I mentioned this on my radio show Sunday, on 700 WLW: the Saints didn't have to be the better team Sunday to win the Super Bowl. They just had to be the better team for three hours, beginning at 6:25p EST. And, they were.

But it's still my contention that for the 2009 season, the best team in the NFL was the Indianpolis Colts. They were beaten by the better team Sunday night.

And I’ve been thinking about this all week. Why is Indianapolis so good? What makes that team the bell cow for every other team in the NFL, including the Bengals? And why do the Colts have a team that’s good enough to play in this game today and the Bengals don’t?

The easy answer is that the Colts have the best player in the game, Peyton Manning. But that also dismisses the other 30 teams in the league. So it’s deeper than that.

The better answer is drafting and assessing talent. If you’ve listened to this show for a moment, you know that I’ve consistently said the biggest problem the Bengals have, the one thing that has held this franchise back from contending is it’s process of player procurement. The Bengals struggle with it. The Colts excel at it.

In 1997, Indianapolis finished 3-13. They had the number one pick in the ’98 draft. They chose Manning. Could’ve taken Ryan Leaf. They Colts took Peyton Manning. In 1999, they finished 13-3 and won the AFC East.

But look at the other moves that came after that.

Also in ’99, they got Manning’s center, Jeff Saturday, off the unemployment line. Baltimore had cut him. He’s been the anchor of the Colts line ever since.

At right guard is Kyle DeVan, free agent pick up this past off season. Undrafted free agent. He was playing in the Arena2 league. He’ll start today in the Super Bowl.

Left guard, Ryan Lilja. Like DeVan, an undrafted free agent. He starts today. The Colts found him when the Chiefs let him go in 2004. That year, the Bengals were busy signing players like Kurt Kittner and Allen Augustin, names forgotten three minutes after they were signed.

The guy protecting Manning’s back side, left tackle Charlie Johnson, was a sixth round pick in 2006. The Bengals passed on him and took wide receiver Reggie McNeal. Johnson starts today. McNeal wound up posing for mug shots. Oh, in that same round in 2006, after the Bengals passed on Johnson and took McNeal, the Colts found the guys who’ll start at free safety today, Antoine Bethea. Correct me if I’m wrong haven’t the Bengals spent a lot of money and time trying to find safeties lately?

You get where this is going? The Bengals could have picked wide receiver Pierre Garcon in 2008. Instead, they passed on him twice in the 6th round of that draft. They took Corey Lynch and Chris Harrington. And don’t get me started on Jerome Simpson from that draft.

One of the best wide receivers in football was a first round pick in 2001. So was Justin Smith. The Colts took Reggie Wayne number 30 overall. Smith came here fourth overall.

And it’s not just offense. Don’t you think the Bengals would have saved a lot of free agent money, if they’d drafted defensive end Robert Mathis in 2003, instead of taking Kahlid Abdullah? Mathis had nine and a half sacks and five forced fumbles this season. Abdullah played two years here and had ten tackles total in his entire career. The Bengals took Abdullah two picks before Mathis.

And it’s knowing where the players fall through the cracks land, and how they’d fit into your system. Defensive tackle Daniel Muir for example. The Packers let him go in 2008. The Bengals could’ve claimed him. He’ll start for the Colts today. He was an undrafted free agent out of Kent State.

The Colts started undrafted free agents at safety, cornerback,and middle linebacker. Gary Brackett is the middle linebacker. Great story. He walked on at Rutgers, defensive captain by his senior season, undrafted free agent, starting in the Super Bowl today.

Why, in 2005 when they were desperate for cornerbacks, did the Bengals pass on Kelvin Hayden in round two and take Odell Thurman? Why did Hayden start in the Super Bowl and Thurman is in the UFL?

You like Dwight Freeney? Me too. Could have had him in 2002. He went one pick AFTER the Bengals took Levi Jones. What did Freeney have this season, 13 and a half sacks? And Jones is where right now? The Bengals also passed on Jeremy Shockey, Albert Haynesworth and Ed Reed in the first round of that draft. How’d that happen?

