Colts and Saints: overlooked?

Is it just me, or does it look like that the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts are being a bit overlooked?

I mean, most of the talk we're hearing seems to center around Rex Ryan and the New York Jets and their improbable playoff run and the Minnesota Vikings and that guy at quarterback, Brett Favre.

I doubt that the Jets and Vikings are overlooking their opponents this weekend, but things seem extremely subdued from the Saints and Colts camps. But that shouldn't surprise anyone at all. In the words of our 26th President Theodore Roosevelt, "Speak softly and carry a big stick". That's what the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts are doing.

We've heard the constant chatter from Jets head coach Rex Ryan with the most recent being this from an article on NYPost.com.:

"We're on the big stage every day in New York," he said. "This will be as loose a team as you'll ever see going into an AFC Championship game. We're not afraid to compete against the Colts, we're excited to."

We've heard the constant praises thrown at Vikings QB Brett Favre for the wonderful season he's having. We've heard Vikes head honcho Brad Childress refer to Dallas as the "Tasmanian devils". Tight end Visanthe Shiancoe is saying that he's going to score "ten times" this Sunday.

So why are these #1 seeds being thrusted into the backgroud? How can the teams with their conferences best records seem so out of the picture? How is it that their opponents are shoved into the limelight?

That's because New Orleans and Indy are choosing taht approach. They are opting to do their talking on the field, and their opponents this weekend should severly take note of this. It's almost a scary quiet in those camps right now. A quiet confidence.

We all saw what happened in week 16 when the Jets and Colts played. Manning was pulled with about 6:00 left in the third quarter with Indy holding a 15-10 lead. The Jets won 29-15 with Curtis Painter playing QB for the Colts. The talk of the Jets "backing in" the playoffs began to emerge as a headline. The thought that the Colts passed on a possible perfect season began to take shape with Colts fans and players being angered by the move.

That move by the Colts hierarchy has actually galvanized the team. The Colts know their real purpose, win a Super Bowl.

And the Saints?

They struggled with their offense in the last two home games in suffering a 24-17 loss against Dallas and losing a 17-3 halftime lead to the woeful Tampa Bay Buccaneers only to lose 20-17 in overtime. They finished the season with a 23-10 loss at Carolina with Mark Brunell at the helm. People were starting to doubt the 13 game winning streak at the season's beginning. Going from 13-0 to 13-3 showed significant signs of a team on a downward trend. Not only offensively, but defensively as well.

Last week, the real New Orleans Saints showed all of us who they really are. A team with one purpose, win a Super Bowl.

And maybe we're now seeing the Colts and the Saints being molded like the personalities of their head coaches. Jim Caldwell and Sean Payton don't say a whole lot. And the players really aren't either.

"Speak softly and carry a big stick".

New York and Minnesota should be mindful of what a punch their opponents possess.

Quiet confidence.