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Page 22 • Thursday, November 9, 2006 SPORTS The Pendulum Chris Ford Mike Vivenzio Jeff Rickel Brad Mclaughlin THE ROUND TABLE This week: Which team is the best in the NFL? Rickel: The Indianapolis Colts aren’t the best team in the NFL, despite their 8-0 record. They have one of the best offenses, if not the best offense in the league, but they don’t have the defense to be the best team in the league. The Colts are last in the league against the run, giving up 165.4 rushing yards per game. They also give up 21.6 points per game, 20th in the NFL. The Colts also have a history of choking in the playoffs, where the best teams sepa rate themselves from the rest. The best team in the league is the San Diego Chargers. They have lost a few games they should have won, but they have both the defense and the offense it takes to win. The only question mark they have is quarterback Phillip Rivers’ inexperience. They are third in the league in total offense and sixth in total defense. I think if they were to meet the Colts in the playoffs, the Chargers, led by running back LaDainian Tomlinson, will run all over tlie Colts and show they are the better team. Ford: The best team in the NFL is the Indianapolis Colts. They are the only team left who is undefeated and they look just as good as they were for the first 13 games of last season. Their schedule was not all that easy either. They’ve played the Giants, Jaguars, Broncos and Pauiots, teams that have a combined record of 23*9. They put up 34 points on the Broncos’ defense, the top defense in the league. This past Sunday, they defeated the New England Patriots, their nemesis for several years now, in Foxboro. The last undefeated team in the league is Indianapolis; just like last season. 'llie way the Colts arc playing this year should make the 1972 Miami Dolphins, the only team to finish a season undefeated, a bit worried. Periiaps they should worry more than last year, because the Colts have proven themselves against several of the NFl.’s best teams. The road to an undefeated season might be easier for the Colts this year. Of the teams on the remainder of their schedule, only Jacksonville has a winning record. Mclaughlin: After some confusion for the first seven weeks of the season, the Indianapolis Colts proved they were the best team in the NFL Sunday night when they defeated the 6-2 Patriots on the road 27-20. The Colts are now 8-0 and the only undefeated team left in the league. With Chicago’s loss to the 2-6 Dolphins this week and after defeating the 6-2 Broncos at Denver the game before the Patriots, the Colts have separated them selves from the rest of the league. The Colts have a fairly easy schedule coming up and should finish the season with the best record in football. The Colts have found a way to win this year by putting their faith in Peyton Manning. Manning leads all NFL quarter backs with a passer rating of 106 and touch downs with 17. Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison are both top five receivers in the league and rookie ranning back Joseph Addai has fit in perfectly after having to fill the void left by Ekigerrin James. The offen sive line is still the best in the NFl. and con trols the line of scrimmage game after game. The Colts create a lot of turnovers and are second in the NFL with a turnover margin of+10. My prediction is that the Colts finally get over the hump this year and Peyton Manning finally gets his first ring. Marty Callinan/ Photographer The men's basketball team travels to Georgia Tech this weekend and will host Montreal on Tuesday. Stay tuned when the Pendulum will feature a full season pre view of the men's and women's teams next week.
Elon University Student Newspaper
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