A rivalry that's tough to beat

0 Comments | USA TODAY, November, 2007 | by Jarrett Bell

A Town Car transported Robert Kraft across Manhattan for a business meeting Tuesday, but with a mention of RCA Dome the New England Patriots owner was suddenly back in Indianapolis.

That's where the Patriots, winners of three Super Bowls in four years this decade, had the most embarrassing collapse of their glorious run. They squandered a 21-3 lead in the AFC title game in January, then saw the bedlam and confetti accompanying the Colts' 38-34 win that sent them galloping on to Indianapolis' first Super Bowl.

"It was a horrible feeling," says Kraft, a longtime Patriots season ticketholder before he bought the club in 1994 and helped transform it into an NFL juggernaut. "You want to do whatever you can to not have that feeling again. ... Usually, our defense...