Colts Gab

“It’s déjà vu all over again”. Yogi Berra

The Indianapolis Colts never cease to amaze me; although to be fair, when you have been a Colts fan for as long as I have (39 years and counting), what they seem to do on a weekly basis seems eerily commonplace. When the Colts went to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars Thursday night, I didn’t expect a high-scoring event as most weeks the Jaguars are lucky to eclipse 20 points a game.

In any case, both teams hooked up at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium and the game had the feel of a track meet, so to speak. Defense was definitely an afterthought and interestingly enough, Jacksonville held the ball for 11 minutes longer than Indianapolis. Both teams seemed to score at will (did I mention that not much defense was played?), but as has been the custom this season, Peyton Manning tossed a late touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne with 5:23 in the fourth quarter, enabling Indianapolis to remain perfect as they got past Jacksonville 35-31.

Manning was perfect in the first half, going 12-of-12 for 116 yards and had TD passes to Austin Collie and Dallas Clark; Clark made an improbable sliding catch in the end zone which put the Colts up 7-3 early in the second quarter. Collie’s 23-yard catch put Indianapolis ahead 21-17 withy 35 seconds left in the half; the Jaguars got ot within field goal range but kicker Josh Scobee came up short on a 57-yard FG attempt.

The Jaguars would take the lead at 24-21 with a 16-yard David Garrard TD pass to Mike Sims-Walker but Manning would again hook up with Clark on a 27-yard TD strike, putting the Colts ahead again 28-24; a 13-yard Garrard-to-Mike Thomas TD pass put Jacksonville up at 31-28 with 47 seconds. But Manning would lead the Colts down the field and with 5:23 left in the game, he connected with Reggie Wayne on a 65-yard bomb which put Indianapolis up for good 35-31.

Manning had good numbers, going 23-of-30 for 308 yards with 4 TD’s and an interception while Garrard went 23-of-40 for 223 yards with 3 TD’s and an INT. Joseph Addai led the Colts rushers with 16 carries for 59 yards while Maurice Jones-Drew rushed 27 times for 110 yards and a TD while catching 5 passes for 30 yards and a score. Wayne led all Colts receivers with 5 receptions for 132 yards and a TD while Clark caught 7 passes for 95 yards and 2 TD’s. Sims-Walker led the Jaguars receivers with 6 receptions for 64 yards and a score while Marcedes Lewis caught 4 passes for 53 yards.

Indianapolis (14-0) gets a long rest as they do not play again until Sunday, December 27 when they play their final game at Lucas Oil Stadium this season, hosting the New York Jets while Jacksonville (7-7) travels to Foxborough, MA to take on the New England Patriots, a week from Sunday.

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning had a somewhat decent game – which most other NFL QB’s would die for – as he threw for a touchdown while throwing an interception. Yet the defense, namely the secondary, forced the Jacksonville Jaguars’ QB David Garrard out of his comfort zone as he was forced to go four-and-out with less than 2 minutes left in the game, enabling Indianapolis to hang on to the 14-12 win at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday.

The running game was nothing to really write home about although running back Joseph Addai ran for a touchdown and 42 yards. The Colts were shaky early as Manning threw a pick in the first quarter; as a result, the Jaguars used their running attack, led by Maurice Jones-Drew, to good results as kicker Josh Scobee converted a 24-yard field goal at the 8:55 mark of the second quarter, giving Jacksonville a 3-0 lead.

A decent drive led by Manning in the quarter, culminating in a 3-yard TD run by Addai, gave the Colts a 7-3 lead with 3:39 remaining in the half. Scobee would add a 46-yard FG to narrow the gap at halftime at 7-6. The third quarter was classic Manning as he led a drive a she went to the reliable Reggie Wayne often; they would connect on a 35-yard strike, giving the Colts a 14-6 advantage with 6:56 remaining in the quarter.

