Coach Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts is the last guy one would expect to find in the middle of a controversy.   A devoutly Christian, highly respected man, Dungy has given abundantly to his team and the Indianapolis community.  But here we are a week after the Colts' miserable flop in the playoffs against the Chargers, and the local talk shows are abuzz with opinions about Dungy's pending decision on whether to come back for another season.

 Surprisingly, the opinions seem about evenly divided on whether Dungy should stay.  Six months ago, support for Dungy would have been in the 80-90% range.  Despite the controversial suggestions by the instigating Jayson Whitlock, Colts fans have become a pretty knowledgeable bunch.   9 seasons watching Peyton Manning's cerebral and extraordinarily competent generalship of the Lighting Offense, coupled with the evolution of the Tampa 2 defense that has been Dungy's trademark have forced Colts fans to develop a keen understanding of  the game in order to follow the complicated action.

 These knowledgeable locals truly recognize the treasure we have in Peyton Manning.  Regardless of who holds the coaching reins,  as long as Manning stays healthy, this team will remain in the thick of things for at least the next 6-8 seasons and probably longer.  A look around the league makes it obvious that NFL franchises flounder without a highly capable quarterback.  Manning is a huge difference maker, matched only by Brady and Favre among active QB's and his work ethic and "laser-rocket arm" will carry the Colts to the playoffs year in and year out, even in the toughest division in football. And no matter who is doing the coaching.

  We also recognize the genius of Bill Polian.  Polian created a mini-dynasty in Buffalo, and the qualifier "mini" is only used because the Bills couldn't convert one of their 4 consecutive Super Bowl appearances into a victory.  Polian is a master assessor of talent and character and understands the salary cap restrictions like no one else in the league except for pehaps New England's Scott Pioli.  Polian continues to improve the level of talent on the Colts'  squad, year in and year out.

 Which brings us back to the man in the middle of the two pillars of Indianapolis Colts football:  The Head Coach.  Tony Dungy has been showered with adulation and favorable press here since his arrival in 2002.  It can quite fairly be said that Dungy has been given the benefit of the doubt, especially after the Colts were pummeled by the Jets, 41-0 in the 2002 playoffs and bounced in 2003 and 2004 by the Patriots.  During the regular season, the Colts have been a juggernaut, winning 12 games in each of the last 5 seasons, an accomplishment unmatched in NFL history.

  But nobody really cares about the regular season when your team packs it in before the Super Bowl.  Dan Marino's fingerprints are all over the record books, but with that giant hole in the middle of his portfolio where the Super Bowl victories should go, it leaves him on the outside looking in when talk begins about the greatness of quarterbacks. 

  And so it is with coaches.  When the greatest coaches in NFL history are brought to mind, Vince Lombardi, Tom Landry, Bill Walsh and Chuck Noll immediately come to come: all multiple Super Bowl victors.  Joe Gibbs,  Vermeil and even Jimmy Johnson may deserve mention in this hallowed group, but Tony Dungy?  Not hardly.

  If he retires now, Dungy will be remembered as a nice man who rode Peyton Mannings' coat-tails to a single Super Bowl victory.   The fact is, he was out-coached by Bill Belichick in each of their post season appearances, only to be saved by a super-human performance by Peyton in last year's AFC championship. 

 This season's post season debacle was entirely inexcuseable.  Dungy actually became a distraction to the team during their critical run-up to the Chargers match-up, with the press incessantly speculating about Dungy's possible retirement.  While it's certain that the coach would have done things differently if given a do-over, the reported fact that his wife and kids moved back to Tampa prior to the season finale speaks volumes about his attention to detail.  Did he think the media would keep  the fact that his kids had enrolled in Tampa schools a secret?  It seems Mrs. Dungy has already made his decision for him.  In his best seller, "Quiet Strength," Dungy speaks glowingly of the Tampa weather and his wife's reluctance to leave in 2001.  Now its just a matter of time.

  Owner Jim Irsay has already announced that Jim Caldwell, with a 26-63 lifetime college coaching record, will take over when Dungy moves on.  Caldwell has been Assistant Head Coach since 2005 and Quarterbacks Coach prior to that.  I am sure he has taught Peyton Manning quite a lot. This team and this town deserve better than Dungy-lite.  There are guys like Bill Cowher and Jason Garrett available out there now: one would think a coach of this caliber would be the missing piece of the puzzle to assure pure Colts dominance for several years.

  Arguably the most vociferous fans in the league, the Colts fans filled the stadium to something like 107% of capacity this season, best in the league.  We have supported the financing and building of Lucas Oil Stadium, to help the team with revenues from luxury box amenities.   We need more than just another nice man to coach these potential champions.  We can't afford to come out flat against another post-season opponent as we have repeatedly including the 2002 shellacking by the Jets, the 2003 and 2004 bungles against the Pats and 2005's home loss to the Steelers.  Last week's flat-liner against the Chargers was just another in a series of coaching failures, very likely to be repeated by a Dungy clone.  It's sad to think we deserve less of the same.