The Colts tried to kick it away from Hester, angling it toward the sidelines, but they would have been better off just kicking it out of bounds. And the Colts’ loss of the coin toss hurt them immensely when Hester returned the opening kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown! Rain poured down the remainder of the game, making for slippery conditions and loose footballs, so weather definitely played a huge factor. When the Colts lost the toss and the Bears chose to receive, Simms said, “It was a blessing, losing the coin toss.” Of course, we know what happened next. “I do not think weather is going to be a factor,” he said. You weren’t going to hear any cursing and swearing around them!ĬBS announcer Phil Simms put his foot in his mouth twice before the opening kickoff. Both were upstanding men who were deeply spiritual. The winner of this game would be the first African-American head coach to win a Super Bowl. This was the first Super Bowl with two African-American head coaches: Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith. They weren’t nearly as flashy as the Colts, which is perhaps why they came into Super Bowl XLI in Miami as six-and-a-half point underdogs. Running back Thomas Jones ran for over 1,200 yards, and the Bears had three receivers with over 600 yards in Muhsin Muhammad, Bernard Berrian, and Desmond Clark. Quarterback Rex Grossman threw for nearly 3,200 yards, but he had 20 interceptions to match his 23 touchdowns. Offensively, the Bears didn’t have as much talent. And of course, the Bears had return specialist Devin Hester, who returned three kickoffs, two punts, and one field goal for six touchdowns. Players such as linebacker Brian Urlacher and defensive back Nathan Vasher were big playmakers whose impact went beyond the scoresheet. Defensive end Mark Anderson had 12 sacks defensive backs Ricky Manning and Charles Tillman each had five interceptions. The Bears were built all around defense and special teams.

They managed to get past the Seattle Seahawks 27-24 in overtime, then they crushed the New Orleans Saints 39-14 to advance to their second Super Bowl. They started out the season 7-0, and the only game they lost in December was a New Year’s Eve meaningless finale against Green Bay. As for the Chicago Bears, they finished with the best record in the NFC at 13-3. Linebacker Robert Mathis led the team with nine-and-a-half sacks, and defensive end Dwight Freeney had another five-and-a-half. The Colts were absolutely stacked on offense, and they weren’t too bad on defense either. In the backfield, Joseph Addai ran for over a thousand yards with seven touchdowns, and Dominic Rhodes ran for another 600-plus yards and five touchdowns.Įven tight ends Dallas Clark and Ben Utecht were both over 350 receiving yards. He had two 1,300-yard receivers: Marvin Harrison (with 12 touchdowns) and Reggie Wayne (with nine). Manning had another banner year, throwing for nearly 4,400 yards and 31 touchdowns with just nine interceptions. Quarterback Peyton Manning brought the Colts back from an 18-point deficit, and the Colts defeated the Patriots 38-34 to go to their first Super Bowl since moving to Indianapolis. Finally, the big test came at home against New England in the AFC Championship Game. Then kicker Adam Vinatieri scored all 15 points on five field goals against the Ravens in a 15-6 divisional round win. They knocked Kansas City out of the wild card round with a 23-8 victory. And in 2005, the Colts were the #1 overall seed, but they didn’t win a single playoff game, falling to Pittsburgh in the divisional round. In 2004, they made it to the divisional round, where New England ended their season again.

Manning the ultimate game changfer