Go ahead and throw out any pre-season doubts that you may have had with this Indianapolis Colts team. Last night’s 41-10 blasting of the New Orleans Saints showed why the Colts are the World Champions and why they are still a heavy favorite in the AFC despite losing 25% of the Super Bowl roster.

Peyton Manning is freakish. Watching him surgically pick apart the Saints defense, specifically Jason David who got absolutely abused, reminded us of just how great Manning is. There isn’t a quarterback in the league who is anything like Manning in terms of overall ability and talent. We saw several instances in the game last night, namely the touchdown throws to Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne, where the receiver only needed one step on the cornerback for Manning to deliver a picture perfect pass. And how about Joseph Addai? Addai got cranked on the first play from scrimmage in what was a “hold your breath” kind of moment but returned to the game moments later and rumbled for 118 yards and a touchdown. Addai doesn’t need Dominic Rhodes to spell him in the backfield. While he has never taken on a full-time running back job, he’ll be just fine handling it this season.

What happened to the Saints? One of the league’s most high octane offenses managed just three offensive points, scoring their touchdown on a Jason David fumble recovery. Drew Brees looked lost. Reggie Bush and Deuce McAllister couldn’t break the front seven of the Colts defense. Marques Colston disappeared for about three quarters. It didn’t seem like Brees was comfortable last night particularly because of the Colts pass rush. Dwight Freeney, Raheem Brock, and Robert Mathis were causing trouble all night.

I fully expect New Orleans to bounce back from the beating they took last night. They have to. A favorite in the NFC can’t come out and get trounced like they did last night. As for the Colts, it appears as if they haven’t skipped a beat. I suppose that’s why they’re World Champs.