The answer to all of these questions is two words: Bill Polian. Actually, it’s four words: team President, Bill Polian. In ’97, he was fired by the Bills. The Colts didn’t waste a moment signing him. Why not? He got the Bills to four Super Bowls and the Colts, at least in their Indianapolis days, never had a whiff of one.

Polian had a vision, and more important, had a plan. He knew what kind of players he needed in his system to win. That’s why in the ’99 draft, he took Edgerrin James and passed on Ricky Williams. The Saints traded their entire lot of draft picks to get Williams AFTER Polian took James. Polian spent just one pick. The Saints spent six picks to get Williams.

There was the Corey Simon fiasco a few years back. But under Bill Polian, the Colts haven’t been big free agent spenders. It’s all about drafting, finding the players that should’ve been drafting and coaching.

For eleven seasons, the Colts have had a plan. Where have the Bengals been the last eleven seasons, or for most of the eleven before that.

Under Polian, the Colts have had their whiffs. But not many. The Bengals have faired better with some selections than Indianapolis. Rudi Johnson in round 4 instead of the Colts starting guard, Ryan Diem. Maybe a wash.

Look, I don’t know Bill Polian from the next guy. To be completely honest, in my first go round at channel 5 years ago, Polian was in Buffalo and was a jerk to deal with. I don’t sense anything warm and fuzzy about the guy. But he knows talent. And that’s why you should know this:

When you watched the Super Bowl, you saw a lot of guys playing for the Colts who easily could have been Cincinnati Bengals. And had they come here, instead of there, it might just as easily have been the Bengals in who played in Super Bowl XLIV.

Just another Manic Monday....

BTW, whatever happened to Suzanna Hoffs and the Bangles?

Whoa...didn't see this one coming, Saints win the Super Bowl! You can think the genius coaching of the Saints' Sean Payton. 4th and 1 from the Colts one, right before halftime, Payton elects to 'go for it'. The Saints didn't get into the end zone. But it left Peyton Manning and the Colts backed up. Payton had all of his time outs left. He knew if he held the Colts to 'three and out', he'd get the ball back in decent field position. It happened exactly that way and the Saints wound up with the three points they left on the field just moments before.

The on-sides kick to start the second half was pure genius, and headsy. And challenging the two point conversion try that the Saints didn't get on the field, but was reversed on replay, was another indication that Payton had his 'A' game going and Jim Caldwell, the Indianapolis coach, did not. By the way, there is NO way that two point conversion should have been overturned on replay. Despite what the NFL chief of officials says, it was not a successful conversion by strict interpretation of the NFL rule book.

I'm particularly happy today for the Cincinnati connection on that Saints squad. Former Lakota High and UC star, Troy Evans was a big contributer on special teams. And did you see him out there for the pre game coin flip? Zach Strief, the Milford High standout by way of Northwestern, will be wearing a Super Bowl champion's ring. And the linebackers coach for the Saints happens to be the son of Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer. When you factor in the time Sean Payton spent on the late Randy Walker's coaching staff at Miami University, Southwest Ohio didn't do all that badly on Sunday night.

Tuesday rumblings and ramblings...

If Colts DE Dwight Freeney can't play (torn ligament in his ankle) I think it greatly cuts down on what the Colts want to do defensively. Freeney downplayed the significance of his absence, should it occur. His contention is that the Colts are better in their secondary and at linebacker than they were even two years ago, and less reliant on their front four. But you tell me how a team isn't affected when their best defensive player is out, or not near 100%? If this game developes into a track meet, like it could given both offenses, not having Freeney will greatly hurt the Colts, IMHO.

Big day for high school football players is coming up tomorrow. And it's a big day for college football coaches. It's National Signing Day, where scholarships are handed out and players will make or break college coaches.

