Super Bowl Capsules: Rain, Freeney and media day at Super Bowl
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Here's something new: Super Bowl week minus the hype.
For one day, at least, nothing was getting blown out of proportion. Oh, sure, the weather was nasty enough Monday to cause some logistical switches for the New Orleans Saints. And the Colts wondered hopefully about wet omens — the clouds opened up for the only time during a Super Bowl when Indianapolis won in Miami three years ago.
It was all sure to change on media day, that annual event for which frenzy, zoo and circus are among the milder descriptions. Despite ominous forecasts that forced the NFL to move the proceedings indoors at Sun Life Stadium, the potential for wackiness — a "journalist" dressed as a bride looking for a quarterback mate, perhaps — wasn't diminished.
One guy who can get a bit wacky is Peyton Manning, at least when he's pitching a product instead of a pigskin. Manning was one of the Colts' Pro Bowl players who waited in South Florida for the rest of the team to arrive Monday.
"I got to fly on a private plane with six of my best friends and teammates," he said. "We had Ruth's Chris Steak House food on the plane, took a private escape down to Miami, shook a few hands, did a wave, did one interview and made $45,000. I can think of some worse things to put yourself through."
Like what Colts All-Pro defensive end Dwight Freeney is experiencing.
Freeney sprained his right ankle in the AFC title game against the Jets and missed all four practices last week. Freeney also came to the Miami area early, but not to show off his skills in the all-star game. He's undergoing extensive treatment with the hope he will heal enough to play on Sunday.
"Obviously, Dwight Freeney is a great player. Obviously, we would love for him not to play in the game," New Orleans running back Reggie Bush said. "But we're going to prepare like he's playing in the game. We're going to continue to chip block. We're going to continue to do whatever we can to keep the pressure off (Drew Brees)."
Freeney had 13½ sacks this season, tied for third in the NFL. But the Colts (16-2) have only one sack altogether in two playoffs wins. Getting to Brees is as critical to Indy as, well, getting to Manning is for New Orleans (15-3).
"Dwight is playing and he will be 100 percent by the game," linebacker Gary Brackett said playfully, poking fun at the intrigue surrounding Freeney's injury.
"Honestly, I have no clue. But if anybody can come back from an injury, it's Dwight. He's had weird things all season. People said he would miss 10 weeks and then he plays in seven days."
Few Super Bowls have matched such explosive offenses; the Saints led the league with 510 points and the Colts scored 416. Each defense will have enough of a challenge without showers straight through the weekend. More wetness could make the footing treacherous, yet another advantage for the team with the ball.
So having Freeney in the lineup might be a key to any success Indy has against Brees, Bush, Marques Colston and Co.
The Colts' defense also hasn't faced anything similar to the Saints in these playoffs. Baltimore's passing offense was pedestrian, and the Jets' wasn't much better.
But New Orleans?
"One of the big knocks on our defense has been that we can't stop the run," Brackett said. "Traditionally guys pound us, but I think if you've seen this playoffs, we stopped two very aggressive running teams with Baltimore and the Jets. ... The New Orleans Saints, they pose a different threat. They pass the football and are a very high-scoring offense, very high-powered.
"I think with all that, at the end, there's always going to be 11 guys on the field, so that's one thing you can count on. We just have to adjust accordingly. A lot of guys we just have to treat as receivers rather than driving yourself crazy trying to figure out what guys are out there on the field. Just figure there's going to be a lot of tall, fast guys running around."
Brees says he won't let Manning affect his game
DAVIE, Fla. — The stage is set for two of the NFL's finest quarterbacks to duel it out in the Super Bowl when Drew Brees leads the Saints against Peyton Manning's Colts.
If only Brees was buying it.
"That's exactly the trap I'm not going to fall into, which is trying to keep up with Peyton," Brees said Monday after New Orleans' opening practice of Super Bowl week. "I know that Peyton is going to make his plays, and he's going to be Peyton and that just means that I need to be me.
