92-yard kickoff return for a touchdown with no time remaining in the first half, and then a 31-yard touchdown pass to Michael Cloud to open the third quarter, New England held a lofty 31-10 lead over the Colts in the RCA Dome. But as we learn time and time again from Manning and company, sometimes that just isn’t enough.
As he’s done in the past, Peyton furiously led the Colts all the way back, trimming that 21-point lead down to four with only three and a half minutes remaining.

An ensuing three-and-out by the Patriots put the ball immediately back in number 18’s hands with just over three minutes left in the game. Manning then drove the Colts the length of the field, and a seven yard rush by Edgerrin James planted the ball on the New England two-yard line with 30 seconds left on the clock and a fresh set of downs for the Colts.
So there it was. First and goal from the two, a half minute left on the clock, and one of the most prolific offenses in football only a couple yards away from completing a 21-point comeback. But not if Willie McGinest had anything to say about it.
After two straight rushes by James led to only one yard gained, Manning elected to go to the air on third and one. Unfortunately Tyrone Poole had Aaron Morehead covered like glue, and the pass fell incomplete.
Then on their fourth and final shot at the end-zone, the Colts elected to return to the ground game, but James was immediately wrapped up by a surging Willie McGinest, who broke through the line like a speeding train, halting ‘The Edge’ in his tracks.

Four straight plays. Only two yards needed. Only one earned. It was the moment the Patriots’ defense put their mark on the Indy/New England rivalry, and it will forever go down in history as the greatest game the two teams have ever played.

That is until the next time they meet, and history is made yet again.
Because any time Peyton Manning and Tom Brady collide on the gridiron, there’s always one guarantee – it’s going to be a very, very special night.

The most recent collision may have resulted in a devastating New England loss. But even so, I can’t wait for the next chapter.