Indy's plain-Jane defensive gang needs to be better than average self

MIAMI -- Yes, once again, I'm the bad guy. The one who is saying what others won't so here we go in three, two, one ...

The defense for the Indianapolis Colts isn't great. It isn't even good -- it's average.

At best.

Go ahead and pull a Rex Ryan and send me a nice middle finger salute, but I'm in good company. Three Pro Bowlers were asked to describe the Colts' defense and this is exactly what they said.

"They're an OK defense," said Houston wide receiver Andre Johnson, who had a total of 15 catches for 170 yards and no touchdowns in two games against Indianapolis this season. "The defenses in the Super Bowl won't matter. Whoever has the ball last wins."

Not exactly a ringing endorsement.

"I respect that defense but it's not a great defense, no," said Tennessee quarterback Vince Young, who threw for 241 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in his only full game against the Colts this season. "They rely on that speed up front but if Dwight [Freeney] doesn't play, that hurts them pretty badly."

Not a great defense. Check.

"I wouldn't rank them extremely high but they're fine," said San Diego tight end Antonio Gates. "To me, the biggest factor for the Saints isn't the Colts defense. It's about getting pressure on Peyton Manning. You get him worried about getting hit. That's the key to this game. Not the Indy defense."

Always knew Gates was a smart man.

Just to be clear -- they weren't trashing the Colts. They're saying in very politically correct terms what I'm stating more bluntly. Contrary to media and public perception, this defense reeks of ordinary.

At best.

The Colts are ranked 18th overall in total defense, which is about as pedestrian as you can get.

What the Indianapolis defense does well is ride the coattails of quarterback Peyton Manning. A significant number of offensive players in football won't say this publicly but they believe this privately. In other words, the team's overall strategy is to (wisely) rely heavily on Manning getting some sort of lead (their passing offense is ranked second in football) and then turn loose the front four of the Indianapolis defense.

If the Indianapolis defense has to stand on its own, the way the Jets or Ravens do, trouble follows. If the defense can ride Manning's coattails, it's fine.

Many times this season teams moved the ball at will on Indianapolis, particularly if an offense had the chutzpa to stick with an inside run attack.

"When we've played them," said Gates, "we mostly attacked the middle of that defense. When you go outside, their speed can catch you. We've never had real difficulty moving the ball on them."

An already average Colts defense could be without Pro Bowl DE Dwight Freeney on Sunday. (Getty Images)

The Colts defense this season has feasted largely on football's offensive dregs including Jacksonville, Seattle, Tennessee (the Titans scored 26 points in two games against Indianapolis), St. Louis and San Francisco. I might even add Denver to that group since it was in the bottom half of the league in points per game.

The few times that defense played a great quarterback, it was lit up like a Beyonce smile. The Colts beat Arizona this season 31-10, but that was due to Manning throwing for four scores and forcing the Cardinals to be one dimensional. Still, Kurt Warner completed 30 of 52 passes for 332 yards and one touchdown.

The Colts defense played better against Houston's Matt Schaub as he threw for 595 yards, three touchdowns and four interceptions in two games but in the second, Schaub actually had a 20-7 halftime lead, ending the game with 27 points.

Against New England, Manning threw for four touchdowns -- again -- and Tom Brady completed 29 of 42 passes for 375 yards and three scores.

There's a chance Drew Brees will take the Indianapolis defense over his knee and beat them so badly it'll violate several city penal codes.

The Colts, of course, aren't buying any of this. In fact, they don't even think the Saints are the toughest offense they've faced despite Brees being the most accurate passer in football this season.

"I wouldn't say the toughest," said the Colts' Antoine Bethea of the Saints offense. "There are some other teams out there that you have to prepare for. Houston, they had a good passing attack. Arizona had a good passing attack, but you can say the toughest just because of how big the stage is. It's the Super Bowl and this is what you're playing for. But like I said, with Brees being at quarterback and the weapons that he has, it's going to be a difficult task. You're not going to completely shut them down, but you can control it."

"I think we're a great defense," said Colts defensive end Raheem Brock. "I think we have a great run defense and a great pass defense overall, period. We've been trying to earn our respect all year. A lot of teams came to Indianapolis and they ran the ball on us or passed all day. And I think we did a great job the last two games of the playoffs shutting down the top running teams going against what other people would consider the best defense[s] in this league, the Jets defense or the Baltimore Ravens defense. So I thought it was a chance for us to get our name out there, our defense to get some respect. That's why we're excited about going up against the Saints with a nice high-power overall offense ... where everybody will finally respect us if we dominate this game."

That's a big if.

This game will likely go the way it has for Indianapolis all season. Manning will get his three or four scores.

And that Colts defense will ride his coattails like it always does.

Because that's what an ordinary defense does.

Ordinary ...

... at best.