Not Yet: Colts Fail to Seize Opportunity, Divisional Crown, fall to Texans 29-17
The Colts entered their week 15 match-up with the Houston Texans controlling their fate in the AFC South: win out, and they would reclaim their place atop the division. The game didn't turn into the blowout that many - including myself - predicted it would be, as the Colts were able to keep it close, cutting the lead to 6 for a good portion of the second half - before finally succumbing to their mistakes.
And really, it's their mistakes - and some questionable refereeing - that we should focus on here. Sure, the Colts were unable to stop Andre Johnson early, and JJ Watt gave them fits all day, but a Mewelde Moore fumble on the goal line, a blocked punt for a TD, countless questionable coaching decisions, and 8 penalties were more than enough to make up the difference in a 9-point game.
Where do the Colts go from here? Well, most likely, it's still to the playoffs. They still have to win one of their last two games - either at Kansas City or at home against the Texans in week 17 - to make it official, but, barring a disaster, that will happen. The more alarming issue for this Colts team is that they've yet to play a complete game all year, instead putting together enough brilliant flashes to overcome a series of sub par opponents. One has to wonder if the Colts will be able to put together a 60-minute game this season. If they hope to be anything more than a nice story and one-and-done in the playoffs, they'll likely have to.
The Indianapolis Colts will likely win multiple division titles during the Andrew Luck Era. They were hoping the first of those titles would come in 2012. Penalties, mental mistakes, and poor coaching were all that stood in their way. The youth that had carried them to 9 wins prevented them from getting their 10th. But, it was only a speed bump, not the end of the road, and if these Colts have taught us anything, nothing is over until it's over.
After the Jump, we'll do some quick thoughts:
Quick Thoughts, The Good:
- Vick Ballard had his best game as a Colt. Hard, decisive running lead to 105 yards on 18 carries (5.8ypc) against a very good Texans run defense. I've been hard on Ballard of late, saying he gets the yards that are blocked, but today he broke tackles, made cuts, and was the best player on the Colts offense. If he can continue to develop and progress like this, he's more than capable of being the Colts starting RB next year.
- The Colts OL, as a unit, was bad, but Anthony Castonzo continues to be good. Sure, he struggled with JJ Watt on a couple of plays, but who doesn't. Overall, the 2nd-year LT's performance should give Grigson and the Colts front office confidence heading into the off-season, they'll have to acquire a lot of talent along the OL, but the hardest, most expensive position to fill seems set for a long time.
- TY Hilton continues to impress. He got loose for a 61-yard TD today, and continues to run nice short and intermediate routes, as well. His ability to make things happen after the catch is going to play a huge part in the Colts offense as they attempt to avoid the pass rush with short throws.
- His stat line wasn't very good: 13/27, 186 yards, 2 TDs, but I thought Andrew Luck played well. It's hard to be a dominant QB when you're unable to set your feet and throw. People talk about balls sailing, high throws, bad reads, etc... I believe all of this starts with the OL's inability to block. Once that's taken care of, I expect Luck to become one of the most dominant, dynamic QBs in the NFL.
- The defense played well after the first quarter. They bottled up Arian Foster (I don't care about his garbage time stats) and they were able to adapt to the bootleg by ignoring the hand-off action and attacking Schaub. The defense made enough plays to keep the Colts in it and give their offense a chance to win it.
Quick Thoughts, The Bad:
- The offensive line continues to be an issue. McGlynn and Linkenbach were especially bad, getting abused by Watt with regularity. The offense as a whole will only be as good as the OL allows them to be, and the past few weeks, they've limited it to "not very good."
- The officiating was very iffy for the 2nd week in a row. Drive-sustaining penalties, no holdings, questionable calls (and non-calls) in the secondary, Jeff Triplette's crew will not be getting a Christmas card from the Colts. Worse, Triplette's calls were delivered with no confidence and Triplette came off as unsure and doubting the words as they came out of his mouth.
Quick Thoughts, The Ugly:
- Bruce Arians had a bad game. His decision to give Mewelde Moore 4 carries, all on the Texans side of the field, were mind-numbing, and Moore's fumble at the Texans' 1-yard line was disastrous. His unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on a Texans punt return put Houston in field goal range and robbed the Colts defense of a chance to keep it a 1-score game. And finally, his offensive decision making continues to be questionable, at best, and he's lacked awareness in his own offense's strength and how the opposing defense is adapting to them.