Check out my latest Broo View Podcast. It's on my web site www.kenbroo.com. My gues this week is Brian McLaughlin, the recruting writer for The Sporting News. Our conversation is how the NCAA needs to bring some sanity to the process of recruting players, and how it might be a good idea to have an early signing period, much like college basketball. If you're on the fly, here's a quick link.

Good Monday Morning!

This is what I'm thinking about today: what do the Jets, Colts, Vikings and Saints have that the Bengals don’t? Why were those teams still playing Sunday, and your Cincinnati Bengals have scattered for the winter? The easy answer is this: they all play great defense, they all have impact players on both sides of the football and they all can throw the ball, even the Jets.

The tougher question is why. Why can the Jets do all of that and the Bengals can’t? A lot of it is talent. A lot of it is scheme. A lot of it is simply putting dollars into personnel that will have impact in the areas of the game that are now the most important.

There was a time when you could win in the NFL simply by running the ball, controlling the clock and then playing solid defense. It was a blue print to getting deep into the playoffs. The New York Giants did it under Bill Parcells. They did a few years ago under Tom Coughlin. And we know all about what the Steelers have done. But the game has changed.

This is what Bill Cowher said on the CBS NFL pre-game show back in October. And this is a direct quote:

‘The game has changed, the rules have changed," he said. "I think right now, I hate to say this, but the running game is a complement. It's not the foundation that it once was. “ Cowher went onto say, “You look at the last three AFC teams that were in the Super Bowl, that's Pittsburgh, New England and Indianapolis. They're all passing teams. The running game is a complement.”

Think about how many times you’ve seen a team get into the red zone simply because it throws the ball downfield. Sometimes, the receiver makes a spectacular catch. Sometimes, he turns that into a touchdown. But more often than not, the receiver doesn’t have to do anything.

In the NFL, pass interference is a spot foul. It’s not college, where the distance of the call is just 15 yards. If an NFL defensive back is called for pass interference on his own five yard line, that’s where the offense gets the ball. In college, 15 yards from the line of scrimmage, max.

Now think about the number of times the Bengals threw deep this season. In a lot of ways, what was wrong with their offense, could have been fixed, or hidden, by simply throwing deep. The difference between these four teams left standing and the Bengals? It was the Bengals inability to throw the ball with any consistency. But why?

I did a little digging, a little research. Three of the four teams left in the Super Bowl chase were in the top eight in passing offense: Indianapolis ranked second, New Orleans fourth, Minnesota eighth. The Jets were 31st, second to last.

Throwing deep, testing the secondary, keeping the safeties from cheating up into run support is something else the Final 4 NFL teams can do well, and the Bengals didn’t’.

Here’s the stat: plays of 20-or more yards this season, passing plays. The Colts had 62 of those. The Saints had 58, the Vikings 55. The Jets had 37 plays of 20-yards of more. Your Cincinnati Bengals, only 36. 36 pass plays of 20-or more yards in 477-passing attempts.

Passing leads to points. I’ve said this since October, the Bengals offense could not score enough points this season to make any reasonable thinking fan believe they could play with the big boys come playoff time. Eleven of the 12 playoff teams ranked in the top 17 for points scored this season. When you extract defense and special teams scoring, the Bengals total of 281 offensive points in 2009, left them at 22nd in the entire league. That comes out to 17 and a half points from the offense per game.

New Orleans and Minnesota, incidentally were one-two.. The Saints offense averaged better than 28 and a half points per game.

But why?

Of the 10-playoff quarterbacks, nine had better passing stats than Carson Palmer. Only the Jets Mark Sanchez was worse. Does this mean that Palmer isn’t the quarterback a lot of us think he is? Or did these teams have better talent around their quarterbacks?

Let’s start with the offense line. The Bengals line allowed 56-hits on Palmer and 29-sacks for a quarterback misery total of 85. The Colts allowed just 13-sacks, 44-hits for a misery total of 57. The Saints allowed just 20 sacks, misery total of 72. The Jets line, considered the best in the business, allowed 30-sacks and 53-hits on Sanchez. The Vikings total was a whopping 117. Favre was sacked 34 times.

