Flutie Is the Man for Bills

A rejuvenated Doug Flutie showed rookie Peyton Manning a thing or two about playing quarterback.

Back in the NFL after eight years in the Canadian Football League, Flutie passed for two touchdowns and set up two short scoring runs by Antowain Smith as the Buffalo Bills defeated the Indianapolis Colts, 31-24, on Sunday.

“I wish I was 28 years old right now, which is where I was when I left this league. But I’m not,” said Flutie, 35. “But I still have my athleticism, I can still run and throw, and quarterbacking is about making decisions.

“I’m getting a little smarter in my old age, and a lot more comfortable.”

Flutie, who signed with Buffalo as a free agent in January, entered the game in the first quarter after Rob Johnson was sacked and left with sore ribs. X-rays showed a separation of his rib cartilage, and the Bills (2-3) did not know how long Johnson will be out.

“I always believed I always could play. It’s a matter of people giving me the opportunity,” said Flutie, who also played in Buffalo’s season-opening last-second loss at San Diego, when Johnson suffered a concussion. “There are going to be days where I struggle . . . I played well today, we had a good game and moved the football, and I’m just trying to do my job.”

Flutie was 23 for 28 for 213 yards with no interceptions.

“Doug was fantastic,” Buffalo Coach Wade Phillips said. “He hit every pass, it looked like. The ones he didn’t were still on the money. He made all the big plays we needed. He can run the offense, scramble around and make things happen.”

Manning, the top pick in this year’s draft, was 20 for 41 for 235 yards, but was intercepted twice. He has thrown an NFL-high 14 interceptions. The Colts are 1-5.