It’s one of the all-time sports cliches, uttered endlessly by analysts everywhere when dispensing their knowledge before a big game.

“They’ve got to get off to a good start."

Feel free to burst out laughing the next time you hear that because, as the Colts proved again on Sunday, good starts don’t quite equal good finishes in the grand scheme of things. Fact is, fast starts are often the worst thing that can happen to a team, regardless of the sport.

The Colts’ 10-0 first quarter lead didn’t amount to a hill of confetti when the game ended and Bourbon Street was flooding with fans celebrating New Orleans' first Super Bowl victory. It turned out, in fact, to be an obstacle, as early comfort zones usually do when two teams are evenly matched.

Fast starts yield the virus of complacency and a defensive mindset. It’s unlikely that the Colts were guilty of ...