But the Colts threw the ball over a hundred times more than the Bengals did this season. Manning, Favre and Brees were all top ten in attempts. Palmer was 19th, making the sacks and hits on him more glaring.

You know what the four teams left standing have that the Bengals don’t? A legitimate tight end. The Vikings Visante Sciancoe had twice as many catches as JP Foschi did this season. The Colts Dallas Clark caught 100-passes. Foschi caught 27. Sciancoe had eleven touhdown catches. The Bengals receiving corp, tight ends and wide receivers and running backs, together caught just 21.

Cowher is right. This is a passing league where you must score points to win. It was great watching Cedric Benson run all over the field this season. It was terrific to see the Bengals defense shutdown some big time play makers. But the name of the game now is throwing the ball and scoring points. And unless the Bengals figure that out between now and next season, my guess is we’ll get to this final four weekend without them…again.

Another huge weekend of football is upon us. Big regular season finales in high school football in the greater Cincinnati area, including Ryle at Boone County where tonight, we make our latest stop with the now, seemingly mythical High School Playbook Tailgate Party.

Saturday, I think UC wins on the road at Connecticut and Ohio State beats Penn State in Columbus. And Sunday? Well check out my latest Broo View Video Podcast below!

What we saw in the last 36 hours in Pittsburgh and Indianapolis is the kind of football we deserve in Cincinnati.

Sunday, we saw two teams, each capable of winning a Super Bowl, performing at the highest level possible in the NFL. Indianapolis and New England played terrific defense and fundamentally solid offense in a game that was in contention until the final couple of minutes. There was no showboating, no grousing among team mates on the sideline and there were no massive breakdowns in execution (in other words, you didn't see three separate penalties called on the same team on the same play).

Monday night in Pittsburgh, a team just slightly below the Colts and Patriots on the NFL food chain put on a show. The Steelers may not have the firepower to stay with either of the NFL's two marquee teams. But this is another team fully capable of winning the Super Bowl this season, if things break the right way for them. Ben Roethlisberger, everything Carson Palmer wants to be, found open receivers, threaded the ball to receivers who weren't completely open and ran an offense that drilled a proud Baltimore defense.

Ray Lewis was interviewed on ESPN at the conclusion of the game. In addition to throwing his offense 'under the bus' by pointing out several times that 'you can't turn the ball over four times and expect to win' and 'I don't play offense...', Lewis also said that half the season is done and they've played all three AFC North division opponents on the road. Now, those teams have to go to Baltimore. One of those teams, of course, would be our Bengals, who beat the Ravens on opening night for one of their two wins. Do you think the Bengals were watching last night and saw what the Steelers did to the Ravens? Do you think the Bengals heard what Lewis had to say? Or do you think our Bengals have packed it in, now 2-6 and going nowhere this year?

I'm hoping the answers to those questions are yes, yes and no. What do you think?

Random thoughts from a random guy on a ramdom Friday in the Queen City. I going with the Colts at home Sunday against the Patriots. It's inside, Tony Dungy won't let it get to a shootout and will limit the Patriots' possessions. That may hurt his offense some. But it will benefit his defense, which frankly is just a tad behind the New England 'D'.....Never has the NFL had a game this early in a season that has captivated the country like this one. It's for home field in the AFC playoffs. Put the Colts outside in January and you might as well give the title to the Patriots....Here's a question for the NFL: why is there any other game scheduled against this one? I'm convinced fans in Oakland, Houston, Cleveland and Seattle would rather watch the Patriots play the Colts than have to watch their teams....well, maybe not convinced but I have a strong suspicion....it must have something to do with 'JIC'...that'd be just in case Indianspolis is hit with a massive power failure along about 4pm Sunday.....

