INDIANAPOLIS -- Dwight Freeney still gets a thrill out of the chase.
Whether he's trying to split multiple blockers or has a chance to exploit those rare one-on-one matchups with his spin moves, the Indianapolis Colts defensive end's goal never changes and his motor never stops.
Live chat: Steve Mariucci
NFL.com analyst and former coach Steve Mariucci was asked during a live chat what he believes will be the key matchup in Sunday's Colts- Patriots game.
"The key matchup is the passing game with Tom Brady, Randy Moss, Wes Welker and the Patriots against the banged-up secondary of the Colts.
"The Colts have lost some terrific players in the secondary. They did a good job for most of the game against Houston last week, but they'll be tested. This could be a shootout type of game." **Chat transcript ...**
Freeney's job: Put opposing quarterbacks on their backs, something he does with more efficiency than just about anyone in the NFL.
"You want to get that sack because that's our bonus," Freeney said with a smile Wednesday. "I guess in a perfect world, starting the game, it would go first play, sack, second play, sack, third play, sack, and then you could go to the locker room."
If only it were that easy for opponents to keep Freeney out of their backfields.
Freeney's 9.5 sacks rank third in the NFL this season, and on Sunday night, against the bitter rival New England Patriots (6-2), he has a chance to run down NFL history. If he can take three-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady to the ground, Freeney will tie the NFL single-season record for most consecutive games with a sack (10). Denver's Simon Fletcher and Dallas' DeMarcus Ware are the only other players to do it.
Clearly, Brady is concerned with Freeney.
"He's the best pass-rusher in the league, and he's been that way since he came into the league," Brady said. "Any time you're playing them (the Colts), you don't have as much time to throw, so you've got to make those decisions quicker."
Colts fans aren't surprised. They have watched Freeney fine-tune a rare blend of speed and power to confound opponents, and just when linemen believe they have figured out the dizzying spins, the 6-foot-1, 268-pound end throws them off with a powerful bull rush.
Freeney has recorded more sacks (80) over the past eight seasons than anyone except Miami's Jason Taylor and forced more fumbles (36) than anyone in the NFL. The Colts expected nothing less.
"In that system, Dwight is the key," former Colts coach Tony Dungy said. "You have to have pressure and force people to block you. That's why Bill (Polian) took Dwight with the first pick after I got there. We thought Dwight was the best player to do that, and it turned out to be a great marriage between a great player and a great system."
And Freeney, now 29, isn't slowing down. He's on pace to break the franchise's single-season record for sacks (16), which he set in 2004, and could finish with a career-high in tackles. He needs one more sack to match last season's total (10.5), and Freeney has perfectly fit into Indy's revamped defense, even when he's asked to drop into coverage.
Freeney missed the last seven games in 2007 after having surgery on his left foot, an injury that still bothered him early last season. This season, he has played through a strained right quadriceps that was supposed to keep him out four weeks and cartilage that broke loose in his right knee a couple weeks ago. But Freeney hasn't missed a game.
"Dwight is a great football player who prides himself on coming in and getting better," Colts linebacker Gary Brackett said. "Last year, he was coming off of an injury. This year, I think, has been one of his better years."
Numbers aren't the measuring stick that Freeney prefers. He steers the discussion away from the Colts' 8-0 record or the fact that his team needs one more win to match the Patriots' 18-game winning streak, second-longest in league history. New England also holds the NFL record of 21 wins in a row, set from 2006 to 2008.
Freeney doesn't want to talk about the sacks record, either. Instead he would rather focus on doing his job even better.
"I've never been a big records guy. You know, I like to think if he had held onto the ball just one more second, I might have three more sacks," Freeney said, referring to no quarterback in particular. "It has been fun. There is a new energy around here because we have a new coach and new things. But you measure the year at the end."
Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press
