Where's The Love?

For two weeks on Indianapolis sports radio, I listened to fans calling in about the lack of respect the Colts have received from the national media. When you have a dog in the fight, it's easy to remember exactly what the naysayers have to say. Often times, people overlook the fact that half (if not more than half) of the people actually were picking the Colts to win and respected the hell out of them. I guess that's normal thinking, as if 9 people told me they loved this blog, and then 1 person ripped it, I probably wouldn't sleep very well at night.

The reason I bring this up is the fact that I have yet to hear a single person pick the Saints to win this football game. And it scares the hell out of me. Just a month ago, this would have been a complete toss-up. Two months ago, the Saints would actually be favored. And now, it's like it's no contest.

Granted, this isn't as one sided as the 2002 Super Bowl when the Patriots were huge dogs to the Rams, but it kind of has that feel. Of course, the Patriots won that game. As I type this, I realize that I fall right in line with the folks I talked about in the opening paragraph, as I fail to remember the 49ers-Chargers matchup when everyone was picking the Niners to roll: The Niners did roll, 49-26.

Everyone loves the role of the underdog. In fact, when the Seahawks and Steelers matched up in Super Bowl XL, they both tried to play the role of underdog. At the time, it was an unprecedented move. With the Colts, you're just not going to get that. They've been chumping people out for way too many years to play that card.

I think I'd just feel a lot better if one, maybe two national people would predict a Saints victory. I've just seen the side that's picked by a wide majority of the nation in games like this end up with a loss too many times.

Now that I think about it, I've seen the team picked by nearly everyone win a lot of ballgames too. The problem is, I've got a dog in the fight.