"It's me and my offense against their defense and vice versa," Brees said. "Certainly, I have a lot of respect for Peyton and what he's been able to accomplish ... but it's not me against Peyton."
Brees has followed Manning's career since the late 1990s, when the Saints' quarterback was still at Purdue and Manning was a rookie with Indianapolis. Brees sometimes attended Colts home games.
As a senior, after leading Purdue to a dramatic comeback victory over Ohio State, Brees checked his voicemail and had a message from Manning congratulating him. Brees always remembered how Manning took a moment to encourage him when he was still in college. Their friendship grew after Brees took over as starting quarterback in New Orleans, assuming the role once held by Manning's father, Archie.
Earlier this season, when the Saints and Colts each made it into December without a loss, Brees said he would love to see New Orleans and Indianapolis meet — both undefeated — in the Super Bowl.
It turned out that neither team made it all the way through the regular season without a loss. But both teams finished with the top seed in their respective conferences and won a pair of home playoff games to set up the clash that Brees was hoping for all along.
Manning finished 2009 second in the NFL in yards passing with 4,500 and second in TD passes with 33. Brees was sixth in the league with 4,388 yards passing to go with an NFL-best 34 TD passes. The Saints held the top offensive ranking in the NFL. The Colts were ninth.
While Brees will try to avoid allowing what Manning does affect his approach, he still appreciates the intrigue and the spectacle of two top quarterbacks leading two of the highest-powered offenses in the league against one another with a Super Bowl title on the line.
"Certainly this is a game that very well could be back and forth, or one team gets out to a lead and all of a sudden the other team closes the gap," Brees said. "I think we've both shown the ability to come back from big deficits."
Manning also sees the possibility of the Super Bowl turning into an offensive shootout. Like Brees, Manning said he has to be mindful of remaining true to what has worked all season for the Colts' offense and not get caught up in what Brees and is doing.
"You understand just how explosive their offense can be," Manning said. "I think you have to be careful trying to get out of your rhythm in order to keep up with them. You still have to go play offense the way we have played all year, trying to be efficient. We have been excellent on third down, been good in the red zone. Those things will be important this year. And for the most part we have protected the ball which might be the most important factor in this game."
The Colts have averaged 26 points per game, ranking seventh in the NFL in that department.
As much as Manning would like to think that kind of output will be enough against New Orleans, he knows it may not be.
The Saints have averaged a league-best 31.9 points per game.
"I do know that we are going to have to score points in this game if we are going to have a chance to win," Manning said.
-- Brett Martel
Colts' Super Bowl arrival rekindles '07 memories
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Indianapolis sees the reminders everywhere.
The team flew into the same airport Monday, then bused to the same hotel in the same rain that soaked their Super Bowl celebration three years ago. On Tuesday, they'll talk to reporters at Sun Life Stadium again and then begin working out Wednesday at the Dolphins' practice facility. Same as three years ago.
Heck, some players, like Kelvin Hayden, even found themselves checking into the same rooms.
Indeed, the Colts will try to show that this Super Sequel will be every bit as good as the original.
"It was kind of blurry to me to be honest, but once we stepped in the hotel, everything kind of came back to me," Hayden said. "Hopefully, it will help us come Sunday."
Hayden, like four-time MVP Peyton Manning and running back Joseph Addai, has pleasant memories from their last postseason trip to South Florida.
Manning won his first Super Bowl and took home the MVP award here in February 2007. Addai finished with 143 scrimmage yards, the second-highest total in Super Bowl history, and set a game record with 10 receptions that day. Hayden's late interception and return for a touchdown clinched the Colts 29-17 victory over Chicago.
Twenty-five Colts, including five players on the injured reserve list, were around back then when Manning answered questions all week about a bruised right thumb.
This week, the frenzy surrounding Dwight Freeney has caused more concern.
The All-Pro defensive end sprained his right ankle in Indy's 30-17 AFC championship victory over the Jets, and is questionable for Sunday's game against New Orleans.
