Monday Night Memories: Indianapolis Colts vs. Baltimore Ravens - October 13, 2002
October 13, 2002
The Indianapolis Colts drafted Peyton Manning with the first overall pick in 1998 and instantly solved all their organizational problems. Would that we lived in a world so simple. Manning had a lot to overcome, first within himself and then without. While clearly reaching higher highs than the second overall pick, Ryan Leaf, Manning had his share of lows and a turnover problem, setting a rookie record for interceptions. Manning continued to develop along the expected curve the next year, leading the Colts to their first thirteen-win season since Johnny Unitas wore hi-tops, but they were stunned by the Titans in the playoffs, and stunned again the next year by the Dolphins. In his fourth year, the interceptions inched back up, and the Colts faltered, and eventually coach Jim Mora abruptly decided he had had enough.
After a 40-21 loss to the 49ers, Mora lit into the offense’s turnovers, five on the day, and into Manning in particular, though not by name. “That was a disgraceful display. We threw that game. We gave it away. In my opinion, that sucked.” He mentioned that Manning had thrown four interceptions for touchdowns on the year, and then when asked about the chances the Colts had at still making the playoffs at 4-6, Mora snapped in a way that you can hear when you read this next word: “Playoffs?! You kidding me? Playoffs? Don’t talk about playoffs! I’m just hoping we can win a game!” It’s true; in the clip you’ve seen a thousand times, the one player Jim Mora is most angry at is Peyton Manning.
It wasn’t the first time in Jim Mora’s career that he wrote himself a profane ticket out of town, and he was gone after the 2001 season. His replacement was a complete 180 in terms of style and temperament, Tony Dungy. Dungy had turned the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from laughingstock into powerhouse by building a signature defense, but the Bucs were unable to get over that final hump, so they cut Dungy loose after the 2001 season. Dungy spent two days contemplating retiring and becoming a prison minister before the Colts called. The appeal of the Colts job was simple: with an offense prefabricated, with Manning and offensive coordinator Tom Moore in charge, Dungy could devote himself wholly to the defense. Dungy’s soft-spoken demeanor would also be a welcome change from Mora’s theatrics, which were already beyond parody before he dropped the gift of “PLAYOFFS?!” on us all.
In contrast to Dungy’s Bucs, the Baltimore Ravens had gotten over the hump on the back of a dominant defense. This was surprising, and maybe even personally vexing considering that Brian Billick’s specialty as an assistant was in offense. After winning Super Bowl XXXV, Billick released his starting quarterback, Trent Dilfer, and took a swing with free agent Elvis Grbac. It went over so poorly that Grbac retired in the offseason, leaving Billick once again with a black hole at quarterback, while also having to manage a lot of roster churn on that historic defense. Only two years later, only four starters remained from that unit.
Without Sam Adams and Tony Siragusa to reliably soak runners, much was made of whether Ray Lewis would still be as effective a middle linebacker. To complicate things further, the Ravens were changing their scheme from a 4-3 to a 3-4, to compensate for their new lack of beef in the middle of the defensive line. Lewis decided to step up his contributions in the meeting room and locker room, trying to master his new responsibilities and provide a bridge of culture between the title team and his new teammates, teammates like rookie free safety and fellow Miami Hurricane Ed Reed. 2002 was the birth of the Ray Lewis we all knew and occasionally mocked, when we were sure he wasn’t looking: part Dick Butkus, part Dale Carnegie, part Joel Osteen.
But when the Ravens played the Colts on October 13, 2002, they did so without Lewis. The week before against Cleveland he separated his shoulder. Without him the rest of the Ravens almost lost control of a 23-0 game before bringing the ship in for a win that made them 2-2. The 3-1 Colts had been munching on a soft schedule including a winless Bengals team and the Houston Texans in their first year of existence. Weakened or not, the Ravens still had the air of a true test, one the Colts had yet to face.
The first drive of the game was a ruthlessly quick scoring drive for the colts capped by Manning hitting tight end Marcus Pollard for a touchdown, and the second drive was an indication that Billick still did not have the offense he wanted. Chris Redman wasted great field position from a kickoff return and the Ravens settled for a field goal. Redman was named the seventh different starter of the Brian Billick era, and was closer to the bottom of that list in regard than the top. In his four starts he had yet to throw more than twenty completions or go over 250 yards in any one game. This would not be the game to break the streak. The two scoring drives he led in the first half went for a combined eleven yards, and at the end of the half he threw an interception that allowed the Colts to set up a field goal just before halftime, leaving the Ravens with a 13-6 deficit.
Brian Billick made his name, going back to college at Utah State, for an aggressive passing game. With no possible way to maintain that aggression through the air with his roster, he needed to find ways to be aggressive on the ground. Facing a fourth down on the five-yard line, Billick called a toss play to running back Jamal Lewis that also included a fake dive by another running back. It worked perfectly and tied the game at 13. Another Lewis plunge in the fourth quarter gave the Ravens a one point lead, which they carried into the two minute warning, but Manning drove down the field and set up Mike Vanderjagt to kick the winner for a 22-20 final.
The Colts under Dungy were not immediately championship contenders, but it did help their long-term outlook that Dungy remained calm during a midseason cold streak, and did not stray from his course even after a 41-0 loss in the playoffs to the Jets that would have had many teams panicking and pressing the reset button. Ray Lewis played in only one more game in 2002, and the Ravens missed the playoffs. Lewis was back the next year, and the reputation of the Ravens defense would survive many personnel changes and compensate for the shortcomings of many struggling offenses, but they would not win another playoff game under Billick’s coaching.
History is a huge invulnerable plane flown by a lousy and drunk pilot. When we look down from the window seat, we see only the finished quilt patches and not the abysmal cross-stitching. When we get to our destinations, all the near misses that consumed us minute to minute, week to week, vanish, and we are left with a happy, or at least expected, ending. But history could have always been other, and whether you take it as a klaxon of warning or a song of hope, remember that even Peyton Manning and Ray Lewis, two men now cast in bronze in Canton, synonymous with their teams and positions, risked getting completely lost in the shuffle.
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