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It's probably not easy being a player on the Indianapolis Colts or San Diego Chargers, knowing that Peyton Manning and Ryan Leaf have talent, but also knowing that you won't win a lot of games until they mature. Ryan Leaf has really struggled since leading the Chargers to two season-opening wins. Especially if you're that ultimate competitor, Junior Seau. "You look at the film and you know where the problems are out there," San Diego's Pro Bowl linebacker said after his Chargers watched Manning and Indianapolis beat them 17-12 for Manning's first NFL win after four losses. Or, according to Seau, Leaf and the offense handed the Colts their first win. That's more or less true, although it's rare that a player admits it. After winning their first two games, largely because of a strong defensive effort, the Chargers have lost three straight. In the first two losses, Leaf committed nine turnovers against the Chiefs and Giants. On Sunday, he had only one, but it led to the only touchdown the Colts scored -- they added a 2-point conversion and three field goals. Seau and the defense (notably Kurt Gouveia and William Fuller), limited Manning and the Colts to 192 yards, enough to win most games. Marshall Faulk carried 25 times for just 50 yards, although he was left alone on the 19-yard TD pass from Manning. "You need to score points and you need to hold on to the ball," Seau said of the other half of his team. "Until we get that done, we can have a great defensive scheme, a great defensive stand, great special teams, but it doesn't work. You need all three parts working together." Chimed in coach Kevin Gilbride: "They went maybe 50 yards on their scoring drives. You can't win games like that." The Colts are a little more sanguine about working with Manning, largely because they don't have defensive talent like Seau, Gouveia, Fuller, safety Rodney Harrison and some others. Two weeks ago, Indianapolis allowed 44 points to the Jets, a game in which they gave up 220 yards on the ground. They almost did the same this week, giving up 130 yards to Natrone Means. But the San Diego passing game produced just 150, and Means raced up and down between the 25-yard lines, then someone made a mistake and everything halted. In the second quarter, Leaf hit Bryan Still for a long touchdown, and it was called back because one of the tackles lined up too far from the line of scrimmage. Manning also suffered from a lack of cooperation. On the first play from scrimmage he threw deep and Marvin Harrison dropped what might have been a 77-yard touchdown pass. There also were three other drops of catchable passes. But at least Manning and Leaf don't have to play each other any more. So the hype might go away. Here's something else to think about. Dan Marino and ohn Elway, the two brightest lights of the quarterback class of 1983, have met only once in their careers, regular season and playoffs. That was in 1985, and their next meeting is in December. At that rate, Manning and Leaf won't play each other again until 2011. So relax, guys. It'll be a while. |