Who's got the edge? Sunday, December 13, 1998
Quarterback
• Bengals - Will it be Shake 'N Blake or Blake 'N Rust after 13 long months between starts?
• Colts - Peyton's Place will soon be in the Pro Bowl. But that's a lot of interceptions.
EVENRunning backs
• Bengals - Tip your hat to Corey Dillon. He's still running hard and gutting out 4.3 yards per carry even though he's got more bruises than an apple orchard.
• Colts - SportsCenter has the Indy-Bengals tape cued up already to Marshall Faulk.
EDGE, COLTSWide receivers - tight ends
• Bengals - Pickens sees a short cornerback and Darnay Scott wants to outdo San Diego State teammate Faulk.
• Colts - Without Marvin Harrison, top three Colts' receivers (two rookies) have 282 career catches. Pickens and Scott have more than twice that.
EDGE, BENGALSOffensive line
• Bengals- It hasn't been pretty, but they should blow the Colts off the ball today even with two untried guards
• Colts - This unit has allowed Manning to get sacked just 15 times and for Faulk to run for 1,000 yards. But they're younger than the Bengals' group.
EVENDefensive line
• Bengals - The group put together what might have been its best game of the year last week, but Clyde Simmons and John Copeland are nicked up.
• Colts - Yes, Virginia. This defensive line has allowed one more 100-yard running games than the Bengals with nine.
EVENLinebackers
• Bengals - Take a good look at Adrian Ross. He's going to be here a lot longer than Adrian Breen and maybe as long as Danny Ross.
• Colts - Whatever happened to Mike Curtis? The Colts have forced just 17 turnovers, last in the AFC. But then again, so have the Bengals.
EDGE, BENGALSSecondary
• Bengals - They're coming off their worst game of the year and have been carved by people named Don Hollas, Eric Zeier, and Dave Krieg. Now they face a pure passer.
• Colts - Think the Bengals have struggled? They've given up 18 TD passes and foes have a 90.1 passing rating against them. But the Colts have given up 23 TDs with a rating of 96.9.
EVENSpecial teams
• Bengals - They have a rookie punter and a new holder. This could be a Three Mile Island disaster waiting to happen.
• Colts - The punter is solid and Vanderjagt (.826 field-goal percentage) is making a run at Richie Cunningham's .919 rookie record back in the Happy days of 1997.
EDGE, COLTSCoaching
• Bengals - Bruce Coslet's had a miserable week. Lousy cold and an ugly off-field distraction. He should be ready to go.
• Colts - I just don't know. I may think I know. But I'll never know. I just don't know, do I Jim Mora?
EDGE, BENGALSTHE WINNER
Blake has come full circle. The Bengals are as desparate as they were on Nov. 6, 1994, when he got his first NFL victory in a dome in Seattle. And so is he. Deja vu and Pickens, too.
BENGALS 31, COLTS 27
Blake ready to roll dice