SUPER BOWL XLIV: New Orleans Saints v Indianapolis Colts
Venue: Sun Life Stadium, Florida Date: Sunday 7 February Kick-off: 2325 GMT
Coverage: Watch live on BBC One and the BBC Sport website from 2255, listen live on BBC 5 live sports extra from 2100 (UK only)
**Indianapolis are favoured to win Super Bowl XLIV against New Orleans in Florida on Sunday.**Bookmakers expect the Colts to win by around four points, and BBC analyst Neil Reynolds said: “I think the Colts are going to win by 10.”
The Colts are playing their second Super Bowl in the last four years and have a very experienced team.
But New Orleans boast the strongest attack in the NFL, scoring an average of over 30 points per game this season.
The Saints scored a league-high 510 points and ranked first in total offence. The Colts scored 416 and ranked ninth.
In quarterback Drew Brees, the Saints possess the most accurate passer in the NFL this season. But Brees has warned his team against relying on simply passing the ball if the Saints are to succeed.
“You can’t be one-dimensional against these guys, because they are too smart for that,” said Brees.
“You have to be able to pass and run. If you can do it efficiently, possess the ball,convert third downs, keep them off the field… that’s the key for success against the Colts,” he added.
The Saints have never won an NFL title and are taking part in their first Super Bowl in their 43-year history.
But coach Sean Payton - who won the NFL Coach of the Year award in his first season with the Saints in 2006 - has turned their fortunes.
“A lot of people expect this to be a high-scoring game. But the two defences that are here have been outstanding in the post-season,” said Payton.
“Our defence has stepped up. It’s hard to predict how the game will unfold.”
New Orleans won 13 of their 16 regular-season games and over-powered Arizona and Minnesota in the play-offs to get to the big game for the first time.
Indianapolis won 14 games during the regular season and came out on top of a tense encounter with the New York Jets a fortnight ago to clinch a trip to Florida.
Colts rookie** head-coach Jim Caldwell **is not surprised his team has made it to the Super Bowl in his first year at the helm.
“I always believed we had a fine organisation and a fine team. I didn’t see any reason why we couldn’t continue our previous success.”
Despite the abundance of experience on his team, Colts quarterback Peyton Manning has warned his team-mates to expect a very difficult game against the Saints.
“The biggest challenge for me is preparing to play an excellent New Orleans team. This is a team that is extremely tough to prepare for,” Manning said, who won the Super Bowl with Indianapolis in 2006.
Manning, 33, led the Colts to Super Bowl victory four years ago but will hope his star defensive end Dwight Freeney is fully recovered from a sprained right ankle.
“It still definitely is sore but it’s making progress,” said Freeney, who led the Colts with 13.5 sacks during the regular season. “The swelling’s down and it’s beginning to look like an ankle again.”
NEIL REYNOLDS’ NFL BLOG
“**(BBC - Neil Reynolds: Mr New Orleans can lead Saints to glory)*”
NFL expert Reynolds believes Indianapolis are in a good position to beat the Saints because of the experience of the team, especially Manning.
“I think both teams are very evenly-matched with lots of offensive weapons,” added Reynolds.
“But Peyton Manning will be the X-Factor and will secure a second Super Bowl MVP crown.”*