Tag: Indianapolis Colts (Page 9 of 45)

      Bengals hold Manning without touchdown pass, still lose

      November 14, 2010 /
      Indianapolis Colts defensive back Kelvin Hayden (26) scores a touchdown after intercepting a pass while Colts defensive back Jerraud Powers (25) blocks Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Jordan Shipley during the first quarter of their NFL football game in Indianapolis November 14, 2010. REUTERS/Brent Smith (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

      Imagine what the Bengals could do if they bothered to show up for 60 minutes.

      For the third time in four weeks, the Bengals spotted their opponent a sizable lead before coming back in the second half. And for the third time in four weeks, their comeback attempt fell short.

      Cincy held Peyton Manning to 185 yards passing and zero touchdowns, but Carson Palmer gift-wrapped a 23-17 win for the Colts by throwing three interceptions (one of which was returned for a 31-yard touchdown by Kelvin Hayden). All told, the Bengals finished with five turnovers on the day and despite outgaining the Colts and holding Manning in check, Cincinnati lost its sixth game in a row.

      For Indianapolis, tight end Jacob Tamme continues to blossom into a nice young player for the Colts. He caught seven passes for 73 yards, which was good for a 10.4 yards-per-catch average. He was targeted 10 times by Manning, more than any other Colts’ receiver.

      Next Sunday makes for an interesting matchup in Foxboro, as Indianapolis travels to New England to take on the Patriots. Depending on what happens Sunday night in Pittsburgh, the Pats could be looking to avoid a three-game losing streak when the Colts come to down. (Monday morning update: Uh, or maybe not.)

      External Sports, NFL

      NFL Week 9 MVP power rankings

      November 14, 2010 /

      It’s getting more and more crowded at the top in these power rankings. It seems like each week, someone new steps up and tried to claim a nomination or spot on this list. That’s life in the 2010 NFL season. Here are the MVP rankings for this week….and since there was a game Thursday, we have to take it into account:

      1. Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons—On pace for 125 catches, 1660 yards and 12 TDs

      2. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—Who is he even throwing to? Yet still on pace for almost 5000 yards

      3. Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers—11 sacks at mid-point with a shot to break Michael Strahan’s single-season record

      4. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons—The Falcons are the first 7-win team (thanks to a Thursday nighter) and Ryan helped lead them to victory against Baltimore

      5. Arian Foster, Houston Texans—Exactly where did this dude come from? He’s carried the ball 157 times and is averaging 5.5 yards per attempt.

      6. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers—He has even less warm bodies than Manning to throw to, yet keeps putting numbers up.

      7. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles—With all due respect to Kevin Kolb, the Eagles are a playoff team with Vick, spectators without him.

      8. Osi Umenyiora, New York Giants—The sacks leader on a D-line that leads the league in knocking out quarterbacks

      9. Hakeem Nicks, New York Giants—Leads all wide receivers in TDs

      10. Tom Brady, New England Patriots—It’s not so much the numbers, it’s the way this dude leads his team week after week—and they are looking pretty good.

      External Sports, NFL

      Michael Vick has matured as a quarterback

      November 7, 2010 /
      ARLINGTON, TX - JANUARY 9: Michael Vick #7 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on from the sideline in the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys during the 2010 NFC wild-card playoff game at Cowboys Stadium on January 9, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

      When everyone was drinking the Michael Vick Kool-Aid earlier this season, I told anyone that would listen to hold off on naming the Philadelphia quarterback Comeback Player of the Year. The reason being was that I was waiting for him to revert back to the quarterback he was in Atlanta (i.e. a player who would frustrate you with his poor decision making just as quickly as he would dazzle you with his highlight reel skills).

      But after observing him in the Eagles’ 26-24 win over the Colts on Sunday, the only thing I’ll say now is pass the Kool-Aid because I would love to take a sip.

      Vick is a different player now than what he was in Atlanta. Not only is he making better in-game decisions, but he seems more prepared, calmer in the pocket and is allowing the game to come to him. He used to try to get by on his God-given talent but he appears to be reading defenses better now than at any point during his tenure with the Falcons.

      Against Indy, he completed 17-of-29 passes for 218 yards and one touchdown while rushing for 74 yards and a score on 10 carries. But stats don’t tell the whole story. When he had time to throw, he went through all of his progressions before finding open receivers. When Dwight Freeney (who played an undisciplined game, might I add) would race up the field trying to crash the pocket, Vick would make one move before picking up first downs with his legs. Sounds simple enough, but these are things he would only do part of the time in Atlanta.

      The old Michael Vick may have found a way to lose on Sunday. He would have run too much, tired himself out and then fumbled with the game on the line when he could barely catch his breath. Or he would have forced a pass over the middle thinking the rocket launcher he has for an arm could throw the ball through any window.

      But not this year’s Vick. This year’s Vick is patient, smart, and he’s careful with the football. He’s a team player now and a different quarterback – a mature one.

      Maybe Vick will eventually revert back to the way he was in Atlanta and this fairytale will have a horrible ending. There’s still a lot of season left and Vick will have plenty of chances to either will his team to victory or succumb to failure. But if he continues to play like he has this season, the Eagles will be dangerous come January.

