• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Super Bowl champ Colts open at home against Saints

Sep 7, 2007 - 10:56 AM New Orleans (10-6) at Indianapolis (12-4) Thursday 8:30 pm EDT

INDIANAPOLIS (Ticker) - For the first time in his illustrious career, Peyton Manning will enter a season as a Super Bowl champion.

Led by Manning and their explosive offense, the Indianapolis Colts begin defense of their Super Bowl title Thursday night when they host the New Orleans Saints in the opening game of the NFL season.

Arguably the NFL's best quarterback who traditionally came up short in the postseason, Manning silenced all his critics last season in leading the Colts to their first championship since the franchise relocated to Indianapolis prior to the 1984 season.

Manning capped his playoff run by being named the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XLI as the Colts posted a 29-17 victory over the Chicago Bears.

It also was another banner regular season for Manning, who led the league with 31 touchdown passes and was second with 4,397 yards through the air.

With Manning and Pro Bowl wide receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne leading the way, the Colts were third in the league in scoring last season, averaging 26.7 points.

There is one change for the Colts this season with Joseph Addai taking over as the featured back. As a rookie last season, Addai rushed for 1,081 yards and seven touchdowns while splitting time with Dominic Rhodes.

The Colts are accustomed to fast starts, going 14-2 in September over the last five seasons. They also are the only team to go 9-0 in back-to-back seasons.

Indianapolis has won seven of its last eight season openers.

While the Colts hoisted the Lombardi Trophy, the Saints were the NFL's feel-good story in 2006 after winning the NFC South and coming within a game of meeting the Colts in the Super Bowl.

The Saints' resurgence was led by NFL Coach of the Year Sean Payton and Pro Bowl quarterback Drew Brees.

An offensive mastermind, Payton put together an offense that was actually more explosive than the Colts. New Orleans led the league in total offense, averaging 391.5 yards while ranking fifth in scoring at 25.8 points.

After signing as a free agent, Brees enjoyed a monster first season in New Orleans. He led the league with 4,418 passing yards and was third with 26 scoring strikes.

Brees' favorite target was wide receiver Marques Colston, who had 70 receptions for 1,038 yards and eight touchdowns as a rookie.

Brees is looking forward to facing the Colts.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

The Saints also have two capable running backs in Deuce McAllister and Reggie Bush. McAllister rushed for 1,057 yards and 10 touchdowns last season while Bush gained 565 yards on the ground and caught 88 passes for 742 yards.

With both teams featuring explosive offenses, it figures to be a challenge for both squads defensively.

Indianapolis struggled for much of last season, ranking 23rd in scoring defense by allowing 22.5 points per game. New Orleans was slightly better, giving up 20.1 points per contest.

"This is like must-see TV," Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. "It's two exciting offenses with great players. You've got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn't miss a snap."

In the last meeting between the teams in September 2003, Manning threw for six touchdowns - all in the first three quarters - to lead the Colts to a 55-21 victory.