Indianapolis aims for business as usual

INDIANAPOLIS — Chuck Pagano kept things loose all week.

The Indianapolis Colts coach cracked jokes, encouraged laughter and tried to put football in perspective.

He does not want the playoff game today to change the routine, so he implored the Colts to make this business as usual — even with the Kansas City Chiefs coming to town for a wildcard game.

“It’s no time to pressure up. It’s no time to get outside of anything you’ve done at this point,” Pagano said.

“You come in, you meet, you have a walkthrough, you practice well and then you play well. Don’t do anything different.

“Just understand what’s at stake. It is one-and-done. That doesn’t mean go play tight and those types of things and put any added pressure on yourself. You do that and you’re not going to play well.”

Pagano has seen what happens when teams play tight. So have Colts fans more times than they care to count. It’s not easy making a playoff week seem routine.

There are many potential distractions — ticket requests, travel plans, holiday celebrations, unforeseen medical emergencies, and the Colts have encountered their share of them in the past.

But the youngsters have learned some key lessons from such experiences.

“There can be a little more focus during the week. There can be some more distractions. That’s where you really need to sort of hunker down,” quarterback Andrew Luck said.

“As far as playing the game and practice, we’ve gotten to this point doing some things well. Let’s keep doing those.”

Former Colts coach Tony Dungy usually told players something else — most playoff games are lost rather than won and the teams that fare best stick to the plan. Translation: Trying to do too much will only get you and your teammates in trouble.

Many of Dungy’s pupils, including NFL sacks leader Robert Mathis, still abide by that philosophy.

Mathis has spent the past two Januarys telling teammates all they really have to do is match their opponents’ intensity, pay attention to the details, do their jobs and trust teammates to do theirs — the same approach Indy has used all season.

But, when it comes from the mouth of someone who has played in Super Bowls and won one, the words carry more clout.