Super Bowl XLI

The Indianapolis Colts defeated the Chicago Bears 29-17 in Super Bowl XLI. The victory by the Colts made them the first team to win Super Bowl championships in two different home markets. They won Super Bowl V while playing in Baltimore, then they moved to Indianapolis in 1984. The game was seen by a reported 93 million viewers, making it the fourth most watched television program in United States television history. Advertising rates were published as $2.5 million per 30-second spot. Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, the first player taken overall in the 1998 NFL Draft, finally delivered a Super Bowl championship to Indianapolis. Manning was 25 of 38 passing for 247 yards and a touchdown, and he was named the game's Most Valuable Player award.

As the new television contracts came into play for the 2005 season, NBC rejoined the league providing network coverage of Sunday Night Football. Prior to this season, Sunday night contests were carried on ESPN. As part of the league's attempt to make the Sunday evening contest the showcase game, they allowed for NBC to use Flex Scheduling. This allowed the league to switch a more competitive Sunday afternoon game to the prime time slot. The 2005 season also the premiere of an eight-game television schedule on the league-owned NFL Network.

The Bears finished the 2005 season with a 13-3 record, powered by a tough and physical defense led by all-pro linebacker Brian Urlacher. Chicago then needed overtime to defeat the defending conference champion Seattle Seahawks in the division round. Then the Bears won the NFC Championship Game at home against the feel good story of the season, the New Orleans Saints, to advance to their second Super Bowl appearance.

As for the Colts, they ended years of post-season frustration by winning the Super Bowl. This followed a AFC South division title with a 12-4 record during the season. Despite their gaudy record, they only had the third best record in the AFC, so they were forced to play an extra playoff game. But post-season wins over Kansas City and Baltimore put them in the AFC Championship Game, where they finally beat the New England Patriots.

• FIRST QUARTER

• CHI - Devin Hester 92-yard KICKOFF RETURN (Robbie Gould kick)

• IND - Reggie Wayne 53-yard PASS from Peyton Manning (Adam Vinatieri kick)

• CHI - Mushin Muhammad 4-yard PASS from Rex Grossman (Robbie Gould kick)

• SECOND QUARTER

• IND - Adam Vinatieri 29-yard FG

• IND - Dominic Rhodes 1-yard RUN (Adam Vinatieri kick)

• THIRD QUARTER

• IND - Adam Vinatieri 20-yard FG

• IND - Adam Vinatieri 44-yard FG

• CHI - Robbie Gould 29-yard FG

• FOURTH QUARTER

• IND - Kelvin Hayden 56-yard INTERCEPTION RETURN (Adam Vinatieri kick)

• Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts: NFL Super Bowl XLI DVD

• NFL Shop: Super Bowl XLI Merchandise

• Amazon.com: Super Bowl XLI

• eBay Search: Super Bowl XLI

• Sports

• Sporting Events

• Football

• Super Bowl

• Super Bowl Games