FOXBORO, Mass. — The Indianapolis Colts, like the New England Patriots, are refusing to get caught up in the hoopla surrounding Sunday’s AFC Championship Game rematch at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The Patriots dismantled the Colts 45-7 in January en route to their fourth Super Bowl title. Deep inside, the playoff loss probably isn’t sitting well with Indianapolis, especially given the ensuing Deflategate drama, but Colts head coach Chuck Pagano insists that was then and this is now.
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, we’ve moved on, obviously, just like everyone else has moved on from that ballgame,” Pagano said Wednesday during a conference call with the New England media. “We got beat. They outplayed us. That’s the end of that.”
Some have dubbed this “Revenge Week” for obvious reasons. The Colts surely would love to avenge their AFC Championship loss, in which the Patriots were discovered to have used underinflated footballs. And the Patriots probably wouldn’t mind paying back the Colts for ruining their championship summer by tipping off the NFL on what since has become known as “Deflategate.”
But both teams are doing an excellent job this week of hiding any vitriol — if it even exists — and refraining from providing the opposition with any bulletin-board material.
“That’s the outside. That’s all the noise surrounding this deal,” Pagano said. “Our thoughts, the way we’re going about this, it’s a big, big game because it’s the next game. We’ve got to take care of the things that we need to take care of. Control the controllable. And that’s our preparation. That’s our practices. That’s our meetings. That’s our walkthroughs.
“We have a great football team coming in here and we’ve got to take care of what we need to take care of, and that’s our preparation and have a great week of practice and try to give ourselves a chance to play well.”
There are plenty of new faces on both teams, which is one possible explanation for the subdued nature of this week’s buildup. The lack of buzz also could be a product of the Colts recognizing they’ve been throttled by the Patriots in recent years. New England has won the teams’ last four head-to-head matchups by a combined score of 189-73.
“(Patriots) coach (Bill) Belichick and New England Patriots, great football team, great coach, have a Hall of Fame quarterback (in Tom Brady). A bunch of great players,” Pagano said. “It’s the next game. It’s Week 6 in the National Football League, and we’re trying to do everything we can possible to prepare and do the things necessary to give ourselves a chance to play well.”
Stirring up controversy this week really wouldn’t benefit either team.
Thumbnail photo via Stew Milne/USA TODAY Sports Images
