Now? Not the same. Not even close.
Going into the annual Patriots-Colts showdown in Week 10, Indianapolis ranked 29th in the league running the ball, and first throwing it. What’s more, the Colts fell behind, 24-7, in the second quarter and, 31-14, in the fourth quarter.
As that happened, the already very one-dimensional Colts became just about completely one-dimensional out of necessity. In the final quarter, Indianapolis ran 16 plays, 11 passes. Two of those runs came at the end of the game, as the hosts bled time off the clock before scoring the winning touchdown.
And even though the Patriots knew what was coming, they were helpless to stop it.
Peyton Manning completed nine of those passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns, and another one that went down as “no play’’ was good for 31 yards, courtesy of a pass interference penalty.
To review: The Colts, who had all kinds of problems running the ball in Weeks 1-9, came in one-dimensional, were forced to throw, and there was nothing the Patriots could do to stop a 17-point lead from completely melting away.
Fast forward two weeks to New Orleans.
By then, the Saints had passed the Colts and become the league’s most prolific passing offense. Yes, they were fifth in the NFL running ball, but anyone playing the Saints has to start with finding a way to slow Drew Brees and legions of weapons.
How’d that work out? Might want to cover your eyes.
Brees completed 18 of 23 passes for 371 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions. On first down, he was 10 for 10 for 295 yards and three touchdowns. And the Patriots never really stood a chance.
Just a bad pass defense? Think again.
New England’s ouster from the playoffs came at the hands of the Ravens, who came in with the league’s second-ranked running game, and a quarterback, Joe Flacco, who was limping off the field with a quad injury after warming up.
The old Patriots would’ve forced the ball into Flacco’s hands. The new Patriots couldn’t.