      External Sports, NFL

      Asante Samuel complains to refs while Austin Collie lays motionless on the field

      November 7, 2010 /
      PHILADELPHIA - DECEMBER 15: Asante Samuel #22 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates with Quintin Mikell #27 and Trent Cole #58 after an interception for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns on December 15, 2008 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

      Football is an emotional game and emotions are bound to come out following big plays, nasty hits or yes, when players feel that an official missed a call.

      But to watch Asante Samuel dance around the field in disgust over a call that a ref made during the Colts-Eagles game as Indianapolis receiver Austin Collie lay motionless on the field was, for lack of a better word, unfortunate.

      Collie had been knocked unconscious after three Eagles defenders sandwiched him following a reception (or what was perceived to be a reception) late in the second quarter. As trainers attended to Collie, Samuel began hopping up and down in protest of the call (either the unnecessary roughness penalty that had been drawn or the call of an incomplete pass when it looked like Collie had secured the catch and then fumbled, which resulted in a recovery by Philadelphia).

      I realize that helmet-to-helmet hits are a sore subject between the players and the league right now, but Samuel could have handled the situation with more class. There was Collie lying motionless on the ground and Samuel picked that moment to bitch at the official. I wonder how he would have felt if one of the Falcons players did that while his teammate DeSean Jackson was knocked out following a big collision a couple of weeks ago. Again, emotions come out in football but Samuel should have held his in check right before Collie was carried off the field on a stretcher. There were more important things at hand than whether or not the official got the call right.

      Hopefully the reports on Collie will be positive. I’ll update this post when I hear more.

      Update: Collie is said to be “sitting up and responsive” in the Colts’ locker room, which is great news.

      External Sports, NFL

      NFL Week 8 MVP, COY and ROY Power Rankings

      November 7, 2010 /


      It’s getting tougher and tougher, isn’t it? I’m glad the people who actually vote for these categories can do it at the end of the season, but they can’t possibly have this much fun trying to pick the winners from week to week. With that, here are our Week 8 power rankings…..

      MVP Power Rankings

      1. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—Manning’s stats have been consistent all season, but the fact that his Colts are now 5-2 and firmly in place to win another AFC South crown and possibly much more, you just can’t ignore him.

      2. Tom Brady, New England Patriots—With or without Randy Moss, Brady gets it done, and he has less to work with now than he has in a while. Not to mention, he has to carry a less-than-stellar (by New England standards) defense this year.

      3. Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers—Matthews now leads the NFL with 10 sacks through seven games, and he has 27 tackles, one stuff, one forced fumble and one pass deflected. More than that, he helped pitch a shutout of the Jets last week. The dude is just sick.

      3 (tie). Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons—Go outside. Throw a football up in the air as high as you can throw it. Before you watch the ball hit the ground, Roddy White will have appeared out of nowhere to catch it. That’s how good this dude is.

      Honorable mention: Ahmad Bradshaw, New York Giants; Antonio Gates, San Diego Chargers; LaDainian Tomlinson, New York Jets; Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers; Osi Umenyiora, New York Giants; Arian Foster, Houston Texans; James Harrison, Pittsburgh Steelers; Jerod May, New England Patriots, Brandon Lloyd, Denver Broncos; Ndamukong Suh, Detroit Lions

      Coach of the Year Power Rankings

      1. Raheem Morris, Tampa Bay Bucs—Last season, the Bucs were 3-13 and just flat-out awful. This season, they have almost doubled their win total through seven games (5-2) and Morris has them believing they are the best team in the NFC. It doesn’t matter if he’s right, it just matters that they believe, and thanks to Morris, it looks like they do.

      2. Todd Haley, Kansas City Chiefs—If the Chiefs win Sunday against the Raiders, they and their fans can start talking about an AFC West title. Just like Morris, this comes after an awful 2009 campaign (4-12).

      3. Tom Coughlin, New York Giants—I’m sorry to continue to back my guy, but even though the Giants had a bye last week, it’s still incredible that Coughlin brought his team from 1-2 and dead in the gutter to the class of the NFC (sorry, Raheem) with four straight convincing wins.

      Honorable mention: Tom Cable, Oakland Raiders; Jeff Fisher, Tennessee Titans, Pete Carroll, Seattle Seahawks;; Rex Ryan, New York Jets; Andy Reid, Philadelphia Eagles, Steve Spagnuolo, St. Louis Rams; Bill Belichick, New England Patriots; Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons; Tom Cable, Oakland Raiders; Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers

      Rookie of the Year Power Rankings

      1. Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams—The kid is putting up average numbers (1674 yards, 11 TDs, 8 picks), but the Rams are a respectable 4-4 and challenging for a division title, and they are led by this dude. Who would have thought?

      2. Ndamukong Suh, Detroit Lions—This rather large man is just a beast—a man-beast if you will—in the middle. When was the last time the Lions had a guy like that? And he’s leading all linebackers in the NFL with 7 sacks.

      3. Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys—Yeah, the Cowboys aren’t very good this year. But this kid is one reason to watch them play.

      Honorable mention: Jahvid Best, Detroit Lions; Max Hall, Arizona Cardinals; Rolando McClain, Oakland Raiders; Jermaine Gresham, Cincinnati Bengals

      External Sports, NFL

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