Colts Observations: Week 16 vs. Chiefs

Big win. The Colts needed this one, a quality win on the road against a good football team. They showed us some of the things that had been sorely lacking during an up-and-down stretch of games after the Denver win. We saw the dominating defense and a versatile offense that could move the ball. The offensive line held up well (especially in pass protection).

Turnover battle. The Kansas City Chiefs came into the game +21 in turnover margin. They left the game +17 (-4 vs. Indy). The Colts forced four turnovers: two fumbles and two interceptions. They took care of the ball on their end.

Rough start. The Colts didn't get off to an ideal start. They went three and out on offense after failing to convert a short run on third down. They gave up a 25-yard punt return to the dangerous Dexter McCluster. The defense then proceeded to surrender a 31-yard touchdown run to Jamaal "Two A's are better than one" Charles. Then, another three and out. After they stopped KC, Adam Vinatieri missed a 34-yard field goal. Again, Adam Vinatieri missed a 34-yard field goal. But then...

They got back on track. The defense forced another KC punt, the Colts put together a drive in which Vinatieri nailed a 46-yard field goal, and then Robert Mathis (or maybe Jerrell Freeman...it's hard to tell) forced a fumble by Knile Davis. The turnover took the crowd out of the game and completely turned things around. From that point forward, the Colts completely dominated, shutting down the Chiefs offense and dominating time of possession. Seriously, the Colts held a 38:20 to 21:40 advantage in time of possession.

And they should've had another turnover. Late in the second quarter, Junior Hemingway "caught" a pass and then "fumbled" it. The officials ruled he never controlled the ball (incomplete pass). At first blush, I thought that was the case. Then I saw a replay. Hemingway caught the ball, tucked it away, and took several strides before the Colts jarred the ball loose. This is clear from the review. The officials, on the other hand, let the play stand as called. So instead of another turnover, the Chiefs had a chance to score a field goal (although they ended up missing it).

After the embarrassing blown call in the Bengals game ("The Phantom Touchdown"), I'd like to hear an explanation for this one.

Fortunately, officiating guru Mike Pereira said the following on Twitter:

That was a bang-bang play in KC - in real time, you have to stay with the call there.

— Mike Pereira (@MikePereira) December 22, 2013

Wait. I should've specified that I wanted a good explanation. I should've clarified that. If "in real time, you have to stay with the call," then WHY ON GOD'S GREEN EARTH DO WE HAVE INSTANT REPLAY?

Ahem. The Colts ended up being the beneficiary of a couple of calls (including a taunting penalty that kept a drive alive), which I can only say must be a karmic offsetting of this idiocy. I think it's safe to say NFL officials have had a very, very bad year. Who thought things would get worse after TOUCHCEPTION last year?



O Canada. Jerrell Freeman isn't from Canada, but he played in the CFL. Anyway, he was a beast Sunday. He was "only" credited with five tackles, but he had a sack, a QB hit, three passes defensed, a forced fumble, and two interceptions. One of those interceptions came right at the goal line, killing any chance the Chiefs had for a late rally. He has to be the defensive player of the week.

Look there, a pass rush! The Colts harassed Alex Smith all day, finishing with four sacks. Freeman, Ricardo Matthews (0.5 sacks), Fili Moala (0.5 sacks), Cory Redding, and Bjoern Werner all sacked Smith at Arrowhead. It was great to see the interior of the defense create pressure. It's something we haven't seen much this season.

Nothing secondary about it. The Colts were terrific in pass coverage. KC lacks star power in the receiving corps, but Smith is an underrated passer who plays behind a good offensive line. Vontae Davis and company had a fantastic game in coverage. Josh Gordy kept tight coverage on a pass that would've resulted in a touchdown. They were physical and wouldn't let the Chiefs run free downfield. Because passing windows were tight and/or took long to develop, it helped the defensive line feast on Smith.

Bethea brings the lumber. I've heard rumbles that Antoine Bethea is losing it. While he's certainly been beaten a few times in pass coverage, he can still lay the lumber over the middle. He delivered a couple big hits Sunday that rattled my teeth. He helped set the tone on defense, for sure.

Bad, Bad Donald Brown. Sometimes "bad" is good, right? That's definitely the case here. Donald Brown provided two big plays that resulted in touchdowns: a 33-yard reception and a 51-yard run. Both were worthy of the highlight reel, even though the run was the real showstopper.

