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As a rookie, Mark Anderson of the Chicago Bears has never played against Peyton Manning. Anderson hopes to introduce himself on Sunday. Because when Anderson meets quarterbacks, they often end up lying on the ground. ”I love sacking quarterbacks, no matter who they are,” said Anderson, a defensive end who led [...]

Charles Tillman was born in Chicago and plays for the Bears. Those bare facts of his life cover up the reality of his peripatetic existence. Between kindergarten and 12th grade, Tillman, whose father, Donald, was a sergeant in the Army, attended 11 schools. Tillman, perhaps not surprisingly, was among the more [...]

If the Chicago Bears win the turnover battle Sunday, they believe they will win the Super Bowl. No team in the N.F.L. forced more turnovers (44) than the Bears during the regular season, and their ball-hawking style has continued during the playoffs. During their 39-14 victory against the New Orleans Saints [...]

Bears Coach Lovie Smith thumbed through the Indianapolis Colts’ media guide yesterday on a three-hour flight that took his team to warm South Florida from frigid Chicago. ”I looked at 18 pages of Peyton Manning,” Smith said….

Chicago Bears defensive tackle Tank Johnson will play in the Super Bowl — with court approval and a warning from a judge to stay out of trouble. Cook County Judge John Moran granted a defense request yesterday to allow Johnson to leave the state as he awaits trial on gun possession [...]

Mike Tomlin, the Minnesota Vikings’ defensive coordinator, was hired by the Pittsburgh Steelers as their third head coach in 38 years, following Chuck Noll (23 seasons) and Bill Cowher (15 seasons), who left after the regular season to spend more time with his family. Tomlin, who is black, accepted the job [...]

A few weeks after the 2000 N.F.L. draft, Robert K. Kraft, the Patriots’ owner, left his office and passed a tall young man carrying a pizza box under his arm. ”Mr. Kraft, we haven’t met,” the young man said. ”I’m Tom Brady.”…

Relax, Chicago. Rex Grossman and Da Bears are indeed good enough for this Super Bowl, and they’ve already made it a historic one. Few teams with such an impressive record have been as questioned, even maligned as the Bears. Yet after romping past the New Orleans Saints 39-14 on Sunday, they [...]

Part of playing the New England Patriots is not playing against their mystique as three-time Super Bowl Champions, Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said. The Colts will play host to the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game Sunday at 6:30 p.m.

Harassing Peyton Manning with a consistent pass rush is a top priority for the New England Patriots. The Patriots sacked Manning three times during their regular-season game Nov. 5, but the Colts still won, 27-20, as Manning threw for 326 yards and 2 touchdowns. Looking at game film in preparation for [...]

Some of the Bears players grumbled this week about the fact that there were 6,000 empty seats at Soldier Field for their second-round playoff game Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks. They said they would prefer a louder crowd this Sunday, when they play host to the New Orleans Saints in [...]

Join the Indianapolis Colts and their fans tonight at 12th Man Alley for the Rally on the Alley to celebrate Sunday’s AFC Championship Game appearance. The event will go from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. and include live music by Toy Factory, free AFC Championship posters for all fans, an appearance by Blue, the Colts [...]

The Colts have yet to lose at home this season, going undefeated at the RCA Dome for the first time in franchise history. On Sunday, they will play host to the New England Patriots, the first time the AFC Championship Game in the RCA Dome.

The New England Patriots are in the AFC Championship Game for the same reasons they typically advance deep in the playoffs, Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said. The Colts (14-4) will play host to the Patriots (14-4) in the title game at the RCA Dome Sunday at 6:30 p.m.

Running back Dominic Rhodes, a starter during the regular season, has moved to what Colts President Bill Polian called the ‘closer’ role during the playoffs. As a backup to rookie Joseph Addai, Rhodes rushed for 56 yards on 14 carries this past Saturday against Baltimore, helping the Colts to the AFC Championship Game.

Like Mike Ditka, who coached the Chicago Bears to the Super Bowl and the New Orleans Saints to more misery, Jimmy Bannos has close ties to both cities that will be represented in Sunday’s National Football Conference championship game. In contrast to Ditka, who has created a stir here this [...]