One report indicated Freeney had torn a ligament and a person close to Freeney told The Associated Press that the ankle was "really bad." The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because his information differed from the team's, and Monday night coach Jim Caldwell acknowledged his team has been preparing to go without Freeney.
"Well, he hasn't been practicing, so if he's not practicing then obviously we're preparing, as if he's not going to play," Caldwell said.
Team president Bill Polian told radio listeners Monday night Freeney had a 50-50 chance of playing in the Super Bowl.
If Freeney does play, he could still be on a play count and may not be as effective using his speed, leverage and spin moves because of the sore ankle.
The Colts are hoping this turns out to be similar to Manning's injury in 2007 — lots of talk, no significant impact.
"He usually works around the clock on his injuries and if there's any chance that someone can play, Dwight's the guy that can come back from it," defensive captain Gary Brackett said. "He has wolverine-type characteristics in terms of healing and coming back."
Otherwise, the storylines remain eerily familiar.
Manning, who finally ended the criticism of failing to win "the big one" in 2007, is now being asked whether he needs a second Super Bowl ring to satisfy the remaining doubters. A second victory also would put Manning on the short list of quarterbacks with multiple rings, a roster that includes players like Troy Aikman, Terry Bradshaw, Tom Brady and Joe Montana.
Plus, it rained then, and it's raining again this week.
"I don't know what that is, the Colts bringing rain down to Miami," Manning said. "This is not a bad place to have to come back three years later for a Super Bowl."
Certainly not when Indy's most recent memories in Miami have all been victories.
Indy beat the Dolphins here in September when Manning threw the decisive 48-yard TD pass to Pierre Garcon with 3:18 to go, and, of course, he beat the Bears here in his previous trip to Miami.
The Saints also won in Miami this season.
"We are just going to do the best we can. We are going to go in with the mentality that we can win," running back Reggie Bush said. "That is the approach we have to take."
But the Colts are hoping one thing remains unchanged — that they get to leave Miami with their second Lombardi Trophy in four years.
"Same room, same hotel, same practice facility, everything," Hayden said. "I'm going to wear the same suit as I did last time. I'm kind of a superstitious guy, so I try to keep things the same. If it works, why try to fix it? I'm going to try to keep everything as simple as before, and hopefully it will help us as a team."
-- Michael Marot
Notebook: Players' associations release Haiti relief PSA
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Players from the four major sports leagues went in front of the camera for Haiti earthquake relief.
The players' associations for the NFL, NBA, NHL and Major League Baseball released a public service announcement Monday promoting an aid campaign for earthquake-ravaged Haiti.
Shaun Alexander and Kevin Mawae appear in the 30-second spot "One Team 4 Haiti." Samuel Dalembert and Derek Fisher represent NBA players in the announcement, which also features baseball's Albert Pujols and Tim Lincecum, and hockey's Alex Ovechkin and Georges Laraque.
Haiti was devastated by a magnitude-7.0 earthquake on Jan. 12.
The players' associations partnered with the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund for the campaign.
NOT QUITE A HOMECOMING
New Orleans linebacker Jonathan Vilma was a star at the University of Miami and is considered by many to be one of the Hurricanes' all-time linebacking greats.
Obviously, he's excited to be back in Miami. But he's trying to not let it overly affect him.
"It means something, but I'm not letting myself think about it," Vilma said. "It's a business trip, you know."
BANNED ITEMS
Football fans take note — umbrellas are out for the big game on Sunday.
For that matter, so are fireworks, beach balls and flying discs.
Other items prohibited in Sun Life Stadium on Super Bowl Sunday included backpacks, strollers, laser pointers and coolers, according to information released Monday. Bottles and cans were on the banned list, as were camcorders, pepper spray, horns, poles and sticks.
"The message is, for the fans, please be patient with us," Broward County Sheriff Al Lamberti said. "We're just looking out for your safety. Because as we've heard before, we have to be successful 100 percent of the time, the bad guys only have to get lucky once."
