Breaking Down Super Bowl XLIV - Defensive Lines

Indianapolis Colts:
Normally this would be open and shut. Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis are two of the best defensive ends in football. Since he entered the league, no one has more sacks and tackles for loss than Freeney. Both players have incredible speed off the ball, and are two of the best in the league at anticipating snap counts. Unfortunately, the Colts announced last night that Freeney has a torn ligament in what was previously thought to be a minor ankle sprain. He's currently listed as questionable, and he may not even play. Even if he does, his speed and mobility will be severly diminished. The upside is that his backup, Raheem Brock, may not have Freeney's speed, but he he does come pretty close to his playmaking ability. On the interior, tackles Daniel Muir and Antonio Johnson may not be the run stuffers you'd like to see in the middle, but at 310 lbs each, they are perfectly competent at their position. Unfortunately, competent may not be good enough against Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas.

Colts Defensive Line vs Saints Offensive Line:
With neither team having a true noise advantage from playing at home, the Colts have the advantage on the outside, while the Saints have it in the interior. Jonathan Stinchcomb, the second-oldest member of the line behind center Jonathan Goodwin, will be tasked with stopping Mathis's speed all day. On the other side, Jermon Bushrod will have to be working on his footwork all week to stop the speed/size combo of Freeney and Brock. On the inside, the Saints guards and center are more than equal the size of the Colts tackles. It won't be easy for them, especially if the Colts start sending blitzes up the middle, but it shouldn't be a problem they can't overcome.

New Orleans Saints:
The Saints have almost the same problem as the Colts, except they already know DE Charles Grant won't be playing. Grant isn't as big a hit as Freeney is, so while Bobby McCray may be smaller, he should be able to at least do a decent job as a replacement. The big player on the line is on the other side, as Will Smith put up a career high in sacks this year with 13, along with three forced fumbles and his first career interception. On the interior, the Saints don't match up with the Colts at all. Sedrick Ellis and Remi Ayodele may eaqual the size of Muir and Johnson, but they have half the talent. The fact that the Saints rush defense finished the season better than the Colts is due more to the abilities of their linebackers than their linemen.
Saints Defensive Line vs Colts Offensive Line:
Smith may be the only lineman who could have trouble this week. He'll be going against tackle Ryan Diem, the largest member of the Colts line. The rest of the line is undersized, a weakness that shows up in the fact that their running game is ranked last in the NFL. When your team passes as much as the Colts do, run blocking doesn't matter too much. When your QB can read a defense as well as Peyton Manning does, pass blocking doesn't matter much, either. So when you have a mostly mediocre defensive line going against a mostly mediocre offensive line with the best QB in the league, line-play takes a bit of a backseat to everything else.

Edge: Indianapolis Colts