Here's a GIF courtesy of GIFD Sports:

Richardson Watch. 16 carries, 43 yards (2.7 YPC). 3 receptions, 15 yards. Clearly, Brown was the more productive back (as usual). Still, Richardson was out there in short yardage situations and toward the end of the game as the Colts tried to grind down the clock. I think he's finally settling in, but he's not a threat to break huge runs like Brown. He also picked up a crucial conversion on a fourth down play in the second quarter.

GRIFFNATION! Shame on the Colts for cutting, re-signing, cutting, and re-signing Griff Whalen. While their woes without Reggie Wayne will never disappear, Whalen is a reliable target who makes plays. He led the Colts in receiving (seven catches for 80 yards) and was the go-to guy on third down. He needs to stay on the field. My favorite was the one in which Whalen made two KC defenders collide before scampering for a first down. While we suffered through weeks with David Reed and Darrius Heyward-Bey sucking it big time, GRIFFNATION was reserved to the practice squad. PLAY HIM.

And speaking of DHB... I do hope something good happens to Darrius Heyward-Bey one of these days. He made a couple big special teams plays, dropping McCluster on a punt return and downing a punt at the 5-yard line. It takes a certain type of guy to have his role severely diminished on offense only to suck it up and shine on special teams. DHB, apparently, is that type of guy.

He really read the green well there on the chip shot. Pat McAfee tackled a guy this week. He also had an awesome golf-inspired celebration after pinning the Chiefs deep in their own territory:

Great adjustment. Andrew Luck found T.Y. Hilton as wide open as he'll ever be. Facing pressure, Luck lofted the ball to Hilton, who made a great adjustment and reeled it in for a 31-yard reception.

Playoffs? Playoffs! The Colts are in (they were in after the Broncos beat the Titans in Week 14). They're not yet locked into a seed as of this writing.

And it's worth mentioning... I still love Peyton Manning. If you were a Colts fan at any time, you want No. 18 to do well. I'm glad to see him take back the single-season TD record. Fittingly, it came against the Texans. Poor, poor Texans.

Colts Observations: Week 13 vs. Titans

Division within reach. Barring an epic collapse, the Colts will win the AFC South. They have a three-game lead over the Titans and hold the tiebreaker. Essentially, the Colts would have to lose their last four games and the Titans would have to sweep their last four for the Colts to miss out on a division title.

Vintage "Money." Adam Vinatieri nailed five field goals for the Colts (with a long of 49 yards). On a day when the offense stalled repeatedly, the Colts needed Vinatieri to come through, and he did. He's having a fantastic season.

The turnover battle. The Colts forced four turnovers: three interceptions and a fumble (all from Ryan Fitzpatrick). Cassius Vaughn--relegated to third cornerback after a couple rough starts in place of Greg Toler--picked off two passes. Indy turned the ball over early in the game after a pass from Andrew Luck went off T.Y. Hilton's hands and bounced into the hands of a waiting Titans defender. The Colts defense forced a punt.

Thank you, Jerrell Freeman. The linebacker was all over the place Sunday, finishing with nine tackles and asked to cover Chris Johnson when Tennessee split their running back out wide a few times. He saved his best play for last, picking off a Fitzpatrick pass as the Titans tried to rally for a touchdown and two-point conversion to send the game to OT. Freeman also recovered a fumble after a sack by Robert Mathis.

Why is Darrius Heyward-Bey a professional football player for the Indianapolis Colts? Hey, it worked last week with David Reed. DHB drew a couple pass interference penalties and caught a pass for 23 yards. Those were his good things. He also got buried for an 11-yard loss on an ill-advised running play, was whistled for offensive pass interference (in his defense, the call was iffy), and--in glorious DHB style--dropped a pass that killed a potential touchdown drive. Sigh.

Donald Brown gets the start. Honestly, he should've started last week on the heels of his great second half against this same Tennessee team. He didn't do much until the last drive, finishing with a relatively unimpressive 14 carries for 54 yards and a TD. The key is when the bulk of those yards came--Brown had 46 yards on the game-clinching drive.

Luck uses his legs. His offensive line can't protect him. His receivers can't get open, and when they do, they drop passes. Luck showed that extra dimension he can bring to the offense when he scrambled for 32 yards on the last drive. He was the team's second-leading rusher, scrambling five times for 42 yards.