Camera and binocular cases also won't be allowed in the stadium.
"We don't allow those in for the reason that they're hard to screen," NFL vice president of security Milt Ahlerich said. "We need to be sure there's nothing being brought in in these things. So they will be prohibited at the gates."
TOURISM
Party on, South Florida.
Though the economy played a "huge role" in planning the Super Bowl, local organizers said entertaining is back in style, much more than it was during last year's game in Tampa, when events were canceled and guest lists reduced.
"The parties are back on, there's no question. ... Some of the corporations and organizations that had canceled in Tampa, for a variety of reasons, they're back on," Nicki Grossman, president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau said. "Their events are all scheduled. Parties are not a problem this time around. We're very enthusiastic that the economy may take a vacation for this next week."
NAPOLITANO ON SECURITY
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, in town to tour the Super Bowl stadium, downplayed the impact of the failed bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner on the game's security plans.
"I don't think the Christmas Day attempted bombing has had affect," Napolitano said. "These plans have been in place for several years. And they keep getting worked and refined the closer you get to the game. But the event in Detroit had no direct impact."
BAD JOKE OF THE DAY
The Saints' Reggie Bush on whether the rain affected his team in any way: "Well, it put a damper on things."
-- Sarah Larimer
Ochocinco, other NFL players covering Super Bowl
CINCINNATI — Chad Ochocinco and other prominent NFL players will be asking the questions and giving reports during Super Bowl week.
The media-savvy Bengals receiver plans to attend news conferences and parties leading up to the title game in Miami, gathering insights from coaches, players and celebrities for his array of social networks.
He'll have help in the unprecedented plan. Redskins tight end Chris Cooley, Ravens Pro Bowl running back Ray Rice and Cardinals Pro Bowl defensive lineman Darnell Dockett also will be toting microphones and tossing questions at the Colts and the Saints — and maybe even commissioner Roger Goodell.
It's the first such venture since the receiver formed his "Ochocinco News Network" with Motorola.
"It'll be something new, something never done before," Ochocinco told The Associated Press in a phone interview from Miami, where he played in the Pro Bowl on Sunday night.
Ochocinco and his three helpers plan to function as reporters, updating a Web site and a Twitter feed during the week. The players have hundreds of thousands of regular followers on their personal Twitter accounts and other social network platforms.
They expect to attend media sessions where players and coaches are available, conduct interviews with guests at the media headquarters, and provide behind-the-scenes glimpses at the nightly Super Bowl parties in Miami.
The goal is to provide players' reactions to the whirlwind week.
"That's what everybody wants to hear," Ochocinco said. "They want to hear the players' perspective. They don't want to hear what the other (media) outlets say about what they feel is going on. People want to hear what the players feel about the events, the whole nine yards."
The Pro Bowl receiver launched his "News Network" last October, planning to enlist other NFL players in breaking news. He didn't do much with it during the season as the surprising Bengals won the AFC North title before losing to the Jets in the playoffs.
"At that time as the season neared the end, I had to slow down a little bit on most of the social media stuff," he said. "Coach (Marvin) Lewis never said anything directly to me, but you understood that it wasn't the right time to be doing as much as I used to. So this is the perfect time to do what I'm doing right now, and I'm the perfect fit for it."
Motorola, which is promoting its MOTOBLUR technology, assembled the four-player crew that will cover the Super Bowl.
"When OCNN first launched, the goal was to give fans unprecedented access into Chad's life and the game he loves," Motorola marketing officer Bill Ogle said. "Expanding OCNN with more correspondents for the Super Bowl just made sense."
All four players are adept at social networking, but have never been involved in such a project.
"To be honest, I don't really know Chad that well," Cooley said in a phone interview. "He's so outgoing, he's such a prevalent figure in social networking. When Motorola asked me to do this, I was excited because I get to hang out with Chad for a week."
