Here's what Bears, Colts must do to win

Here's a look at the keys to victory for the two Super Bowl XLI teams:
The Bears will win if … 1. Chicago can run the ball early against a suddenly resurgent Indianapolis front seven. The last thing the Bears want to do is put quarterback Rex Grossman in untenable third-down situations in which the Colts will come hard at him off the edge. The Colts have held three playoff opponents to an average of 73.3 yards rushing and 3.6 yards per carry. The Bears seem to have found a nice combination, with Cedric Benson now starting and carrying most of the load, then Thomas Jones coming off the bench to give them a little different, and quicker, dimension in the running game.
X Games
X's and O's: There figures to be an intriguing chess match between Chicago coach Lovie Smith and Indianapolis counterpart Tony Dungy, two longtime friends and the first two African-American men to lead their teams to a Super Bowl berth. The two have worked together in the past, and each knows how the other prepares. There will be plenty of words devoted to the coaches' race. The more compelling element of the contest, though, is how familiarity affects the coaches.X factor: Some observers have suggested that the Peyton Manning-Rex Grossman pairing might be the most lopsided quarterback matchup in Super Bowl history. And there could be something to that. Manning will be appearing in his 13th playoff game, and Grossman in only his third. In 144 regular-season starts, Manning has recorded a passer rating of 40.0 or less only twice. Grossman registered a passer rating of 40.0 or below five times this season alone. What Grossman has to understand is that he is playing the Colts, not Manning. Oh, yeah, during his brilliant college career, Manning never beat the University of Florida. Now he gets the chance to beat a former Gators quarterback for the biggest prize of all. Rx factor: For the Bears, WR Mark Bradley is nursing a sprained ankle. For the Colts, starting CB Nick Harper aggravated an ankle injury early in Sunday's game and did not return. WR Ricky Proehl has a strained hamstring and TE Ben Utecht a sprained knee. -- Len Pasquarelli2. They win the defensive battle in the middle of the field. Chicago is not a big blitz-quota team, but when coordinator Ron Rivera brings extra bodies on the pass rush, it is often from the inside. Getting early pressure in Peyton Manning's face from the inside and forcing him to retreat is the best way to get him out of rhythm. The Bears also need to control the area between the hashes, and the deep seams, where Indianapolis tight end Dallas Clark has been so effective. The ability of middle linebacker Brian Urlacher to get into the deep coverage zones should be an advantage.
3. Return specialist Devin Hester can exploit the Indianapolis special-teams units, especially the kickoff coverage group, which has been just as shaky in the playoffs as it was at times in the regular season. In three playoff games, Indianapolis allowed an average kickoff return of 24.3 yards. As he demonstrated in the regular season, Hester is an explosive player who can dramatically affect field position and score from anywhere, even eight yards deep in the end zone. It will take some of the pressure off Grossman if Hester is able to provide him a short field on occasion.
The Colts will win if … 1. They get wide receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne the football early and often. Against New England in the AFC Championship Game, neither wide receiver won his individual battles in the first half of the game and Harrison, as he occasionally does, disappeared for long stretches, his body language suggesting he was sulking. Chicago cornerbacks Nathan Vasher and Charles Tillman are aggressive on balls thrown in front of them and will cheat moving forward, but also are susceptible to the kind of double-move routes at which the Colts' wide receivers excel.
2. Defensive ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis win the battle on the perimeter. The pair's speed and relentlessness should provide an edge against Chicago offensive tackles John Tait (left) and Fred Miller (right), especially if Indianapolis can force third-and-long situations. Freeney tends to play big in big games and loves the spotlight, but he had just two tackles and no sacks Sunday. The Colts need him to show up more. Miller is a solid veteran tackle, but he doesn't play against pure, upfield speed-rushers very often, and he could have his hands full against Mathis.
3. Complementary players on offense continue to make big plays. The Indianapolis offense still revolves around Manning, Harrison and Wayne, but there are a lot of role players who have stepped up, particularly in the passing game, to help overcome injuries. Clark has been huge in the playoffs, with a team-best 17 receptions and a gaudy 16.5-yard average. And Manning continues to be effective checking down to tailbacks Joseph Addai and Dominic Rhodes. Even a guy like No. 3 tight end Bryan Fletcher, who had a 32-yard catch on the winning drive Sunday, has contributed.