Still can't Protect the Franchise. The Colts offensive line is abysmal. Luck got dropped five times; there was an occasion or two in which he held onto the ball too long, but most of this goes on the offensive line. What does this tell us? Despite opening the checkbook and making big moves, the Colts and GM Ryan Grigson failed in their primary mission to protect Andrew Luck. Swapping out Mike McGlynn for Jeff Linkenbach didn't make a noticeable difference.

Richardson demoted. It just hasn't worked out. The Colts made a splash by pulling the trigger on the Richardson trade, and I don't think the "jury is still out" on this one. The Colts have gotten about as much from this former first-round pick as they could've gotten out of a guy from the scout team at the cost of next year's first-round pick. It's expensive mediocrity, even though I'd really like to see him prove me wrong. Earlier, it looked like Donald Brown was being successful because the Colts ran him in certain situations (and with more spread formations). Lately, though, Brown has hit the hole hard in the power formations and found success.

Time to unleash Da'Rick Rogers. Since the Colts are getting nothing from DHB, it's time to give Da'Rick Rogers more playing time. Even though DHB "knows the offense," it doesn't matter because he's not a reliable target. Rogers may suck; I have no idea. But the truth is that he can't hurt the team anymore than DHB. And maybe, just maybe, he'll find himself in the right place and catch the football.

Goal line stand. The Colts stiffened when the Titans tried to get the ball into the endzone from the two. They stuffed Tennessee three times before a little gimmick/misdirection pass resulted in a touchdown. By the way, when you watch that play at regular speed, it kind of looks like Chris Johnson dropped the ball and "didn't complete the catch." It looks a lot different on the replay.

Robert Mathis: Master of the Sack-Fumble. Robert Mathis is having a season for the ages. The Colts pass rush didn't do much Sunday, but Mathis forced a sack-fumble after getting around the edge and knocking the ball away from Fitzpatrick. The Colts ended up salvaging a field goal from the drive.

Your free gift: three points! As time wound down in the first half, the Titans' Moise Fokou (a former Colt) decided to level Stanley Havili. If he'd kept his cool, the half would've ended because T.Y. Hilton caught a pass in bounds and the Colts were out of timeouts. Instead, the idiotic penalty put the Colts in prime position for a field goal.

Return change. With David Reed gone, the Colts turned the return game over to Chris Rainey, who handled both kickoffs and punts. He wasn't measurably more effective than Reed on kickoffs. Rainey filled in on punts for T.Y. Hilton and turned in a nice return for 18 yards. On the flip side, he also muffed a punt return. Thankfully, special teams standout Sergio Brown was there to recover and advance. Brown has quietly had a fantastic season in the third phase of the game.

Ain'tcha ever comin' back, ain'tcha? What's the deal with Greg Toler? The Colts haven't put him on injured reserve and he's been "trending in the right direction" for approximately forever now. The secondary hasn't been the same since Toler's been out. I hope he returns to the lineup soon, because I could think of a few positions that could use that roster spot.

Colts Observations, Week 7 vs. Broncos

Heroic Homecoming. The video tribute to Peyton Manning was a thing of beauty. For the most part, I've dealt with his departure well, but seeing him get a warm reception from the fans and realizing it had an impact on him got to me. Peyton Manning is a great quarterback who, if circumstances had accommodated, would've played his entire career with the Colts. But his injury, his contract, a terrible season, and the chance to pick the next franchise quarterback all factored into the decision to let him go. He's found a good home in Denver, but he'll always be a Colt and we'll always love him.

This one belonged to the defense. Denver has been pretty much unstoppable all season, yet the Colts slowed them down, particularly in the first half. While Peyton went off in the second half, the defense came up with two timely turnovers that preserved the game. I know Indy gave up 33 points, but they played big when they needed to.

Won't lose back-to-back games. The best thing I can say about the new regime is that they're resilient. After a lackluster performance last week, the Colts responded with a huge game in prime time. In front of a national audience, the city welcomed Manning back while the "new" Colts showed how they want to win games. This win was major in the suddenly muddled AFC and helped the Colts take a two-game lead in the division.

Andrew Luck. His first half numbers were huge, while his second half numbers weren't. Still, the Colts quarterback showed the grit and mettle we've become accustomed to, staying elusive in the pocket and picking up yards with his legs when necessary. The guy needs to take some sliding lessons, though. He looked like a wounded baby gazelle on ice the one time he slid.

