A Capsule Look at Sunday's Colts-Bears Game
COLTS (0-0) vs. BEARS (0-0)
Sunday, 8:15 p.m. EDT
Lucas Oil Stadium
Capacity: 63,000
Surface: FieldTurf
Indianapolis, Ind.
HEAD COACHES
Colts – Tony Dungy, seventh season as Colts Head Coach (73-23, 80-28 including playoffs) and 12th season as NFL Head Coach (127-65, 136-74 including playoffs).
Bears – Lovie Smith, fifth season as Bears and NFL Head Coach (36-28 regular season, 38-30 including playoffs).
2007 RECORDS
Colts – 13-3, 1st in AFC South.
Bears – 7-9, T-3rd in NFC North.
LAST TIME IN PLAYOFFS
Colts – 2007.
Bears – 2006.
2007 NFL RANKINGS
Colts
Offense – Overall, 5th (358.7 yards per game); Rushing, 18th (106.6 ypg); Passing, 6th (252.1 ypg); Defense – Overall, 3rd (279.7 yards per game); Rushing, 15th (106.9 ypg); Passing, 2nd (172.8 ypg).
Bears
Offense – Overall, 27th (293.2 yards per game); Rushing, 30th (83.1 ypg); Passing, 15th (210.1 ypg); Defense – Overall, 28th (354.7 yards per game); Rushing, 24th (122.9 ypg); Passing, 27th (231.8 ypg).
PASSING LEADER(S)
Colts – Peyton Manning (337-515 completions, 4,040 yards, 65.4 pct., 31 TD, 14 INT, 98.0 passer rating).
Bears – Brian Griese (161-262 completions, 1,803 yards, 61.5 pct., 10 TD, 12 INT, 75.6 passer rating), Rex Grossman (122-225, 1,411 yards, 54.2 pct., 4 TD, 7 INT, 66.4), Kyle Orton (43-80, 1,411 yards, 53.8 pct., 3 TD, 2 INT, 73.9).
RUSHING LEADER(S)
Colts – Joseph Addai (261 carries, 1,072 yards, 12 TD).
Bears – Cedric Benson (196 carries, 674 yards, 4 TD); Adrian Peterson (151 carries, 510 yards, 3 TD).
RECEIVING LEADER(S)
Colts – Reggie Wayne (104 receptions, 1,510 yards, 10 TD); Dallas Clark (58 receptions, 616 yards, 11 TD); Joseph Addai (41 receptions, 364 yards, 3 TD); Anthony Gonzalez (37 receptions, 576 yards, 3 TD).
Bears – Bernard Berrian (71 receptions, 951 yards, 5 TD).
SACKS LEADER(S)
Colts – Robert Mathis (7).
Bears – Adewale Ogunleye (9), Tommie Harris (8).
WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR ME LATELY?
Colts – The Colts went 1-4 in the preseason, losing their preseason finale to the Cincinnati Bengals, 27-7, in Lucas Oil Stadium, on Thursday, August 28.
Bears – The Bears went 1-3 in the preseason, beating the Cleveland Browns, 16-10, at Cleveland Browns Stadium, on Thursday, August 28.
QUOTES TO NOTE
"There's different personnel (for Chicago than when the teams played in Super Bowl XLI), although they really have a lot of the same guys on defense. They got a couple of guys back that were injured in that game, (defensive tackle Tommie) Harris and (defensive end Alex) Brown, which will definitely help them. They are still a very sound defense with their ability to create a lot of turnovers and being fast to the football. It makes you as an offense execute, be sound in what you do, really try to protect the football, so it'll be a real challenge to move the ball."
--- Colts Quarterback Peyton Manning
"It's been a typical training camp for us. We haven't had a lot of injuries. We've made progress. We've found a lot out about our football team. And I'm talking about things you can find out before you play the first game that counts. So we're anxious to get into the first regular-season game and see exactly where we are."
--- Bears Head Coach Lovie Smith
BEARS, BRIEFLY
The Bears, after winning the NFC Championship following the 2006 season, slipped to 7-9 last season, losing three of their first four games and never reaching .500 after the second week.
They finished third in the NFC North and a defense that was dominant at times in 2006 finished 28th in overall defense, allowing 20 points or more 10 times after five such games the previous season.
A primary storyline throughout last season was quarterback Rex Grossman.
After quarterbacking the Bears in the Super Bowl season, he began 2007 as the starter, but was replaced by Brian Griese after the third game of the season. He played in eight games, throwing four touchdown passes and seven interceptions.
Kyle Orton, a fourth-year veteran who started 15 games as a rookie in 2005, will start at quarterback against the Colts, with Grossman entering the season as a backup. Orton, who played at Purdue, completed 190 of 368 passes for 1,869 yards and nine touchdowns with 13 interceptions as a rookie. He started three games last season, throwing three touchdowns and two interceptions.
Offensively, the Bears will start rookie second-round selection Matt Forte at running back, and an offseason issue has been a line that will feature two new starters – left tackle John St. Clair and left guard Terrence Metcalfe.
"It's possible for it to click right away," Bears center Olin Kreutz told www.chicagobears.com. "We don't have time for it to mesh. We have to make it mesh now. Indianapolis is going to be a loud place to play. Their defense is fast.
"We have to be on the same page, and communication is paramount. We have to be able to communicate and know what each other is doing out there."
Defensively, linebackers Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs are among the NFL's best, as are tackle Tommie Harris and end Adewale Ogunleye.
KEY MATCHUPS
Three key head-to-heads . . .
• Colts offensive tackles Ryan Diem and Tony Ugoh versus Bears defensive ends Adewale Ogunleye and Alex Brown. Diem, an eight-year veteran right tackle, and Ugoh – a second-year left tackle – are the only Colts offensive linemen who will start Sunday at the position where they started last season. They will have one of the game's most imant tasks, protecting quarterback Peyton Mannign while going against two of the NFL's top pass rushers. Ogunleye led the Bears with nine sacks last season and Brown had 4.5 sacks. The Colts allowed 23 sacks last season and have allowed 200 sacks in the last ten seasons, the best figure in the NFL.
• Colts wide receivers Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison versus Bears cornerbacks Charles Tillman and Nathan Vasher. With Harrison out 11 games last season, Wayne made his second consecutive Pro Bowl and emerged as one of the NFL's top players at his position, catching a career-high 104 receptions for 1,510 yards and 10 touchdowns. Harrison, an eight-time Pro Bowl selection, missed all but five games last season with a knee injury, but has returned this season, practicing throughout the preseason and playing in three preseason