Jones Drew would score from 7 yards out, reducing Indianapolis’ advantage to 14-12; Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio opted to attempt a 2-point conversion, but were unsuccessful as their version of the “Wildcat” offense didn’t quite work. The Colts went 4-and-out after a mediocre drive, giving Jacksonville one last shot at the win. But a combination of a tight, Cover-2 defense along with timely pressure, especially from Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney, allowed Indianapolis to hang on for the narrow victory.

Manning, as previously mentioned, had a decent outing as he went 28-for-38 for 301 yards with a TD and an INT while Garrard was mediocre, at best, going 14-for-287 for 122 yards. Addai led the Colts’ ground attack with 17 carried for 42 yards and a score while Donald Brown added 33 yards on 11 carries; Jones had a good effort for the Jags as he rushed 21 times for 97 yards and a TD while catching five balls for 26 yards.

Wayne had an excellent game for Indianapolis as he caught 10 passes for 162 yards and a score while Clark caught four for 39 yards; Jaguars wide receiver Torry Holt led their receiving corps as he caught 3 passes for 47 yards.

There was a somewhat significant injury on the Colts’ side as WR Anthony Gonzalez went down in the first half with from what I saw appeared to be a knee injury; more results should be forthcoming. The Jaguars had injuries of their own, mostly on their defense. Again, once results arrive, NFL Gridiron Gab will bring the information to you. With the win, Manning tied Hall of Famer and former Colts QB Johnny Unitas with his 118th win.

Indianapolis (1-0) will now travel to Miami to face the 0-1 Dolphins while Jacksonville (0-1) will return home for their season opener next week as they host the Arizona Cardinals.

Masterful time management, a potent rushing game and a lucky break late in the game – these instances helped the Jacksonville Jaguars as a 51-yard field goal by placekicker Josh Scobee with 4 ticks on the game clock as they edged the Indianapolis Colts 23-21 Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Also factor in that Colts quarterback Peyton Manning had one of his worst games in recent memory, which contributed to the Jags’ masterful time management of the game clock. Combine all of those things, and it is a wonder that the Colts lost by only 2 points. The game started out promisingly enough as the Colts drew first blood with a touchdown pass from Manning to Marvin Harrison, taking a brief 7-0 lead. A drive in the early stages of the second quarter led to a Scobee FG, narrowing the gap to 7-3; about 7 minutes later, cornerback Rashean Mathis notched a pick-6, intercepting a Manning pass and returning the ball for a 61-yard interception return for a TD, boosting Jacksonville to a 10-7 lead. But Colts running back Joseph Addai would score late, rushing into the end zone on a 3-yard cary, giving the Colts a 14-10 lead, which they would take into halftime. The second half would completely different, however.

The third quarter was rather hum-drum with only one score – a 6-yard rushing TD by Jones-Drew, which gave the Jaguars a 17-14 lead going into the fourth quarter. Scobee would add another FG with 2:33 remaining, which would give Manning a chance to redeem his earlier mistakes. Manning did one of his patented, quick-hit rallies, capped by another rushing TD by Addai, pushing Indianapolis ahead 21-20. But Jaguars QB David Garrard managed a rally of his own, while catching a break along the way – including a 11-yard pass interference call – which set up the winning 51-yard field goal by Scobee.

Garrard had an efficient performance, going 16-for-22 for 167 yards with an interception, while Manning had a relatively average outing as he went 15-of-29 for 216 yards with a TD and 2 INT’s. The Jaguars rushing attack – all 236 yards of it – was led by Fred Taylor with 121 yards on 26 carries while Jones-Drew “added” 107 yards on only 19 carries; he also caught 4 passes for 59 yards. The Colts running game was led by Addai with 78 yards on 16 carries while catching a pass for 10 yards.

The aforementioned Jones-Drew led all Jaguars receivers with 59 yards on 4 receptions; the Colts’ leading receiver was Reggie Wayne who caught 3 passes for 74 yards. Tight end Dallas Clark, returning to action for the first time this season, caught 4 passes for 47 yards while Harrison caught 4 balls for 40 yards and a TD. Jacksonville (1-2) now returns home to Florida to host the Houston Texans on September 28 while Indianapolis (1-2) will have a bye week – at the most opportune time for them.