Forget the final score. Super Bowl XLI was over at about the same time Indianapolis took the lead.
It might have been the most one-sided Super Bowl that ever ended with a 12-point differential. If Devin Hester didn’t return the opening kickoff for a touchdown and Adam Vinateri hadn’t missed a chip-shot field goal in the second quarter, it could have ended up rivaling Super Bowl XXXV (Ravens 34, Giants 7) or XXXVII (Bucs 48, Raiders 21).
Seriously, how many fans really believed Rex Grossman was going to bring the Bears from behind? All you had to see was Lovie Smith’s conservative play-calling in the first half when Chicago was still in the game. Even in the final two minutes when the Bears needed two scores to pull off a miracle, Grossman was dumping short passes over the middle or handing off to Thomas Jones.
I mean, are there any hard-core Bears’ fans who didn’t cringe with the play-calling? If Smith didn’t have faith in Grossman, and it would be understandable if that was the case, then why didn’t he have Brian Griese ready?
Sure, you “dance with who brung you,” and Smith was Grossman’s No. 1 supporter throughout an uneven season for the QB. But there were so many times starting with the Monday Night game against the Cardinals in October that Smith had to consider yanking Grossman.
Yes, Smith is a decent human being and a good coach. It takes more than that to win a Super Bowl, especially with the focus so often on quarterbacks during the big game.
As far as the Colts, Bob Sanders was the unsung hero. Remember, here was a team whose run defense got torched regularly during the season until its 5-foot-8 defensive back returned. You could just see the defense playing with more confidence, from the playoff-opening wipeout of the Kansas City Chiefs to Super Bowl XLI.
Yes, Peyton Manning shook the mantra of never having won the big one. His Hall of Fame resume is complete and he still has good years ahead. But Manning was merely good during the playoffs and not great, notwithstanding the comeback against the Patriots.
Tony Dungy said it all during the postgame highlights when he mentioned this wasn’t Indy’s best team. The Colts were at their best when they had to be. And their Super Bowl win was aided by going against an offense that was far from great.
Credit Grossman for what he did against Seattle. Forget New Orleans because the Saints were like the proverbial deer-in-the-headlights during the NFC Championship Game and the Bears’ defense played the starring role.
As far as the game against the Colts, Grossman and the Bears were badly mismatched, regardless of the final score.
Credit the Colts’ offense with being better than the Bears’ defense. And yet, it’s time for Chicago to declare the quarterback position open. After all, loyalty doesn’t win games at a Super level.