Robert Mathis. After years of having Manning in a red shirt that made him untouchable, Robert Mathis got to sack Manning twice, including a game-changing sack/fumble that resulted in a safety and completely turned the game around. Mathis was credited with four quarterback hits for the game, and when Denver left him one-on-one with a lineman, he typically made them pay.

Conflicted fans. This was one of the weirder games I've ever watched, and I got the sensation that the crowd felt the same way. Some people wanted Manning to come back and kick the Colts' butt, others wanted to see him play a good game but lose, and I'm sure there were some out there who wanted the Colts to dominate the game. I think, oddly enough, the game managed to hit all those points.

Running away with it. At one point, the Colts looked like they were going to run away with this one. They led 36-17 after Adam Vinatieri nailed a 52-yard field goal. Colts fans were feeling it, and the Broncos looked too out of sync to manage a comeback.

Not running away with it. Then, the game turned. Denver scored back-to-back touchdowns and the Colts were clinging to a lead. Just like that, it looked like Peyton was going to out-Peyton his old team.

Trent Richardson. I keep looking for good things to say, but I have to look really hard. Every time he gets the ball, he gets buried by the defense. Sunday night, he had 14 carries for 37 yards and a fumble that turned a convincing win into a nail-biter. Is it going to click for this guy? On a third and one play in the first half, Denver stacked about 80 guys in the box. This would've been a perfect time for some play action or misdirection, but they ran a power play and Richardson went nowhere.

3rd and 11. Nothing was bigger than Andrew Luck's third down scramble that turned into a first down. The play set up a touchdown to Stanley Havili, giving the Colts the lead for the first time of the night.

Laying down the #Boomstick. Pat McAfee lived the dream, absolutely unloading on diminutive Broncos punt returner Trindan Holliday in Mario Harvey fashion. Not too long ago, the Boomstick was the Colts' leading special teams tackler, so it's good to see he's still got good form.

The Fleener Drive. The defense got a huge stop just before halftime, and Luck led the team on a big touchdown drive to go up 26-14. The big factor in that drive, shockingly, was Coby Fleener, who caught three passes for 31 yards, including a 21-yard reception in which he helicoptered over Broncos defenders (without fumbling). The drive ended with a walk-in eight-yard TD catch. After dropping a sure touchdown last week, it was a big rebound for Fleener in a crucial situation.

Kevin Vickerson is a terrible human being. By my count, Kevin Vickerson was flagged for three big penalties (twice for taking his helmet off in the field of play if I recall correctly). The biggest bonehead play of the night was his loving "chest bump" on Andrew Luck on a second and eight incompletion. The penalty got the Colts out of bad field position and awarded them a first down when chomping clock was key. It was a stupid play; Vickerson clearly had time to pull up and then decided he'd knock Luck down instead with a little chest bump action to show us all how tough he really was. The bonehead got what he deserved, and if I were the Broncos, I'd cut him immediately.

The Never-Ending Punt. The Colts tried really hard to punt at the end of the game, but penalties kept taking time off the clock. Here's the line:

4th and 8 at IND 22 - P.McAfee punts 56 yards to DEN 22, Center-M.Overton, fair catch by T.Holliday. PENALTY on IND-M.Overton, Offensive Holding, 10 yards, enforced at IND 22 - No Play.

4th and 18 at IND 12 - P.McAfee punts 44 yards to DEN 44, Center-M.Overton. T.Holliday pushed ob at IND 45 for 11 yards (D.Herron). Penalty on IND-S.Havili, Offensive Holding, offsetting, enforced at IND 12 - No Play. Penalty on DEN-A.Caldwell, Defensive Holding, offsetting. Penalty on DEN-S.Johnson, Illegal Block Above the Waist, declined.

After all this, the Colts took a timeout so their beleaguered special teams unit could take a breath. Al and Cris joked that the whole thing was great for the Colts because they took something like 30 seconds off the clock.

Vontae Davis thought he was playing the Patriots. In the post game interview, when asked how the Colts prepared, Vontae Davis said it's always a challenge getting ready for a great quarterback like Tom Brady. Vontae Davis the cornerback is a great player; Vontae Davis the post game interviewee is an idiot. Hard to say too much bad about him, though. He was phenomenal one-on-one.

