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Super Bowl XLI will feature the spectacular offense of the Indianapolis Colts and the turnover-tough defense of the Chicago Bears, among other interesting subplots.

Within the Indy offense vs. Monsters of the Midway defense, there’s the matchup of meticulous Colts quarterback Peyton Manning squaring off with speedy Bears middle linebacker Brian Urlacher.

Not only that, there will be the chess match between head coaches and longtime close friends Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith – two of the most respected head coaches in the National Football League.

One amazing statistic about Indianapolis and Chicago is that both teams scored the exact same number of points during the regular season – 427.

The scoring was done in very different ways, however. Indianapolis’ offense lit up the scoreboard with 48 touchdowns, 31 via the air.

Chicago, on the other hand, had 38 offensive TDs – 24 passing. Da Bears, led by the electrifying Devin Hester, had nine return touchdowns (six by Hester).

Another corollary between Chicago and the Colts is that they were the last two undefeated teams in the fall. The Bears made it to 7-0 while Indy got to 9-0.

Manning vs. Urlacher

Manning and Urlacher epitomize their teams. They are the faces of their respective franchises.

If Manning delivers a Super Bowl victory, he could be on his way to being considered one of the greatest quarterbacks ever. He’s already cemented as one of the elite regular season QBs in history, being the single-season record holder for touchdown passes (49 in 2004).

On the flip side, Urlacher is just the latest in a long line of splendid linebackers representing the Windy City. Although he’s not regarded as the tackler that Dick Butkus and Mike Singletary were, Urlacher is a different breed – he was a safety in college and has unbelievable speed for a linebacker.

You can bet the CBS guys calling the game will do their fair share of breaking down Peyton vs. Urlacher, especially commenting on the jockeying leading up to when the Colts finally snap the ball.

Urlacher will likely line up all over the place, show blitz some and he’ll often drop back almost into the secondary.

Before the snap, Manning will often point at defenders in certain locations, call audibles and send guys in motion.

The Bears will attack with their defensive line, led by ends Alex Brown and Adewale Ogunleye. Chicago will tend to drop seven into pass coverage to thwart the receiving weapons Manning has – wide receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne along with tight end Dallas Clark.

The key could be how effective Urlacher is at defending the underneath throws Manning will make. Urlacher is just as involved in pass coverage as he is in defending the run.

If given the opportunity, Manning will dink and dunk defenses to death with short and intermediate passes to running backs and tight ends.

Still, the Colts chances of winning will be much greater if they get big-play production from Wayne and more specifically Harrison.

Coaching Chain

So much has been made about Dungy and Smith being the first-ever black head coaches to lead their teams to Super Sunday, and although that deserves attention, it shouldn’t be how these coaches are defined.

When have you ever heard anything negative about either of these coaches? They are solid, classy men, not just football guys.

Smith has said he considers Dungy his mentor. Both are known for running the “Tampa Cover 2” defense, but each has tweaked it during the playoffs.

In addition, Smith must be commended for sticking with quarterback Rex Grossman through all the media firestorms.

Outlook

While much more has been said about the Chicago defense, the Indianapolis D-unit has fared a hair better in the postseason.

Bob Sanders, the hard-hitting safety who was out with an injury when the Colts struggled at the end of the season, will be a major factor in deciding this outcome.

The Bears want to take pressure off Grossman by stressing the running game, and Sanders often provides cringing blows near the line of scrimmage or he could be one of the last walls of defense in the open-field vs. Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson.

Also, while the Indy aerial attack is glitzy, running backs Joseph Addai and Dominic Rhodes have been and will continue to be instrumental. Offense has to have some balance, and it was Addai who finished off the New England Patriots after Manning marched them down the field in crunch time.

Finally, expect the special teams to have their hands in the flow of Super Bowl XLI, particularly if it’s close.

Although the Colts would be wise to try to avoid Hester in the punting game, he will probably get at least a couple shots to make an impact.

On the Colts side, do you think they’re glad they got that Adam Vinatieri guy kicking? He’s only the most clutch place kicker ever.

A lot will have to go their way for the Bears to pull the upset. My heart says it will be either an extremely close game or a Colts blowout, but let’s stick with the line in Las Vegas.

Playlist Prediction: Colts 27, Bears 20