Addai finds right system to flourish

INDIANAPOLIS -- You're not here to read about Joseph Addai, which is fine. I'm not in the RCA Dome on Sunday night to write about him.

Addai tallies his first 100-yard rushing game of his young NFL career. How many more will come? (Getty Images)

But here we are, brought together by Addai, whose surname is Biblical and whose football game is sublime.

Addai plays running back alongside Peyton Manning, which is kind of like playing power forward alongside LeBron James or playing second base next to Albert Pujols. You might be good. You might even be very good. But nobody bought their ticket to watch you play. Nobody expects to come to SportsLine.com the next day and read about you, either.

But you and I are here, married to this story, because the Philadelphia Eagles could not keep Addai and the end zone asunder.

In Indianapolis' yawningly easy 45-21 victory against the Eagles, Addai tied an NFL rookie record with four rushing touchdowns. He scored the Colts' first TD on a 15-yard run. He scored the Colts' second TD on a 10-yard run. He scored the Colts' third TD on a 15-yard run. All three scores were essentially the same play. The Colts sent Addai around the left end, and he kept running until he reached the end zone.

Addai didn't score the Colts' fourth touchdown, but only because he got tired. The slacker. After running five times for 31 yards and catching one pass for 21 yards on a drive that began at the Colts' 11, Addai wheezed to the sideline with Indianapolis at the Eagles' 19. Bad move. This being the Colts, and that being the Eagles, Indianapolis scored two plays later on Manning's 11-yard pass to Reggie Wayne to make it 31-7.

No matter. The knowledgeable crowd of 57,296 had already given thanks to Addai. Before the touchdown, the scoreboard monitor showed Addai on the sideline. The crowd gave him a rousing ovation. For standing there.

On this night, Addai was that good. The question is, what does it mean -- for Addai's future in this league, for the Colts' Super Bowl hopes and for Edgerrin James' legacy?

Answer: not much, a lot and everything.

Five years from now, Addai could be an established superstar in the NFL. If he is, we'll look back on Sunday as his introduction into decent society. The rookie put together his first 100-yard rushing game as a pro, gaining 171 yards on 24 carries and adding a fourth touchdown in the fourth quarter. This shouldn't be a complete surprise, considering the Colts spent a first-round pick -- No. 30 overall -- on Addai in the 2006 NFL Draft. You draft a running back in the first round, you expect production.

But gaining 100 yards in a game for the Colts, and ultimately gaining 1,000 yards in a season -- with five games left, Addai has 789 yards -- is sort of like having sex with Anna Nicole Smith. It's notable, but at the same time everyone seems to be doing it.

Whether Addai is a product of the system or a fabulous running back on his own, the Colts will need everything he can muster to (finally) win the Super Bowl. Indianapolis doesn't have a Super Bowl defense -- not if the Donovan McNabb-less Eagles can pierce it for three touchdowns -- so the Colts had better be able to outscore the Patriots, Ravens, Chargers or anyone else they see in the playoffs.

That's where Addai comes in. Manning is going to get his yards and his touchdowns most of the time, but the Colts better have a running game to distract killer AFC defenses like the Ravens and Patriots. Addai (and backup Dominic Rhodes) look to supply that running game. Addai is a 5-foot-11, 214-pound pinball who always seems to be rolling downhill. If he can stay healthy, and that's no small if, he's good enough to demand defensive attention.