Fumble? Not a fumble? Who recovered it? What is going on? Please, someone tell me. I had no idea what was going on when the Broncos fumbled in the red zone in the fourth quarter. Al Michaels didn't know what was going on. Cris Collinsworth didn't know what was going on. Then, all of a sudden, they said the referees gave the ball to Indy, yet we never really saw or heard a call down on the field. Then, they said the Colts couldn't challenge the play because they couldn't prove they had possession. A second later, they suggested maybe John Fox would challenge the play since the Colts had recovered (leading me to say, "There was a fumble? The Colts recovered? What are you talking about?!"). But turnovers are automatically reviewed up in the booth, so I think Al and Cris were just filling airtime. I don't know. I'm still confused.

Ten defensive backs? Could we have fifteen? Injuries mounted in the second half, with Darius Butler, Josh Gordy, and Vontae Davis all getting nicked up. This helped Denver find some holes in the passing game, as a few players were in unexpected situations and/or a little gimpy while trying to cover their guy.

Reggie Wayne Knee Watch, Day 1. Really, the fourth quarter was bad for the Colts. Nothing was worse than seeing Reggie Wayne go down on a big third and one play. He clutched his knee, howled in pain, and was inconsolable on the sideline. I hope it's just a sprain, but it didn't look good. Reggie's an iron man; hell, he's Ageless Reggie Wayne. The guy brings it every practice and every game. Luck and the Colts need him if they hope to make a playoff run. We'll be thinking about ya, No. 87. I also wonder what Peyton thought when Reggie went down. I know that's something he didn't want to see.

Crazy finish. About midway through the third quarter, it didn't look like the phrase "onside kick" would mean much, but Peyton kept things close.

DHB still can't catch a cold. Man. He's fast, he gets open, and he can't come up with the big play. Maybe, like Fleener, he'll find redemption. For now, though, he's simply a fast guy with mediocre receiving skills who makes the occasional play.

Great pass rush. The Colts were all over Peyton, hitting him ten times and sacking him on four occasions. They were able to get pressure in key situations, including a sack that led to a safety and another pressure that forced an interception. The defense also brought Manning down on the Broncos' final drive of the game, forcing a field goal and a desperate onside kick.

Erik Walden was a factor. Repeat: Erik Walden was a factor. For the first time this season, Erik Walden factored into the game. When Denver finally made sure to double Mathis, Walden got some one-on-one opportunities, including a pressure that hit Manning's arm, resulting in an errant pass that Pat Angerer intercepted.

LaRon Landry: The Cleaner. Landry was all over the place. It's been unnerving to see him miss so much time since the Colts made him a big free agent acquisition, but he certainly has a presence on defense. His ability to make open-field tackles on short pass plays is uncanny and prevented at least a couple Denver first downs.

Defense and special teams. I don't know if you followed the pregame hype, but Colts owner Jim Irsay suggested that maybe the Colts didn't put as much emphasis on defense and special teams as they should have when Peyton played for Indy. What I got from it was that Peyton was such a good quarterback, he covered up those inadequacies. Those comments kind of became a big deal. It seemed fitting that defense and special teams factored so heavily into the Colts' success in this game. Manning, meanwhile, plugged away as always, throwing for 386 yards and three touchdowns. If only his bonehead teammates (Kevin Vickerson and Ronnie Hillman, I'm looking at you) could get out of his way.

Fourth and two! C'mon, show it! During the pregame show, several of the commentators shared some of their favorite Peyton Manning memories. Hines Ward regaled us with tales of the infamous game in which Mike Vanderjagt missed a field goal so badly, the ball still hasn't returned from the Phantom Zone. Collinsworth reminded us all of the great "Fourth and Two" game in which Bill Belichick, stuck with a crappy defense and a red-hot Manning, went for it on fourth and two deep in Patriots territory. The result: Kevin Faulk bobbled the ball and the Colts made the stop. Manning ended up winning the game. Unfortunately, they never showed a replay, but I had this tucked away in the archives:



Finally, our national nightmare is over. Peyton came back, the fans welcomed him, he almost pulled off a signature comeback, Andrew Luck answered his ten millionth question about what it's like to replace a legend, Peyton answered his twenty millionth question about what it's like to be back home, and we can stop talking about it for the rest of the year...unless the Colts and Broncos meet in the playoffs. Sigh.

Colts Observations, Week 3 at 49ers

Big lift. While the San Francisco 49ers struggled mightily against the Seahawks last week, no one thought they'd struggle at home against the Colts, who dropped a tough game to the Dolphins last week. The Colts were missing several starters (LaRon Landry, Samson Satele, Pat Angerer out this week; Donald Thomas, Vick Ballard, and Dwayne Allen out for the year) against a tough 49ers team and a mobile quarterback in Kaepernick, who's capable of giving the defense fits. Instead of backing down, the Colts out Harbaugh'd the Harbaugh team. Yes, that's a verb now.

