4-0 and credibility to go

Sporting News, The, Oct 7, 1996 by Paul Attner

Because the Colts are not overloaded with dominant talent--Harbaugh. Bennett, linebacker Quentin Coryatt. the oft-injured Faulk and emerging tight end Ken Dilger are their few stars--they win with cliches and intangibles. The players talk about chemistry within the locker room, a never-quit attitude, a feeling they always will be competitive, an acceptance of role-playing, of what Harbaugh labels "a roster of 53 solid guys instead of a few haves and a lot of have-nots. Unlike some teams. we don't win every week with the usual suspects. Somebody you don't expect is always stepping up to help."

They also are smart, make few turnovers and are particularly tough against the run forcing opponents into one-dimensional attacks. The Dolphins came into the recent Monday night game averaging 156 yards on the ground; they wound up with 28.

The Colts, who use multiple schemes and blitz to create pressure, also are strong tacklers. "We go into every game wanting to stop the run and be good tacklers," Johnson says. "Everything else grows from there." Much like the offense, Johnson's unit benefits from strong coaching and role players who perform without ad-libbing. "We don't have players trying to win games on their own and that's important," Siragusa says.

Cardinals linebacker Eric Hill, whose team lost to Indianapolis, 20-13, in the opener, says he is jealous of the Colts. "They've gotten over the hump that no matter what adversity happens, they expect to make plays to win the game," he says. "You're really envious because that is where you want to be."

"He's right," Harbaugh says. "Somewhere along the way, we started believing and it kept building. Guys are having fun, guys like me who aren't supposed to do squat are contributing. We're like that Billy Joel song, 'We ain't too pretty, we ain't too proud, we may be laughing a little bit too loud.' But we also know that (one team that was) 4-0 last year didn't make the playoffs (the Rams). We haven't really accomplished anything yet." But the Colts also wonder how good they can be when the training room begins to empty--"We were just trying to keep from staggering," Harbaugh says--and their offensive line, which lost three front-liners to free agency, gains continuity. Seven starters including Faulk, suspended fullback Roosevelt Potts and both defensive ends, didn't play against the Cowboys. Against the Dolphins starting linebackers Coryatt and Stephen Grant were lost for the game on one play with injuries; rookie free agent Sammie Burroughs and journeyman Elijah Alexander replaced them. Then Burroughs went down and Steve Morrison, the last healthy linebacker, came in. McCoy later staggered off. Yet the Colts still sacked Bernie Kosar, who had replaced the ailing Dan Marino, five times. Faulk has gained only 71 yards this season, but he was hurt in the playoffs last season and the Colts still survived behind the work of rookie Zack Crockett and unsung Lamont Warren. Against the Dolphins, the two combined for 150 yards.