Tag: Indianapolis Colts (Page 12 of 45)

Josh Scobee hits chip shot field goal as Jaguars upset Colts

JACKSONVILLE, FL - OCTOBER 03: Quarterback David Garrard  of the Jacksonville Jaguars rolls out against the Indianapolis Colts at EverBank Field on October 3, 2010 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Marc Serota/Getty Images)

The NFL – ha! It’s so predictable.

Well of course the Jaguars were going to upset the Colts today. Why wouldn’t they? They were only coming off back-to-back losses in which their opponents outscored them by a combined 66-16 and posses the 29th worst pass defense in the league. Peyton Manning didn’t have a chance!

And of course you knew that Josh Scobee would nail a 59-yarder right down the middle to win the game. That was easy to call.

Seriously, what a freaking kick by Scobee. I’m sure both sidelines were saying, “All right, after this fool dribbles one to about the 7-yard line, we’ll head into overtime and see if we can’t get this thing done.”…Or Scobee will nail it and give the Jaguars an improbable 31-28 victory.

The NFL – so predictable.

Let’s give it up for David Garrard for a second. For the past two weeks, the guy has played like Joey Harrington on his worst day and he came out on Sunday and completed 17-of-22 passes for 163 yards and two touchdowns. The Colts’ pass defense played passive aggressive the entire day and Garrard made them pay. He may revisit the Harrington style next week, but for one day he was solid.

As for the Colts, they were just outplayed. They allowed Maurice Jones-Drew and company to rack up 174 rushing yards and also committed two turnovers offensively. The Jaguars had to play a near-perfect game to win and that’s exactly what they did.

As I wrote earlier in my predictions for this week, the Jags always seem to give the Colts trouble and that’s exactly what happened again today. Nice win.

Example 948A that stats can be misleading

Denver Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton throws against the Indianapolis Colts during the first quarter at Invesco Field at Mile High on September 26, 2010 in Denver.    UPI/Gary C. Caskey Photo via Newscom

If someone were to ask me before the games today how many points the Broncos would score if Kyle Orton threw for 476 yards, I probably would have responded with: “31.”

Because you have to figure that Denver gets in the end zone at least four times if Kyle freaking Orton is throwing for 476 yards. I mean, there’s no way the Broncos are scoring less than 31 points if Kyle bowl haircut Orton throws for 476 yards, right?

Thirteen. As in 13. As in 13 points the Broncos scored on Sunday in their 27-13 loss to the Colts.

How does Kyle Orton throw for 476 yards and the Broncos only score 13 points? Matt Schaub threw for nearly 500 yards last week in Washington. Do you know how many points the Texans scored? Thirty. I realize that Houston has a much more potent offense than Denver, but the math doesn’t add up when a quarterback throws for nearly 500 yards, only turns the ball over once and his team only scores 13 measly points.

Josh McDaniels is going to look at the film from the game today and puke. Peyton Manning threw for 325 yards and three touchdowns, but everyone knew he was going to do that. He’s Peyton Manning. When Kyle Orton gives you 476 yards, you have to at least be in position to win that game in the end.

The Broncos ran nine plays inside the Colts’ 15-yard line in the second quarter alone and only came away with three points. The red zone offense was brutal the entire game and some of that is on McDaniels, some of it is on Orton, some of that is on his receivers, some of it is on the offensive line and some of it you just have to chalk up to good defense.

Either way, Kyle Orton threw for 476 yards today and the Broncos only scored 13 points. I guess I could have just written that and saved myself 250-plus words, because it explains it all.

What a difference a week makes for Colts, who crush sloppy Giants

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning (18) greets his brother, New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning after their NFL football game in Indianapolis September 19, 2010.  REUTERS/Brent Smith (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

One of the most maddening aspects of the NFL is how teams can play like pure, unfiltered garbage one week and the next resemble a completely different unit.

We knew the Colts weren’t going to play as poorly as they did last Sunday all season. But this was a team that gave up 257 rushing yards a week ago in a lopsided 34-24 loss to Houston and also looked out of sync offensively. And with the Giants coming to town on Sunday night, Indy had cause for concern that its weaknesses would once again be exposed.

But in their 38-14 thrashing of the Giants in Week 2, the Colts resembled the team that played in the Super Bowl seven months ago. They were balanced offensively, they forced three turnovers and they ran the ball with conviction. Their run defense was still a bit of an issue (New York gained 120 yards on the ground), but Indy built such a big lead that the Giants had to scrap the run by halftime.

Speaking of the Giants, Tom Coughlin has to be concerned that his team has now turned the ball over seven times in two games. David Diehl and Kareem McKenzie didn’t do Eli Manning (13-of-24, 161 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT) any favors, as they allowed Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney VIP access into New York’s pocket on damn near every play. Eli also lost a fumble right before halftime that led to a Colts’ touchdown and while he did throw for two scores, he spent most of the night looking completely befuddled on the sidelines.

Of course, he still had a better evening than Brandon Jacobs, who continues to watch his role in the Giants’ offense diminish and who somehow threw his helmet into the stands at one point during the game. According to ESPN sideline report Andrea Kramer, Jacobs was trying to throw his helmet either on the ground or into the Giants’ bench, yet somehow it wound up landing five rows into the stands. So either Jacobs intended to throw it that far or his helmet was made at NASA and can literally fly on its own.

The G-Men might be 1-1 on the new year, but it’s already time for Coughlin to tighten the reins. Dumb mistakes are killing this team and with the Cowboys off to a brutal start, they can’t be shooting themselves in the foot right now. Losing to the Colts is nothing to be ashamed of, but the Giants were never in it from the start. With a pissed off Titans team coming to town next week, New York better get their affairs in order quickly.

Texans finally face their demons, defeat Colts on Foster’s monster day

NEW ORLEANS - AUGUST 21: Arian Foster  of the Houston Texans celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the New Orleans Saints at the Louisiana Superdome on August 21, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

Arian Foster probably got to the Texans’ locker room after Houston’s 34-24 win on Sunday and said, “No seriously, that was the team you guys have been scared of all these years?”

Entering today’s game, the Texans were just 1-15 against the Colts lifetime. But thanks to Foster’s 231-yard rushing performance (which is the most by a running back in an opening weekend game since O.J. Simpson ran for 250 yards in 1973), Houston finally got the Indianapolis monkey of its back.

Perhaps what was most impressive about Foster is that he grinded it out for a full four quarters. Don’t forget that this is a highly inexperienced player, one that spent most of 2009 on the practice squad. So with his team up 20-10 midway through the fourth quarter and looking to punch another hole in the Colts’ jugular, Foster rushed for 78 yards on just three carries and scored his second touchdown of the day. He showed his mettle all day, but especially on that drive.

The win was big for the Texans for two reasons: 1) they proved that they could finally beat a team that has dominated them over the years and 2) they also showed that they could beat a team in the AFC South after going 1-5 a year ago. It’s only Week 1, but this is the type of win that could give a budding postseason contender confidence for the rest of the season.

Perhaps what was most impressive was that the Texans didn’t beat the Colts through the air, but on the ground. Matt Schaub only completed 9 of 17 passes for 107 yards, so clearly he didn’t have his best day. Thus, for Houston to attack Indy’s greatest weakness (defensive tackle) and execute to perfection will have Gary Kubiak sleeping well tonight.

The same goes for Arian Foster.

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