Opening drive. The Colts put together a masterful opening drive aided early by two San Francisco penalties. This drive was mostly Andrew Luck throwing the ball. Heck, the very first play was a pass to Ahmad Bradshaw as the Colts worked to establish their passing game to set up their run. It ended with a short TD run by new acquisition Trent Richardson.

About Richardson... Not a great game; 13 carries for 35 yards and a paltry 2.7 yards per carry. Still, he had some good, tough runs and it was good to see the Colts weren't afraid to put him out there. He also dropped a couple passes. But in no way, shape, or form was he the big story. Not at all.

Bradshaw unbound. Ahmad Bradshaw was the workhorse for the Colts, carrying 19 times for 95 yards and hitting the magic 5.0 YPC mark. Bradshaw ran tough, breaking tackles and showing a great burst. On the decisive drive, he had carries of seven, 27, and eight yards. As the defense wore down, Bradshaw got stronger, and for the first time this season, we really saw the vaunted "power run" game we've heard so much about. After the defense forced a turnover late, Bradshaw plunged into the endzone for a well-deserved touchdown.

Dominant defense. Colts coach Chuck Pagano said he wanted to hang his hat on a dominant defense and a power running game. So far, the only thing the defense has done is make me hang my head. This week was a completely different story. The Colts contained Kaepernick, they hit Kaepernick, and they sacked him three times. Coverage on wide receivers was tight; the Niners QB seldom had anyone to throw to. Apart from an exhausting, nine-play, 91-yard drive that lasted more than 4:30 and resulted in a touchdown, this was as dominant of a defensive effort as you'll find.

You'll take Kaepernick over Luck, Phil? Still? Phil Simms stood by his statement that, if he were starting a franchise right now, he'd pick Kaepernick over Luck because he brings that extra dimension to the QB position while still having the ability to throw the ball accurately downfield. This would be the part where I'm a jerk by pointing out Luck outrushed Kaepernick and was much sharper in the passing game. Kaepernick completed less than 50% of his passes Sunday.

Efficient. Of course, as I taunt Phil Simms above, I have to point out that Luck didn't have the best game of his career. He was patient and efficient, taking off on a few scrambles to keep drives alive and getting the ball to receivers in critical situations. This was more of a ball control/field position type of game, and Luck managed it well.

Offensive line play. Aldon Smith wasn't a factor, although it's hard to say if his weekend legal trouble played a role at all. In two consecutive weeks, Indy held pass rushing maestros (Smith and Miami's Cameron Wake last week) without a sack. Overall, pass protection was solid this week, and it seemed like Luck wasn't running for his life every time he passed the ball. The o-line excelled in the running game, where they were road graders. Anthony Castonzo and Mike McGlynn in particular had good games.

Reitz, the tight end. One thing easy to miss is how often the Colts trotted out Joe Reitz as a tight end. He reported eligible on multiple plays, including the key play resulting in Luck's masterful touchdown run (much more on that later).

Ageless Reggie Wayne update. The Ageless One caught 5 passes for 65 yards. The 49ers kept him quiet for the most part, although he erupted for receptions of 25 yards and 19 yards on a long drive resulting in a missed field goal.

DHB. I like to abbreviate Darrius Heyward-Bey's name because I can never remember if "Darrius" has two "r's." Anyway, Luck looked for him early and often. He's been a much more reliable target than I thought he'd be earlier in the season. So far, he's been a good addition.

Third and suck. The Colts struggled again in third and short situations. On one play, they decided it'd be a great idea to give it to Donald Brown, who got stuffed to force a punt. His strength isn't running up the middle; let Richardson or Bradshaw do that (although they got stuffed in similar situations, too).

GRIFF NATION. Griff Whalen was silent this week, although he checked in for a few offensive plays. He did have a special teams tackle, however.

The Slow Fade. After doinking a key field goal last week, Old Man Vinatieri missed a long FG. This didn't come back to bite the Colts, thankfully, but it was a six-point game when he missed. He had the distance, this one just sailed slowly to the left.

