Super Extras

11) Is it me, or did it seem like every other second down was second and one? That's what happens when you've got two defenses that take away the deep ball, and two QBs that are accurate enough to give every check down a chance at yards after the catch.

10) Make no mistake, this was a great game. It was well-coached, well-played, with no bad penalty calls, and had a defining play for the ages in the second half onside kick. Sean Payton will be the coach for the Saints for the rest of his professional life on the force of that call.

9) It doesn't provide any real consolation to Colts Fan, but iIn terms of pure QB moments, the rollout throw from Manning to Clark is as good as it ever gets. Not only is the ball right on the hands, in a do-or-die situation, but it's also arced perfectly over two defenders, and in stride. I'm not sure if any other QB in the league, even Brees, makes that play.

8) You can talk all you want about Dwight Freeney's ankle not being able to give them 60 minutes of quality, but DE Robert Mathis gave them nothing tonight, and that's not something the Colts could afford.

7) No single play wins or loses a game. But then again, there's the TAInt. An incomplete and field goal makes the game 24-20 and gives the Colt defense a chance to make a stop, though there weren't doing much of that in the second half. Even with the

6) For the most part, I thought that Colts coach Jim Caldwell was OK tonight; the Colts made good use of the running game, had a big payoff from going for it on fourth down, and made the Saints be patient, rather than catch anything very big over the top. But the play calling at the end of the first half, after his defense stops the Saints at the goal line, was way too conservative, given how surgical Manning was during the early going of this one. It allowed the Saints to get back the field goal they didn't kick, and took away any chance of ending the first half with a score.

5) In the course of the fourth quarter, the story of Manning's career went from the greatest player of his generation to a guy with just one ring (and that came against Rex Grossman) and a defining TAInt for the ages. Something of a change there.

4) I'm still kind of amazed that Manning's final five minutes were so bad, and that the Saints beat the Colts 25-7 in the second half without a big mess of turnovers. I could see the Saints winning this game in a number of ways, but that way? Not so much.

3) In a post-season of terrible place-kicking, Garrett Hartley's three long distance bombs were telling, as was Matt Stover's miss from 53 in the fourth quarter.

2) With a minute left and third and goal, the Colts put the ball in Joseph Addai's hands on a run, rather than have Manning throw it. Was it purely a matter of trying to catch the Sains unaware, or were they actually starting to feel dicey about Manning's accuracy, post pick? We'll never know, but the body language wasn't good.

1) I'm trying real hard to be happy for the Saints, while ignoring the fact that this means Jeremy Shockey now has a ring, and Patriot Fan is back off the mat. Oh well, you can't have everything.