This is an interesting question. The Colts have made an amazing transformation in their run defense. They had allowed 173.0 yards rushing per game and 5.3 yards per carry during the regular season which was the worst in the NFL. The Colts have turned into a dominant run defense in the playoffs as they’ve only allowed 63.5 yards rushing per game and 3.4 yards per carry which is amazing. The return of safety Bob Sanders and the insertion of Rob Morris back in the starting lineup have been the major reasons for this improvement. Bob Sanders has 13 tackles and an interception in the playoffs after playing only 4 games in the regular season and registering 27 tackles. With Sanders back, the Colts moved Marlin Jackson from safety to corner and he’s helped out on the run defense too with his aggressive run support. Rob Morris has 11 tackles in the post season after only getting 55 in the regular season. Dwight Freeney also has turned his game back up in the playoffs as he has two sacks after only getting 5.5 during the season. It was his first season in the NFL with less than 11 sacks. The Colts will need him to put pressure on Tom Brady, because if Brady can stand in the pocket the Colts could be in trouble. Robert Mathis will also have alot to say about that as he has 11 tackles and 1.5 sacks out of the opposite DE position. During the regular season, Mathis had 65 tackles, 9.5 sacks and 4 forced fumbles. Cato June has been the glue of the Colts defense all season as he led the team in tackles with 142 and he also intercepted three passes. He’s also leading the team in the post season with 15 tackles.Â

This should be an epic matchup to see who represents the AFC in the Super Bowl this season. The Colts get the game at home in the RCA Dome where they are 9-0 this season. But it won’t be that easy as the Patriots have been road warriors this season as they are an unbelievable 9-1 on the road!

Peyton Manning has not played well in the post season and he has never done well against the Patriots in the playoffs. But the Colts have actually been running the ball more than they’ve been throwing it in the playoffs. Joseph Addai & Dominic Rhodes have been sharing the carries and the Colts are averaging 144.0 yards rushing per game in the post season, so NT Vince Wilfork must demand a double team to keep Tedy Bruschi and Mike Vrabel to make plays against the Colts backs. The Colts are also relying much more on the short passing game in the playoffs, so Dallas Clark and Joseph Addai (21 catches, 192 yards between them) have actually caught more passes than Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison (combined 16 receptions for 180 yards). Look for the trend to continue as the Patriots have a pair of good cover corners in Asante Samuel and Ellis Hobbs.Â

The Patriots will look to attack the suddenly stout run defense of the Colts. The Colts allowed 173.0 yards rushing per game and 5.3 yards per carry in the regular season, but they are only allowing 63.5 yards per game and 3.4 yards per carry in the post season. Still, look for the Patriots to hand the ball off to Corey Dillon and Laurence Maroney alot in this football game. If the Patriots can run the football that will slow the Colts pass rush and give Tom Brady a chance to light them up. Tom Brady should have success throwing the football against the Colts as he’s be money in the post season in his career. The Patriots will likely spread the Colts defense out and attack the weak link which could be strong safety Antoine Bethea. With that in mind, it seems as if the Patriots will use their TEs alot in this game. Daniel Graham and Ben Watson have combined for 8 catches and 72 yards in the post season with a TD grab. Look for those two to produce similar numbers to that this weekend in Indy. Also, watch out for the two players Brady trusts the most on the offense…..Troy Brown and Kevin Faulk. Both of those guys made huge plays last weekend.Â

This could be a game where the kicking game comes into play. Adam Vinatieri would like nothing more than to stick it to the Patriots for letting him go. He’s 8 for 8 in the post-season and has never missed a FG in the RCA Dome. Rookie Stephen Gostkowski had a good rookie season and he’s hit all 6 of his of his FGs in the post season.

With this being such a big game you have to look at some of the matchups to determine a winner in this game. I would take Bill Belichick & Tom Brady any day over Peyton Manning & Tony Dungy and it doesn’t matter where they play the football game. The Chargers were 8-0 at home and the Patriots beat them. So with that, I’m picking the Patriots to beat the Colts again in the post season and advance to the Super Bowl.

Tight end Dallas Clark is finally healthy and he’s been Peyton Manning’s go-to man in the playoffs. He’s caught 11 passes for 144 yards in the two playoff games this season. Lucky for the Colts that Clark is making alot of big catches because Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne have kind of disappeared the last couple of weeks. The Colts really need Manning to step up his play as he has only thrown 1 TD pass and 5 interceptions in the post season. If he plays another game like this, the Colts will have no chance against the Patriots on Sunday.

