He's trying not to grin. Really, he is.
But even when his words insist the Indianapolis Colts' 40-21 win over the New England Patriots on Monday at Gillette Stadium was one game in a long season, his face betrays him.
"There have been," Manning said, "some low moments doing press conferences in this room the last few times I've been here."
This would be the high moment, which is why he can't camouflage his smile no matter how many cliches he clothes himself in. This is the moment when Manning no longer carries the burden of no wins in New England, no wins against Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and six straight losses to the genius game plans and psychological ploys of Patriots coach Bill Belichick.
Manning and the Colts (8-0) not only beat the two-time Super Bowl champion Patriots, they turned them into a .500 team. New England fell to 4-4, and didn't want to talk about it.
"I don't have much to say," Brady said, in a terse statement that was over almost as quickly as New England's 29-second possession to open the second half. "I mean, we got our butts kicked."
Those were Manning's words, more or less, a year ago.
And the year before that.
And a few times before that.
That's why Manning has to fight to keep a straight face after so sweet a payback.
"It feels much better to win, but we'll try to keep it in perspective," Manning said. "We have bigger goals we want to accomplish."
No question. Bigger goals are ahead. Home-field advantage through the playoffs, a run at an unbeaten regular season and a Super Bowl appearance come to mind. How about a Super Bowl win? Yeah, that would rank a tad above a mid-season bullying of the Patriots. But beating their nemesis New England - check that, beating the mess out of New England - was a first, essential step to a potentially special season.
"Hopefully, we can silence some critics," wide receiver Reggie Wayne said. "We got the job done. A lot of people said we couldn't get the job done. In this locker room, we felt we could get it done."
The Colts beat the Patriots from the opening series, when Manning proved intent on being the aggressor, not the tentative, too-careful facsimile who played in a 20-3 playoff loss last year. He went downfield to Marvin Harrison for a 48-yard pass completion on the game's second offensive play. Three players later, he lofted his patented fade pass in the end zone to Harrison for a 7-0 lead.
Manning used all of his weapons this time: the hands of Harrison and Wayne, the legs of Edgerrin James and the patience of Job.
Harrison had nine catches for 128 yards and two scores; Wayne nine for 124 yards and one score; James 104 yards rushing; and Job's patience provided a 17-play, nine-minute drive on the Colts' second possession.
The Colts' 40 points was their second-best output this season, and the most they've ever scored on New England. Manning was 28-for-37 passing for 321 yards and three scores. The Colts compiled 453 yards in offense. The Colts even tried, unsuccessfully, a late two-point conversion that infuriated Patriots fans, or at least the several dozen who hadn't bolted for the parking lot.
The Colts were intent on kicking the Patriots fiercely in the first half, in the second half and when they were down.
"We just didn't match up very well to the Colts in any aspect of the game," Belichick said. "They outplayed us. They outcoached us. They were better than we were as a football team tonight."
The Colts' defense slowed Brady enough that his 265 yards passing, three touchdowns and 121.4 quarterback rating seemed almost harmless.
Indianapolis' defining defensive play came after two setbacks of the type that deflated the Colts in past games against New England. First, Manning forced a pass while rolling out, off-balance, and was intercepted. Then, Brady burned the Colts' secondary with a 35-yard pass completion to David Givens on third-and-23.
Old Patriots magic, right?
Three plays later, Colts safety Bob Sanders body-slammed Pats running back Corey Dillon, knocking the ball loose. Colts cornerback Jason David recovered and nine plays later Manning connected with Wayne for a 21-7 halftime lead.
Belichick had no top-secret, mind-boggling halftime adjustments.
Of course, Patriots' fans will point to a defense racked by injuries, missing such impact players as Richard Seymour, Rodney Harrison, Tyrone Poole and Randall Gay. There's truth in that observation. New England is not the team it was a year ago. Then again, neither are the Colts.
"They've been beat up before and still beaten us," Manning said. "They still have plenty of good players on their team. It feels good to come in here and put up some points."
Manning and the Colts shook a monkey off their backs by finally winning in New England. It may be a few days, however, before they wipe the look of satisfaction off their faces.
This column is the commentary of the writer and does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of The News-Sentinel. E-mail Reggie Hayes at rhayes@news-sentinel.com.
