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DOLPHINS VS. COLTS
GAME FACTS
Date: Monday, Sept. 21
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
Site: Land Shark Stadium, Miami, Fla.
TV: ESPN
THE SERIES
SERIES RECORD: Miami leads 46-23 (including playoffs)
AT MIAMI: Dolphins lead 25-10
AT INDIANAPOLIS: Dolphins lead 13-7
AT BALTIMORE: (Colts played in Baltimore until 1984): Dolphins lead 8-6
LAST MEETING: 2006 at Indianapolis; Colts 27, Dolphins 22
SERIES HIGHLIGHT: The 23-17 overtime victory over the Colts in the 2000 playoffs ranks among the most thrilling games in Dolphins history. The game also featured one of the greatest individual performances ever by a Dolphins player, as Lamar Smith rushed for 209 yards, including the game-winning 17-yard touchdown in overtime.
SERIES LOWLIGHT: The Dolphins missed the playoffs in the 2003 season despite finishing with a 10-6 record, and a heartbreaking loss to the Colts in early November might have been the difference in the end. Trailing 23-17 with under 3 minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Dolphins got the break they needed when Terrell Buckley intercepted a Peyton Manning pass to give Miami the ball at the Indy 15-yard line. But on second down, Dwight Freeney sacked Brian Griese from behind, caused a fumble, and the Colts recovered the loose ball to clinch the victory.
SCOUTING REPORT
INDIANAPOLIS RECORD: 1-0
LAST GAME: Beat Jacksonville, 14-12
THE INDIANAPOLIS OFFENSE: Peyton Manning, Peyton Manning, Peyton Manning. When you talk about the Colts offense, it starts and ends with Peyton Manning. The future Hall of Famer looked as good as ever in the Colts' season opener last Sunday against the Jaguars, passing for 301 yards and one touchdown. Manning doesn't have Marvin Harrison as a target anymore and new starting wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez likely will miss Monday night's game with a knee injury, but that doesn't mean the task awaiting the Dolphins will be much easier. Manning's favorite target for the last couple of years has been Reggie Wayne, who began the season by catching 10 passes for 162 yards, including a 35-yard touchdown. The Colts went into the season hoping for more production from the running game after adding running back Donald Brown as their first-round pick, but they managed only 71 yards on 31 attempts against Jacksonville. Clearly, the Dolphins' mandate in this game is to contain Manning. The task will be made a lot easier if they can get some pressure on him.
THE INDIANAPOLIS DEFENSE: Stopping the run has been a major problem for the Colts in recent years, and nothing that happened on opening day alleviated those concerns. Jacksonville rushed for 114 yards in the game and averaged 4.4 yards per attempt. The Colts' run defense should be helped by the return of starting defensive tackle Ed Johnson, who served a one-game suspension in the opener. But safety Bob Sanders, the 2007 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, is a question mark after sitting out the opener following offseason knee surgery. The Dolphins ran the ball only 22 times in the opener at Atlanta, and one would expect that number to increase significantly against the Colts. The Colts' strength defensively clearly is their pass rush, particularly bookend defensive ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis. Freeney, who has caused more fumbles than any player in the league since he first came to the NFL in 2002, had a sack in the opener against the Jaguars.
THE INDIANAPOLIS SPECIAL TEAMS: There are a lot of new faces in the Colts kicking game, with a new punter, new punt returner and new full-time kickoff returner. The one familiar face is veteran kicker Adam Vinatieri, the former Super Bowl hero who missed all of the preseason because of an ankle injury. He missed his only field goal attempt in the opener, although it did come from 52 yards out. Rookie sixth-round pick Pat McAfee has replaced veteran Hunter Smith as the punter, and he had a strong debut last Sunday. The new punt returner is T.J. Rushing, who didn't do much in the opener, while Chad Simpson has taken over full-time kickoff return duties and had a 39-yard return against Jacksonville.
LOOKING AHEAD
SEPT. 27 - DOLPHINS AT SAN DIEGO
The bad news is that a trip to the West Coast to face a talented Chargers team following a Monday night game is about as challenging a proposition as there is. The good news is the Dolphins' recent success against San Diego. Miami has won the last seven meetings, which is the team's longest current streak against any opponent. The teams met last season in Miami, and the Dolphins came away with a 17-10 victory that was highlighted by a second-half goal-line stand and a tremendous game-clinching drive, where the Dolphins converted four third-down situations to kill the last 5:55 off the clock.
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