Dockett got to experience the other side of the Super Bowl last year when the Cardinals lost the title game to the Steelers. The other three players will be experiencing it for the first time.
"I can't wait," Cooley said. "It should be a lot of fun. Just to be interviewing Peyton (Manning), to talk to Drew Brees — that will be great."
They're taking it seriously. The four players had a production meeting on Monday. They plan to attend media day with the Colts and Saints on Tuesday, arriving in their own OCNN van. When evening comes, they'll split up to attend the parties and report on them.
Ochocinco should have the inside scoop on one event. He's hosting a party for 400 people at his South Beach home on Friday night that will raise money for Haiti.
The NFL commissioner traditionally holds a question-and-answer session with reporters during the week. Ochocinco plans to be in the media contingent and hopes to get called.
What would he ask Goodell?
"I'm not sure right now," he said. "When that time comes, I'll be prepared for him. Trust me, I have a lot of questions for him."
-- Joe Kay
Soggy start to Super Bowl week
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Rain drove the New Orleans Saints indoors Monday. The NFL scrambled to move Tuesday's media day activities under cover. And tourism officials tried to shrug off the public-relations blow of a soggy start to Super Bowl week.
"Sometimes you need a break from the sun," said Nicki Grossman of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau. "Everybody all over the country has weather. And you don't have to shovel anything that has fallen on us."
Even so, the less-than-Super weather — daylong rain blanketing the region — stirred unpleasant memories of the last time the NFL title game came to town three years ago. That was the first time rain fell on a Super Bowl, and it continued throughout the game, chasing some fans away at halftime and sending others into concourses to watch on television as the Indianapolis Colts beat the Chicago Bears.
"The same weather," Indianapolis quarterback Peyton Manning said. "I don't know what that is — the Colts bringing rain to Miami."
Although this is the middle of South Florida's dry season, steady light rain also fell during Sunday night's Pro Bowl in Miami.
The Colts and Saints landed Monday and were greeted by their Pro Bowl teammates — seven from Indianapolis and seven from New Orleans — who watched the all-star game from the sideline. One Pro Bowler was Manning, who said he didn't mind making the trip the day before most of the Colts arrived.
"I got to fly on a private plane with six of my best friends and teammates," Manning said. "We had Ruth's Chris Steak House food on the plane, took a private escape down to Miami, shook a few hands, did a wave, did one interview and made $45,000. I can think of some worse things to put yourself through."
The forecast called for a 30 percent chance of showers Tuesday, prompting the media day switch. And, there is at least a slight chance of rain every day the rest of the week, with a 20-percent chance Sunday.
"We'll get prepared for it just in case we have to deal with some of the same issues we had to deal with last time," Colts coach Jim Caldwell said. "It looks like it may rain during the course of the week, so maybe we'll have an opportunity to practice in it. But our game plan won't change."
Media day will, however. Instead of conducting interviews on the field at Sun Life Stadium, the NFL will hold them in an indoor concourse on the club level.
All players and coaches from the Saints and Colts will still be available for interviews.
"This should not be a major problem," NFL spokesman Michael Signora said. "It just will look different."
The Saints' first practice Monday was moved 30 miles north from the University of Miami's outdoor fields to the indoor bubble at the Miami Dolphins' complex. The starting time was pushed back while equipment was moved from one site to the other.
"It is what it is," said quarterback Drew Brees, whose Saints have hurricanes in their history. "Weather the storm — we know how to do that."
Rain also affected preparation of the playing field, Signora said.
"I wouldn't say anything is delayed," he said. "I'd say work continues, and weather is one more factor built into the preparation."
The weather made South Florida's daunting traffic even more sluggish. The team hotels and practice sites are separated by drives of up to an hour — sometimes more — and while the Colts and Saints are whisked about with police escorts, getting around is more arduous for fans, volunteers, league officials and the media.
