At last, the Promised Land

It's hard to say who feels better today about finally breaking through to reach the Super Bowl, Peyton Manning or Tony Dungy. But it's safe to say that neither one would have likely made it without the other.

These two have been a perfect fit for each other because of their cerebral approach to the game. They analyze to an extreme and try not to get shaken no matter what the situation. When Manning threw the interception that the Patriots' Asante Samuel returned for a score and a 21-3 lead, a lesser player or coach or lesser team would have presumed fate was against them, folded up and headed for the off-season.

Staging the greatest comeback in conference championship to beat the greatest playoff comeback quarterback (Tom Brady) in the game today was as perfect a scenario as the Colts could have imagined.

The Bears will create some problems, especially defensively, but the Colts open as 7-point favorites with the odds-makers and that seems about right. The AFC has been tougher all season long. While this game promises to be an interesting one, it'll be tough to match the thrills and emotional ups and downs of the win over the Patriots. In time, the Colts' 38-34 win over New England will rank as one of the best playoff games ever. Any fan of either team had to have been exhausted at game's end. Of course, it was the best kind of tired for Colts fans.

A quick review:

Passing game: Manning's performance after the Samuel pick was as good as it gets considering the strength of the defense he was facing. New England did a decent job of frustrating Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne, but both had big catches -- Harrison on the two-point conversion and Wayne with two catches on the game-winning drive. Dallas Clark (137 yards) was invaluable and Bryan Fletcher came up big late.

Running game: Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai combined for 125 yards, a strong day by any standards. The line's blocking, particularly on the final drive, was tremendous.

Pass defense: You can't expect to stop Brady completely and, if he had better receivers, it might have been a different story. The Patriots' decision to skimp on paying for quality receivers might want to be reconsidered. The Colts were hurt by Nick Harper's injury. He's quietly had a great year. The pass rush on Brady was somewhat erratic, but credit New England's pass protection, too.

Run defense: The Patriots finished with 93 yards, making it the third consecutive game the Colts have held their opponent under 100 yards rushing. That turnaround from the regular season continues to boggle the mind.

Special teams: If the Colts hadn't had some trouble with kick coverage, they might have had more breathing room at the end. There's no overestimating the confidence that exudes from kicker Adam Vinatieri, however.

Coaching: Simply put, this was Dungy's finest hour, maintaining his team's mental edge when they had their backs so far up against the wall. You had to feel good seeing him enjoy the win after all he's been through to this point.