"All the news here is Peyton, Peyton, Peyton," fan says. "I hope the Steelers kill the [expletives]."
INDIANAPOLIS - The Indiana branch of Steelers Nation is quietly but hopefully cheering for a Steelers victory when the teams meet Sunday night.
Elle Dolan, a forty-something safety manager, is outspoken on the matter. "God, they just won't shut up about the Colts," she said. "First it was all the coverage about hosting the Super Bowl this year, then they were all talking about how the Colts could play in their hometown."
But then came Peyton Manning's neck surgeries, which included a stem-cell treatment in Europe. "You'd think the fate of the nation rested on his ability to play," Dolan complains. "It leads the news every night. I mean every night. I can't stand it anymore. I hope the Steelers kill the [expletives]."
Part of Dolan's animosity stems from the 2006 AFC Championship game, when Indy and Pittsburgh met. "On the Friday before, my company had a 'wear your football gear to work' event. My whole department was going to wear our Steelers stuff, but then the higher-ups said it could be Colts clothes only. I don't know what the bastards were so afraid of --- oh wait, that's right, they lost. And then we won the Super Bowl."
But Dolan is willing to put up with at least one Colts fan. "If one of them wants to give me their tickets, I'm willing to use them," she said. "I don't want them to have to sit through another loss this season."