Update regarding the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty: According to Phil B. Wilson of the Indianapolis Star,
"Phil B: He admitted he said something to the ref. He was upset about a previous non-call regarding a hit on Luck, then he saw something that wasn't called on a punt, and the head coach lost his head. He unloaded on the ref and B.A. can be rather profane, as the players can tell you. Just like in baseball with the umpire, there's only so much you get away with when speaking that way to an official."
I truly believe Andrew Luck is special. it is a good thing too, because otherwise I would be worried that he would be traumatized forever by what he has had to go through this year.
As it is, i still wonder if there will be any residual effect on him. (I mean the prtoection he is getting... er, not getting, is ridiculous.)
@DougEngland Luck will be fine, let's spend big on quality linemen and give the kid an actual pocket. He'll tear shit up next year.
More good news: The Ravens, whom we have all been hoping for in the post-season, have lost their last two at home (after 13-15 consecutive wins) and are looking pretty shaky. Sure, it was the Broncos who are on fire, but when Knowshon Moreno looks like a pro-bowler, hurdling Ed Reed, it's not a good sign. Maybe it was opposite day? If you put the Colts and Ravens on a big enough science lab balance scale they'd be pretty even right now. As opposed to the top tree seeds who are all at least a TD better than the Colts 9 out of 10 times (and some of those games, three TDs better), I'd say the Ravens and Colts would generally play a handful of 3-point games, trading off wins and losses. Can't ask for much more than that in the playoffs, especially for such a young team. Time for a little rebound in KC, an improved showing in Week 17, and we'll be set up decently for a solid playoff showing.
Oh God, we better not be skiing that day....
When are people in the (new) media going to start holding the NFL accountable for their horrific officiating? The real officials continue to make rookie and/or replacement level mistakes. After these two games I have no idea what any of the following penalties actually are: OPI, DPI, holding, block in the back, defenseless receiver, roughing, horse collar, illegal contact, or facemask. This does not even take into consideration the inability of these crews to accurately spot the ball or even come within 5 yards of where a punt actually crossed OOB. It is starting to get to the point where I question my personal and financial investment in NFL football. Maybe the commish should figure out how to get his refs spot the ball instead of talking about 18 game schedules and 14 or 16 team playoffs.
Do you think either Chance Warmack or the guy from North Carolina will be available when the Colts pick in April?
@jgladhill95 hard to say. But I think they might go free agency for at least a couple O line starters.
Didn't get to see the first half, but looking at the positives:
Completely agree about Castonzo and TY. Castonzo healthy this year is everything we hoped he'd be when we drafted him mid-first before last year. It's really too bad Ijalana isn't holding down the other side. TY is explosive and is a major 4th round steal if he continues to progress the way he is. When drafted, they said that the top of his range was a Victor Cruz-caliber player, and he is on his way toward looking like that kind of threat though he has a long way to go still, of course.
Ballard was a pick that I initially was perplexed and not pleased by. I am happy to say that I was wrong. We would really be hurting without his production, and he has exceeded expectations to this point and then some. He made some great reads and moves in the drive that was capped off by the Allen TD. Dwayne has also been hugely impressive and a great weapon for Luck as well as all he's done in blocking.
On the negative:
OL is just awful otherwise. I really hope AQ is alright after limping off in the last minute. We don't need to be down to a 3rd string center...
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This OL issue is driving me nuts. Is it possible for us to draft a whole new OL next year?
@buymymonkey The good news is we can just buy them off the FA market for not that much. Hoping for 4 interior linemen, maybe a stud RT too.
@Coltsheadben @buymymonkey It looks like it. I didn't realize there were that many good OL out there coming of contracts. If we get on or two real players that would make a huge difference. We really need a right guard who can pass block. There is way too much pressure rolling up the middle.
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@buymymonkey Probably a better idea to address it mainly in FA with maybe a pick or two in the draft.
@CA_Radio Didn't the Colts have a complete 60 minute game against the Jags? Went up 24-3 until late in the 4th, IIRC, and still won 27-10.
@Cassieper no, remember, Luck had 2 bad picks in that game, Jags moved the ball at times
