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| | | | | | | | Monday, September 25, 2000
MNF themes to watch: Jacksonville vs. Indianapolis
By Kelly Hayes and George Hill
MondayNightFootball.com
Here's a preview of what Al Michaels, Dan Fouts and Dennis Miller will discuss during Monday's contest between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Indianapolis Colts. Below are three topics Al, Dan and Dennis are working on right now for the broadcast:
|  | | While Indy has a nice trio of offensive stars, Jags QB Mark Brunell also has some great weapons at running back and wide receiver. |
The prime time debut of the "Triplets:"
The Indianapolis Colts are on the verge of greatness.
And the Triplets -- Peyton Manning, Edgerrin James and Marvin Harrison -- provide the nucleus for a team that could showcase the kind of offensive fireworks that legends are made of. There's just one problem. They haven't won anything yet.
The Colts have a perfect opportunity at home following a bye week to show what they can do on a national stage against a quality team. This week will be the kind of game that can jumpstart legends, but the Triplets have to perform.
Manning is off to a solid start (despite the loss to the Raiders) having completed 14 passes in succession at one point against Oakland. James is on pace to exceed the stratospheric numbers he put up last season, and Harrison already has 19 passes in two games, which is four more than he had last season, when he ended the year with 115 catches.
If the Triplets can perform up to their sky-high expectations, this week's game may be remembered as the night that the Colts became prime time players.
They might be Titans:
In 1999 the Jaguars and the Colts combined to win 27 games and lose just five. But both teams saw their season's end on their home turf when they couldn't beat the Tennessee Titans. Now it is Tennessee that is the team to beat in the AFC and the Colts and Jaguars are works in progress.
On one level these teams are very similar. Both have explosive offenses and disciplined coaches. Both could use some help on defense.
But a closer look shows that the Colts still possess that wide-eyed innocence found on teams that are on the way up. Last year gave them a taste of what success is like and they want to jump ahead to the next level. And indeed it looks like their best years may be ahead of them. The Jaguars on the other hand, have been at the top for some time now.
In the last four seasons they have made the playoffs every year and have twice been to the AFC Championship game. But still, they have not made it to the Big Dance.
While the Titans still loom in two big games down the road, if the Jaguars are to prove they are the class of the AFC they must show the upstart Colts that they will have to wait their turn.
The Other Triplets:
While the focus on Monday is the Colts tri-powered offense, let's not forget the potency of the Jaguars when they are running at full strength. In the last three seasons the Jaguars have scored a very consistent 394, 392 and 396 points.
This week the Jaguars welcome back perhaps the biggest component of their offense, running back Fred Taylor. When healthy, Taylor provides the same kind of explosiveness that James gives the Colts. But more than that, he takes the pressure off of Mark Brunell and gives the Jaguars balance. Taylor's problem has been injuries. Last year he missed six games with a bad hamstring and this year a knee injury prevented him from playing in the first three games.
At receiver, where the Colts have Harrison, the Jaguars counter with Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell for a devastating one-two punch. Smith may be the top receiver in football and McCardell is just one catch behind him for the NFL lead in receptions.
And at quarterback, Brunell has put up the kind of numbers that Manning would be glad to have when he enters his eighth season.
You can argue the Jaguars have every bit the offensive firepower of the Colts.
Kelly Hayes and George Hill work as the spotter and statistician for ABC's Monday Night Football
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R. Jay Soward says it is a blessing to be drafted by the Jags and be able to learn from Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell.