Super Bowl Predictions – Breaking Down the Wide Receiver Matchup

We all knew the Jet’s superstar cornerback Darrelle Revis was going to shut down Colts’ QB Peyton Manning’s favorite target, Reggie Wayne. All Peyton did was get the ball to Pierre Garcon who blew out the candles on his coming out party cake in the AFC Championship Game. Oh, the cake had been around all season long but the candles had still been burning.

Against the Jets, the Haitian-American receiver took his game to a new level. Garcon caught an AFC Championship record 11 passes for 151 yards and a touchdown against the Jets.

During the regular season, Garcon caught only 47 balls for 765 yards and 4 touchdowns. So his performance in the AFC Championship is not just significant because of the numbers he produced, it’s significant because Peyton Manning wasn’t afraid to throw the ball to him.

How can New Orleans possibly stop both Reggie Wayne and Pierre Garcon? They most likely can’t. Wayne had 100 catches during the regular season for 1264 yards and 10 touchdowns. Trying to stop Garcon and Wayne is going to be difficult, but if that weren’t enough the Saints D is going to have to deal with arguably the best tight-end in the league in Dallas Clark. Clark, like Wayne, caught 100 balls during the regular season for 1106 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Do the Saints’ wide receivers and tight-ends come close to Wayne, Garcon and Clark?

New Orleans Saints: Wide Receivers and Tight-Ends

The answer to the question above is an emphatic NO! Don’t get me wrong, Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, Robert Meacham, Lance Moore and the Saints two tight-ends, Jeremy Shockey and Dave Thomas, are very, very good but Wayne, Clark and now Garcon make up the most feared pass catching trios when Peyton Manning is throwing the ball.

Comparing individual stats between the fearsome trio and the Saints’ pass catchers doesn’t make much sense because Drew Brees prefers to spread the ball around. There isn’t a single pass catcher on New Orleans’ roster that can hold a candle to Reggie Wayne or Dallas Clark. Time to move on…

Edge: Indianapolis Colts, but why?

Why are the Colts’ pass catchers so much better than the Saints’? Three reasons. First, Peyton Manning has had more time to develop great timing with Clark and Wayne than Brees has had with his wide receivers. Wayne, Manning and Clark have been together a long time. Now, it looks like Peyton has developed the type of relationship with Garcon that Brees has with Lance Moore. It’s not on the Wayne/Clark level yet but it’s getting there. That’s scary.

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Second, as good as Jeremy Shockey is and has been for the Saints, he is injury prone while Dallas Clark is not. Clark has had to take significant time off before, but not this year and not in the playoffs. Shockey’s greatness is mostly based on reputation. He’s never come close to the numbers that Clark put up this season.

Third, Wayne, Clark and Garcon never drop passes. The same can’t be said regarding Brees’ wide receivers and tight-ends. Especially the tight end matchup.

Significant Enough Edge to Warrant a Bet? Yes. If you like the Colts, then this is a significant enough reason to bet them in the sportsbook to cover the 5 ½ points. I’m not saying that Brees and his wide receivers don’t beat the Colts’ D-backs. I’m just saying that Indy has a huge edge when it comes to their fearsome trio against the Saints’ receivers and tight-ends.

If you were already thinking of betting the Colts, and needed some assurance, then the Colts’ trio of Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark and Pierre Garcon should give it to you. They give the Colts that big of an edge in this game. When it comes to the Saints’ quantity versus the Colts’ quality, the Colts’ quality wins out.

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