This was a great defensive battle which is the type of game the Colts would have been thought to lose, but they proved everyone wrong. The defense is the reason the Colts won this football game, plain and simple. With the Colts leading the football game 6-3 and the Ravens driving, rookie safety Antoine Bethea intercepted a Steve McNair pass at the Colts 1 yard line. The offense then proceeded to drive to set up a 51-yard FG attempt by Adam Vinatieri. Vinatieri hit the ball well, and it hit the crossbar and bounced over it for a FG to make the score 9-3. Then in the 4th quarter, cornerback Nick Harper intercepted a McNair pass at the Colts 32-yard line that was intended for rookie WR Demetrius Williams with the Colts leading only 12-6!

Bob Sanders and Rob Morris led the way for the Colts defense with 10 tackles apiece. Now that those two key pieces are back in the starting line-up, the Colts defense is playing much better. The Colts held the Ravens to 83 yards rushing on 20 carries (4.2 ypc). The Ravens completed 18 of 29 passes for only 161 net yards passing.

Peyton Manning had a terrible game as he completed 15 of 30 passes (50%) for 170 yards and he threw 2 interceptions. Joseph Addai found the Ravens defense hard to run on as he carried the ball 18 times for 39 yards (2.2 ypc) and he caught 3 passes for 22 yards. Dominic Rhodes was the man in the second half as he carried the ball 14 times for 56 yards (4.0 ypc) when the game was on the line. Reggie Wayne (5 rec, 51 yards) and Marvin Harrison (4 rec, 45 yards) didn’t really make any big plays in this game.

Adam Vinatieri did a great job hitting all 5 FG attempts which is why the Colts brought him in from New England.

The Colts advance to the AFC Championship to play either the San Diego Chargers or the New England Patriots next week. http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270113033

The Colts beat up on the Chiefs last week but their real test comes this week as the Colts return to the city of Baltimore. The Colts have had huge problems in the second round of the playoffs since Tony Dungy started coaching in Indianapolis and this will be a stiff test for the Colts who haven’t played well on the road lately. Brian Billick has been a great playoff coach as he’s 5-2 in the post season.

The Colts would like to run the ball like they did last week as Joseph Addai rushed for over 100 yards and Dominic Rhodes also ran well but the Ravens have a great front 7 and have been forcasting pain for Joe Addai this week. The Ravens only allowed 75.9 yards rushing per game and ranked 2nd in the NFL at stopping the run. Ray Lewis and Bart Scott will probably be popping Addai all game long. The Colts offensive line has been good at pass blocking and they’ll have to keep up the good work to keep Adalius Thomas and Terrell Suggs away from Peyton Manning. Everyone knows that Manning doesn’t play as well when he’s getting hit and their is a distinct possibility of that happening on Saturday. Manning has been throwing to his TEs alot lately, but the Ravens safeties (Ed Reed, Dawan Landry) have been very good at stopping passes going over the middle of the field. Samari Rolle hasn’t played well at corner so look for Manning to throw his way often no matter which receiver (Reggie Wayne or Marvin Harrison) is lined up against him. Manning better be careful on the other side as Chris McAlister is one of the best corners in the NFL.

The Colts did a good job at home last week against Chiefs as they stuffed Larry Johnson, but the Ravens pose a new challenge to the Colts as they are a between the tackle power running football team. Jamal Lewis is a battle tested playoff performer so Gary Brackett, Rob Morris and Cato June will have their hands full on Saturday. The Colts corners are also average at best so McNair should be able to have success throwing the ball to Derrick Mason and Mark Clayton. The Ravens also like to throw to TE Todd Heap, but safeties Bob Sanders and Antoine Bethea have played pretty well lately. Of course, the Ravens offensive line will have to keep DEs Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney out of their backfield to give McNair time to throw the ball.

Both teams don’t get many big plays on kick returns, but they both have very solid kickers. Matt Stover is a good kicker, but he might not be able to hit the real long ones. The Colts signed Adam Vinatieri especially for games like this. If the game is on the line, Vinatieri never misses as he’s possibly the best clutch kicker of all time.

The Ravens have a huge advantage in coaching. Brian Billick has a Super Bowl ring and he’s got a career record of 5-2 in the post-season. Tony Dungy has been a poor post-season coach as his record is only 6-8 despite having better talent than alot of teams that beat him.

The Ravens will beat up the Colts physically and on the scoreboard as they will advance to the AFC Championship Game.