He let Vanderjagt, the erstwhile "idiot kicker," off the hook, saying, "It's one play. It's not the reason the Colts didn't win this game."

But he sold out his offensive line in his response to a question about Pittsburgh's pass rush that pressured him all day and sacked him five times.

"I'm trying to be a good teammate here," Manning said, choosing his words carefully. "Let's just say we had some problems in protection. I'll give Pittsburgh credit for the blitzes and their rush. Those guys rushed. But we did have some protection problems."

Leave that to the linemen. They were more than willing to fess up.

"Up front, we didn't do a very good job to begin the game," center Jeff Saturday said.

See? Why couldn't Manning say something similar about his two-for-six start in the first quarter?

Oh, Manning quickly took credit for drawing up what he called a "dirt play" that resulted in a two-point conversion pass to Reggie Wayne that brought the Colts to within three points.

But tell me if this sounds like an acceptable mea culpa for his playoff shortcomings:

"Certainly it has not been for a lack of effort due to my part," Manning said. "I've never stepped onto the field or walked off the field saying I could have done more to prepare for this game. There's certainly throws I'd like to have back or series you'd like to have back, or games I wish I would have played better."