There were moments when last night’s Colts/Saints NFL season opener seemed vaguely reminiscent of a college homecoming game. The visitors waiting in the tunnel as the homecoming court is paraded onto the field, or in this case as a world championship banner is hoisted to the rafters of the RCA Dome. The Saints played the part of hapless visitors, brought to town to get beat up before a crowd of approving alumni or in this case rabid Colt fans that bleed blue and white. And at the end of the game, the Saints lost like they were supposed to and the Colts looked impressive like we all knew they would. What was billed as a match-up between two of the league’s best teams instead was an affirmation that the road to Glendale in the AFC doesn’t run through Foxboro after all. Make no mistake about it, this was the Colts homecoming and apparently New Orleans didn’t get the memo.

But it didn’t take long before the Saints knew why the Colts were considered the greatest offense of the last decade. One quick strike to Marvin Harrison, who has the uncanny ability to make the extraordinary look routine like no other receiver in the history of the NFL and the Saints new they were in for it. Reggie Wayne gave them hope by fumbling and giving former Colt Jason David the only thing he could be proud of at night’s end, a fumble recovery for a touchdown. For David, this would be the longest night of his professional life so Wayne’s temporary butter fingers that he capitalized on for a touchdown was his short respite from the relentless blitzkreig that was Thursday night for the Saints defense.

But what happened to the electric Saints offense last night? The same offense that was the league’s best a year ago came out and mustered just three points on offense. Yes, the Colts defense came out and played a game that none of us thought they were capable of. Yes, their young guys stepped up and made plays, the safeties were playing downhill and hitting people in the mouth. But where was the creativity? Sean Payton called the worst offensive game of his life Thursday night. Drew Brees’ longest completion of the night? Just 13 yards. It’s like like the Colts have two monsters lined up at corner, they have Kelvin Hayden and Marlin Jackson back there. Challenge them, go at ‘em, line up Reggie Bush in the slot and hope you get a linebacker on him. Whatever you do, don’t dip and dunk all-night. But that’s what they did. Payton only managed to get the balls in the hands of Deuce McAllister and Reggie Bush a measly 22 times combined against the previously-porous Colts run defense. If you’re going to win football games, you have to be committed to the run, not give up on it because it doesn’t do anything for you the first couple series. If you’re Marques Colston, last year’s real offensive rookie of the year, you have to wonder if Sean Payton is ever going to give you a chance to do your job? You have a pro bowl receiver, a pro bowl quarterback and one of the most explosive, if not overrated, players in the league, going against two corners starting for the first time and a linebacking corps who’s best player is the Stay-Puff Marshmellow man himself, Gary Brackett, for God’s sake, throw the football down the field.

The Colts are the best team since the 49ers of the last 80’s and early 90’s. Forget the Patriots, Forget the Cowboys. The Patriots are a ragtag assemblage of role players and one superstar. The Cowboys, a team of superstars with a few key role players that held everything together. And then there’s the Colts. You get the sense when you watch these guys play that you’re watching a group of guys who care about each other. When you see Dallas Clark and Marvin Harrison greet each other in the endzone, you get the sense that those are two guys who are happy for one another when they catch touchdown passes, not envious because the ball didn’t come their way. Colts management knows that they can take away Nick Harper or Mike Peterson or Corey Simon or Cato June or Mike Doss but you don’t mess with Peyton, Marvin, Reggie and Dallas. Oh and you certainly don’t mess with Bob Sanders, not for team chemistry reasons but because I remember hearing that guns don’t kill people, Bob Sanders kills people.

I wondered in my notes while watching last night’s game when the Colts offensive line was going to begin getting the credit for producing 1,000-yard rushers that the Broncos line currently gets. Look at the two now-departed backs who have ran behind the line: Edgerrin James and Dominic Rhodes. Rhodes is now suffering in Oakland and will likely split time with Lamar Jordan, after serving a four-game suspension for violating the league’s controlled substance policy and James is in Arizona and is wondering when he will get a line in front of him that can block half as well as the one he used to run behind. The line took a rookie, Joseph Addai, and turned him into one of the top running backs in the league. It’s time this unit got its due as one of football’s best.

What can you say about Peyton Manning? The guy is incredible and when it’s all said and done will be the best quarterback in the history of this game. If you look at the three touchdown passes Manning threw last night, not a single one of those throws was flawed in any way, shape or form. No one in the league has ever thrown a prettier ball than Peyton Manning. Yes, I have been critical of Manning in the past. Yes, I believe that sometimes he reverts to moping (though no one mopes better than little bro Eli) and petulant, Marino-like sniping at his teammates when things don’t go well. Yes, I think he has been prone to throw his teammates under the bus (the post-game interview after the loss to the Steelers in ‘05 comes to mind). But I think winning the Super Bowl last year may have bled him dry of those antics. He seems to have matured from that win and emerged a better quarterback, a better teammate and maybe a better person. I harbor no illusions though that a man of Manning’s drive is satisfied with just one Super Bowl. He wants to look like a gypsy at the end of his career with a ring on every finger.

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