This is a sad story. I had one of our loyal viewers email me this article about the Bengals former first round draft pick, Peter Warrick:

----------------------------
HOUSTON (AP) -- The multicarat diamond studs adorning Peter Warrick's ears are
a reminder of the life he once led.

Two seasons removed from his last NFL game, the fourth pick in the 2000 draft
is far from fame and riches. Now he's at a place he never thought he'd be: trying
out for the fledgling All American Football League.

The two-time All-America selection at Florida State is 30 years old and still
looking for a path back to the NFL. Released after five lackluster seasons in
Cincinnati, he was cut last season by the Seahawks after one year there.
"I was in Atlanta working out and waiting on the NFL call," he said before his
workout. "I'm tired of sitting at home. I just got an opportunity and I'm trying
to make the best of it right now."

The receiver and returner was the most recognizable name among hundreds this
week at Rice Stadium for invitation-only evaluation sessions to find players
for the six-team league that plans to start its 10-week season in April.

Warrick seems to be a perfect fit for this league that hopes to build its fan
base by stocking teams with star college players who either didn't make it in
the NFL or whose careers there were cut short.

"A lot of players that were stars in college still have a lot of name recognition,"
said 1972 Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Rodgers, who is helping promote the league.
"This league will give people who are still hungry for football between April
and July a chance to go out and see some of the names that they're familiar with."

Warrick was upbeat and reflective in a candid interview discussing what went
wrong in his NFL career and how difficult it has been to be away from the game
he loves for so long.

The man who was such a dynamic player at Florida State he was nicknamed "The
Great One" was back on a college field again this week simply hoping to make
an impression. AAFL officials said the top players from these sessions would
be invited back for further evaluation.

"It's kind of hard because all my life I'd been at the top," he said. "Now I'm
not playing football but I'm not at the bottom because I had good times and now
is one of those times to get back up."

Warrick was solid in his first four seasons in Cincinnati, but never quite lived
up to expectations for a top-five pick. His best season came in 2003 when he
had 79 catches for 819 yards and seven touchdowns.
He troubles in Cincinnati, he said stemmed from playing for a bad team without
veteran leadership.

"I never really had a mentor," he said. "Reggie Wayne had Marvin Harrison, Randy
Moss had Cris Carter, Torry Holt had Isaac Bruce. Those guys had people to look
up to. When I got to Cincinnati, it was just me. I had Darnay Scott, but first
year he got hurt so now I'm just going out there playing off athletic ability.
I'm not making any excuses because I know I had to learn, but it was hard."
Arthroscopic knee surgery, followed by a cracked shin bone and an infection kept
him out of all but four games in 2004. Cincinnati released him in the 2005 preseason
and he ended up in Seattle where he remained hobbled with injuries.
His only notable contribution with the Seahawks was returning punts in their
Super Bowl loss to the Steelers and they cut ties with him before the 2006 regular
season began.

Warrick said the injuries are behind him now, but that NFL teams don't want to
"take a chance on him" because of past problems. He's worked out consistently
since his release from the Seahawks and said he's in good shape.
After sitting out for so long, the call from the All American Football League
was just what he needed. Waiting day after day for a phone call from an NFL team
that never came got frustrating and he sometimes wondered if he should give up.

The past two years have taught him patience. He's hungry to play again and believes
this league could be a good change for him.
"I'm going to come over here and give it a try and I'm going to make the best
of it," he said. "You never know, I might come over here and enjoy this league
better than the NFL."

As a child, his goal was to play in the NFL. Though he wants another chance more
than anything, this son of a preacher said he is blessed to have made it. If
he doesn't get back, he can't complain because he knows he was lucky to have
played at all.

"I just had to sit back and look at everything that I've done in my life and
say that I accomplished my goal," he said. "I didn't do what people expected
me to do in the NFL. No, I didn't go out there and have Randy Moss numbers, but
I thank God I did make it."