Bethea's great tackle. Antoine Bethea made one of the best open field tackles you'll ever see, stopping Kaepernick for a one-yard gain on a third-and-four play. Bethea made an aggressive move, unwilling to let the Niners QB fake him out of his shoes. He wrapped, tackled, and drove Kaepernick to the ground. My note during the game: "Gotta mention that GREAT OPEN FIELD TACKLE by Antoine Bethea." So I have.

Stiff arm of justice. On a 15-yard scramble, Andrew Luck delivered a stiff arm that made a 49ers defender look absolutely silly. Even though Luck's an athletic, strong quarterback, I bet it can't feel very good to get schooled by a QB like that.

Huge defensive stand. One unfortunate side effect of Vinatieri's missed FG was that the Colts surrendered excellent field position to San Francisco. The drive went like this: "Pass incomplete to Celek. Second and ten. Hunter gets four after a short screen pass. Colts swarming today. Kaepernick sacked. Redding, Mathis combine for sack. Punt." The Colts scored the decisive touchdown on the very next drive.

Delano who? Backup safety Delano Howell made some big hits. He finished with four tackles and two passes defensed, filling in admirably for the injured LaRon Landry. Seriously, where do the Colts find these guys?

The Tenth Drive. My notes read as follows: "Incomplete to Boldin. Nice play by Butler. Second down pass incomplete. Kaepernick sacked, fumbled, Indy recovers. What a miserable day for Colin Kaepernick." The Colts had pretty much salted the game away with the late touchdown by Luck, but they erased any hope of a 49ers comeback by forcing the fumble. Jerrell Freeman got the sack and strip; Kavell Conner recovered it. Three plays later, Bradshaw waltzed into the endzone for a 27-7 lead. The Colts added another late turnover on an interception by Cassius Vaughn.

It's the slow knife that cuts the deepest, they say. The Colts used more than seven minutes of clock on a drive covering 80 yards in 11 plays. This one included a third down conversion to Darrius Heyward-Bey, a third down conversion on a defensive penalty, and a 27-yard run by Ahmad Bradshaw. This drive was about the Colts controlling the line of scrimmage and imposing their will on the 49ers. They made a statement with this one. Also worth noting was the time of possession: Colts 36:25, 49ers 23:35.

Division hunt. The Colts kept pace with the Houston Texans and Tennessee Titans with the win. All three teams have 2-1 records. The Jacksonville Jaguars are 0-3 and will welcome the Colts next week. Indy enters a tough stretch, so they'd best not take the Jags lightly. Even though I'm sure they probably will because...well...you know.

Now, let's go a little deeper. I don't always have time to do these little breakdowns, but I thought this was a good one, so I'm writing about it.



Okay, this is the run before the touchdown. Ahmad Bradshaw just ran for eight yards, and it's second and two. Here you can see the formation is a pure power run. Joe Reitz is at the tight end spot on the left; Dominique Jones is also in there. Stanley Havili is at fullback in a straight I-formation. This looks like run all the way on second and two. You see 49ers linebacker Ahmad Brooks on the edge there.



The give is to Bradshaw, and everyone knows it's going to him. Look at where the defenders are looking. They're all zeroed in on Bradshaw, and for good reason--he's killed them on this drive.



Note the garbage at the line of scrimmage. The run is designed to go left, but Brooks comes free off the edge as Luck hands the ball off to Bradshaw. If he's able to get past Brooks, he might get the first down. Maybe.



It doesn't matter, though. Brooks drops him for a one-yard loss, making it third and three.



The Colts use a different personnel group for the third down play. Instead of Jones, T.Y. Hilton is split out to the left and it's a two wide receiver set. Reitz is again out there as tight end, but he's lined up on the other side. It's an offset I-formation with Havili lined up on the right side. For all intents and purposes, it looks like a running play designed to go that direction.



The 49ers think so, too. They fully expect Bradshaw to get the ball. The arrows show where the defenders are looking, and again, all eyes are on Bradshaw.



Except Luck pulled a fast one on the defense. Bradshaw never gets the ball because Luck has it. Still everyone is looking at Bradshaw, even Aldon Smith there on the weak side. You can see T.Y. Hilton with his man, but you can't get a good view.



Let's go up top. You can see the formation, offset I, strong side right, T.Y. Hilton split out left.



Again, all the defenders are looking at Bradshaw as Luck fakes the handoff. Hilton runs his man to the inside.



Everyone's committed to Bradshaw, and Hilton's man has been taken out of the play. Luck's coming around the left side with no one near him, as noted by the yellow box.



Luck sprints into the endzone. Touchdown. Ballgame.