"We're a regional effort, and we need to spread it around," said Rodney Barreto, chairman of the South Florida Super Bowl host committee. "It'll be judged afterward whether it really works out."
Tourism officials said the wet weather didn't tarnish the Pro Bowl, which was moved from Hawaii as a one-year experiment and drew the largest crowd for the game since 1959. But the stadium was half empty by the third quarter.
The Super Bowl is in Miami for the 10th time, the most of any city. While the rain may not dampen visitors' enthusiasm for South Florida, the NFL says the Dolphins' 22-year-old stadium needs upgrades, raising concerns about the region's attractiveness as a site of future games.
The Dolphins have proposed adding a roof that would cover fans as part of stadium improvements that could cost $250 million or more. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says the upgrades would help South Florida remain competitive in bidding for future Super Bowls.
"They're saying, 'Your whiskers are getting a little long,'" Barreto said. "I don't think we ought to fall asleep and sit on our laurels. We should take a good look and see if there is some way to partner with the Dolphins and figure out how to get something done."
South Florida leaders are expected to seek public money for the project. But at the moment, Barreto said, they're focused on praying for some sunshine.
-- Steven Wine
Napolitano: Security plan in place for Super Bowl
FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida — After touring a rain-soaked Sun Life Stadium, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said Monday that preparations are in place to thwart any terrorist threat or safety problem at the Super Bowl.
"We are doing everything we can think of in preparation to make sure it is a great event," Napolitano told reporters. "I'm here today to see the operation myself. I thought it was important to get down here."
Milt Ahlerich, the NFL's vice president for security, said Napolitano's tour of the stadium in nearby Miami Gardens was the first time a Homeland Security secretary had visited a Super Bowl site before game day.
About 1,000 federal, state and local law enforcement and security personnel are working Sunday's game and events leading up to it, said James Loftus, director of the Miami-Dade Police Department.
Even though the FBI reports no credible threat against the Super Bowl, al-Qaida and other terror groups have frequently expressed interest in attacking a major U.S. sporting event.
"Rest assured, we're going to look out for you," Loftus said of what fans attending the game can expect. "We do this stuff week in and week out, and we're good at it."
The nerve center for security is the FBI-run Joint Operations Center, which includes representatives from 64 agencies at all levels of government, said John Gillies, agent in charge of the FBI's Miami field office. He said preparations have included intensive training and tabletop exercises involving various threat scenarios.
"There's security that the public will see, and there's security the public will not see," Gillies said.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will have its battalion of bomb-detecting dogs on hand, many of them veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, said Hugo Barrera, chief of ATF's Miami office. He said the dogs are able to find over 19,000 separate explosives components.
"They can detect about anything," Barrera said.
Fans themselves can also play a role by reporting any suspicious activity or unattended bags, Ahlerich said. And Napolitano said there will be a number flashed on screens at the stadium where fans can send a text message if they see anything amiss.
Other preparations include temporary flight restrictions and a 100-yard security perimeter around the stadium on game day. Fans attending the game face a long list of prohibited items, including long-lens cameras, camcorders, backpacks, noisemakers, coolers and camera tripods.
-- Curt Anderson
Jindal heading to the Super Bowl
BATON ROUGE, La. — Gov. Bobby Jindal's going to the Super Bowl in Miami to cheer on the New Orleans Saints — and fitting in a fundraiser while he's there.
Jindal will attend the game on Sunday with his wife Supriya, said governor's spokesman Kyle Plotkin. They will fly in on game day and head back to Baton Rouge that night.
Plotkin didn't offer details on where they'll be sitting or how much the tickets cost, but the trip won't be funded on the taxpayer's dime. Plotkin said Jindal's campaign funds will pay for the trip.
While in Miami, the governor will attend a fundraiser for his 2011 re-election bid.
Plotkin wouldn't say who was hosting the fundraiser or where it was being held, saying that information would be available from campaign finance reports due later this month. However, campaign finance reports do not list fundraising hosts or locations directly.