------------------------
P-Dub, as some people liked to call him around here, never fully recovered from a broken leg and knee problems in the 2004 season. I saw Warrick at the RCA Dome in December, 2006, as his former Bengal teammates left the field after losing. Warrick was desperately trying to catch an eye, a glance from anyone. Very few stopped to talk with him....

By the way, the latest edition of "Bengals Report Podcast" is now posted and ready for your listening and/or downloading. You can find it on the front page of my web site: http://www.kenbroo.com/. Marc Hardin and I preview the Bengals vs Bills game this Sunday in Buffalo.

If Dusty Baker really doesn't like young ballplayers, as we've heard a lot since his hiring, would that not lend some credence to the rumors of moving Adam Dunn to first base and using phenom Joey Votto as trade bait? And if it is true that Baker likes veteran players, would it not then scotch the rumors of a Ken Griffey, Jr. trade this winter? Just askin'.....

I'm still sticking with my belief that Ohio State runs the table, which means the Buckeyes beat Wisconsin Saturday....

With games at South Florida and Syracuse and home games with UConn and West Virginia, how many more wins does UC have this season? My prediction: three. UC will beat UConn at Nippert and defeat either South Florida (which would be a mega upset) or West Virginia (somewhat milder upset) and win at Syracuse.....that'd be nine wins for Lord Kelly, Brian Of Clifton and would guarantee the Bearcats of playing in bowl game Christmas week....

I'm talking sports this Sunday from 9am-11:30am on Cincinnati's 700WLW. If you don't live in the greater Cincinnati area, you can catch me 'live' on http://www.700wlw.com/ or on XM channel 173.
And, after the Bengals vs Bills, I'll be hosting "Bengals Feedback" on both 700WLW and 1530 Homer "The Sports Animal".

Sunday night at 11:35pm or there abouts, I'll also be co-hosting "Sports Rock!" on Cincinnati's NBC affiliate WLWT 5. George Vogel and former Bengals Dave Lapham and Eric Thomas complete the panel.

Have a great weekend!

I'm not worried about the Bengals offense. Willie Anderson will be back at right tackle by the season opener and all will be right with that side of the ball. It has the ability to average between 28-31 points per game. BUT, having to average that amount of points to win is an entirely different deal.

It's the other side of the ball I'm worried about. Other than using a first round pick to draft cornerback, Leon Hall, the Bengals have done little to fix a defense that hemmoraged points last season. Yes, rookie safety Marvin White, will be a good player and sure, they brought in a number of defensive linemen in the off season. But I've seen nothing to make me believe that this year will be better than last year, defensively.

We won't get any updates in this pre season finale Friday night when the Colts gallop into town. You'll be lucky to see any starters play in that game. I remember two years ago, when the Colts came here to finish the pre season, Peyton Manning, Marvin Harrison and the rest of those first team offense stars were rumors. They never played a down. I doubt if it'll be different this year.

How does Indianapolis not win this game Sunday? The way I see it, only one way: if Peyton Manning doesn't show up. If he goes to a movie theatre by mistake and gets engrossed in a film, the Bears have a chance. If Manning hits Taco Bell on the way to the stadium and it doesn't go down so well, the Bears have a chance. If, by chance, Manning is abducted by aliens and flown for a rendezvous with the Hale-Bopp Comet psychos, the Bears have a chance.

But if Manning shows up in Miami Sunday night and is the Manning we all have come to know and respect, the Bears don't have a shot.

I know all about the track record for big favorites in this game. I know if you give a good coaching staff two weeks to prepare for a giant, the giant can be slayed. But I don't see it happening Sunday.

Colts 27 Bears 14.

Just posted on my web site, the latest edition of Broo v. Broo. We get into it this week about who'll win Sunday and various other disagreements. Zip on over to www.kenbroo.com and check it out on my "Podcasts and More" page.

Also, get a grin from my latest offering "Broo Ha Ha", a weekly bit of sports humor. It's posted on the front page of www.kenbroo.com