Now that the Chicago Bears have ended their skid, can the Indianapolis Colts get a victory?
The Colts are the only winless team in the NFL. On Sunday, they take on slumping Tampa Bay, which has lost three straight after a 5-0 start that made the Buccaneers the sensation of the league."They're kind of in a down time right now," Bucs quarterback Trent Dilfer said of the Colts, who not only are 0-8, but lost two key players this week. Quarterback Jim Harbaugh is out for at least this game after he injured his hand in an altercation with former Buffalo Bills star Jim Kelly, now a television announcer. Linebacker Tony Bennett is gone for the season with a knee injury.
"Just because the record isn't that good doesn't mean that they don't have the potential to be a good football team."
Bennett had his second arthroscopic knee surgery within a month on Sunday.
"That's a big blow to our team. Tony has been a big leader on this team," defensive lineman Tony McCoy said. "His leadership goes far beyond what he does on the field. He's been a leader in showing how important preparation is, and how to keep fighting to get the job done."
The Bucs are fighting to recapture the magic of their fast start and stay in the NFC Central race.
"We're just not executing at the same level," said Dilfer, who has thrown just one touchdown pass in the three losses. "The last month, we've played poorly."
But the Colts have played just poorly enough to lose for two solid months. This from a team that made the playoffs the last two years and was a dropped desperation pass from making the Super Bowl in 1995.
"We all know we haven't won a game and that the offense has struggled," said Paul Justin, who replaces Harbaugh in an attack ranked 29th of 30 teams. "We've just got to go out this week and change that."
The Bears changed their luck with a victory at Miami after seven straight defeats. Now, they take on a Washington team that can't see to stop the run.
That bodes well for host Chicago, which has Raymont Harris, who has rushed for 744 yards and seven TDs.