The Colts will be without starting DE Dwight Freeney for the next 2-3 weeks with a right quadriceps injury.  He has played in all three games for the Colts this season and he has 10 tackles, 4 sacks, he has forced 1 fumble and he has defensed 1 pass.  The Colts’ defense will definately suffer without Freeney as he is the best player on that side of the ball for the Colts. 

The Indianapolis Colts (3-0) took down the defending NFC champion Arizona Cardinals (1-2) Sunday at Arizona.  After going scoreless in the first quarter and down 3-0, Peyton Manning and the Colts rallied off 21 straight points in the second quarter to put the Colts up 21-3 at halftime.  Manning had an excellent game as went for 379 yards and had four touchdowns with one interception on 24/35 passes (69%).  The Colts running game was also pretty solid, as Joseph Addai and Donald Brown combined for 103 yards.

The Colts defense, particularly their guys up front, had a great game.  Kurt Warner was pressured all game and never was able to get much going for the dangerous Cardinals’ offense.  While Manning had great protection, Warner was rushed and forced out of the pocket countless times and threw two interceptions.  Warner didn’t even finish the game, as he was too banged up to finish it out and Matt Leinert came in for the battered 38-year-old.

The Cardinals looked pretty good early, as they went up 3-0 and looked to make it 10-0 before Tim Hightower fumbled at the 5-yard line.  The Colts then drove 95-yards for a touchdown and never looked back.  The Colts had a dominant performance tonight and look like Super Bowl contenders this year.

The Indianapolis Colts (2-0) are in Phoenix this weekend taking on the defending NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals (1-1).  Although the Colts are unbeaten so far, they have had some close games against sub-par competition.  The Colts have Peyton Manning though, and he is one of the best at bringing his team to comeback victories.  He now has 37 comeback victories in his career which only trails the much older Brett Favre in comeback wins for active quarterbacks.

The Cardinals are coming off a big win last weekend, as they looked like the team that went to the Super Bowl last year.  Kurt Warner broke the NFL’s single game completion percentage record, as he went 24-26.  The Colts need to get pressure on the old quarterback, as he is not the best at moving out of the pocket and making plays off balance.

Peyton Manning needs to have a typical Peyton Manning game to win this one, as it will be a high scoring game.  Reggie Wayne will be getting a lot of attention from the Cardinals defense so look for TE Dallas Clark to get the ball the most.  Pierre Garcon had a huge 48-yard touchdown catch last week ended up being the game winner for the Colts, so look for Manning to go to Garcon as well.

This game will be en exciting one to watch, as both offenses have some of the best quarterbacks in the game.  It will be high scoring and back forth.  I think the Colts are going to be able to come out with the victory, getting a late field goal to win it.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION:  Cardinals 34, Colts 37

The Colts needed someone to step up with WR Anthony Gonzalez going down to injury.  TE Dallas Clark has responded to the challenge as he has already caught 11 passes for 222 yards (20.1 avg) with a long TD on the opening play of Monday Night football against the Dolphins.  This is the season that Clark will prove that he is one of the best TEs in the NFL and I wouldn’t be surprised if he made it to the Pro Bowl.

Rookie RB Donald Brown is pushing Joseph Addai for his starting job.  He has carried the ball 15 times for 59 yards (3.9 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He has also caught 3 passes for 40 yards (13.3 avg) so far this year.  Brown’s TD run against the Dolphins was amazing as he refused to go down until he was in the end zone.  Addai better pick his game up or he will be watching Brown run from the sidelines.