Join Colts Authority Radio as Scott Kacsmar and Kyle Rodriguez discuss the first week of the playoffs and preview the divisional round. 

Andrew Luck’s record-breaking rookie season came to a disappointing end in a 24-9 loss in Baltimore in the AFC Wild Card round. Even in defeat, Luck set rookie playoff records with 28 completions and 54 pass attempts, while throwing for the most yards (288) since Sammy Baugh way back in 1937.

But the experienced Ravens were too much for the Colts, and the weaknesses of the offensive line and the defense were too much to overcome. The receivers also struggled with a season-worst number of dropped passes. Also not helping matters was offensive coordinator and potential Coach of the Year winner Bruce Arians missing the game after an illness.

It wouldn’t be the postseason without the Colts doing something unusual in defeat, as they became the first team to gain over 400 yards of offense – 419 to be exact – and score fewer than 10 points. The nine points match a season low.

No one thought Luck would get his first taste of the postseason this soon, and the experience can only be invaluable moving forward. While his performance may have been spotty, the nation was able to watch a team that relied on their rookie quarterback to carry them to this point.

Now we head into the offseason to see how the Colts can help Luck get better for 2013, but before that we look at the final game of his memorable rookie season.

Drive No. 1

Drive Stats: 15:00 left (1st quarter), tied 0-0. 4 plays, 16 yards (punt).

Colts won the coin toss and elected to receive. You would not have known Arians was missing, as the Colts started with an end around to Donnie Avery. This one actually worked well for a 15-yard gain. Not much else would work for Avery this day.

Moving to the empty backfield/shotgun, Coby Fleener was unable to snatch Luck’s quick pass to the right flat on a pick play. This would be a sign of things to come. The bubble screen to T.Y. Hilton only gained a yard, as he was tackled by Paul Kruger, who had a big game. On 3rd and 9, the Ravens brought six and Luck’s pass was tipped at the line by Ed Reed. The pass fell incomplete and the Colts punted. Three quick passes, but almost no production.

Well, that was a fun ride. The Colts' miraculous journey to the playoffs ended in a fairly comprehensive victory by the Ravens last week in Baltimore. The young Colts team which had rose up against all-comers reverted to their true talent level, and as a result it wasn't a particularly enjoyable game for the spectator.

Nonetheless, there are undoubtedly huge positives to take from the Colts journey this year, and - having following the defense specifically all year - it's perhaps time to review their overall performance, consider decisions made in-season and examine how we can progress this offseason.

My thoughts regarding the defense as we entered the year were pessimistic to say the least - transforming from a Tampa 2 4-3 unit to an aggressive, blitz-happy 3-4 hybrid front under the tutelage of Chuck Pagano and Greg Manusky. Personnel-wise, there were only two players whom I felt completely comfortable with in terms of the adjustment and how they would fare - Antoine Bethea and Robert Mathis. The rest of the Front 7 could either be termed undersized or simply a bad fit for a 3-4 scheme. As such, the Colts took measures to inoculate themselves against complete defensive implosion via the acquisition of Brandon McKinney (NT) and Cory Redding (DE) from Baltimore, with the trade for Vontae Davis on the back end providing an infusion of raw talent where it was clearly required. I feel breaking down the year by position group is going to be the easiest way to do this, so i'll begin.

The Colts’ lost their first playoff game in the Grigson/Pagano/Luck era on Sunday, falling to the Ravens 24-9. The Colts were in a position to get back in the game or take a lead several times in the second half, but simply could not get the ball over the goalline. The lack of touchdowns combined with Cassius Vaughn and a porous run defense was too much for the young Colts team to overcome.

For the game, Andrew Luck played brilliantly, evading mass amounts of pressure and making strong throws despite rarely seeing a clean pocket. Nevertheless, some naysayers looked at Luck’s final stats (28-54, 288 yards and one interception), and either blamed the lack of scoring on him, or dismissed it as a typical, inefficient 2012 Luck game.

I don’t buy either of that. Luck was, as I said above, nothing less than brilliant throughout the game, as he received little to no help from his offensive line and receiving targets. I’ll take a closer look at the protection later this week, but today I want to look at how the Colts’ receivers hurt the offense on Sunday, especially in the second half.

(AP / Michael Conroy)

For today’s offseason edition of the Notebook (Heavens no, not the romantic drama), we’ll discuss what Chuck Pagano said to his players, some must-read quotes from the refreshingly candid Pat McAfee, and Luck and Pagano jokingly plot to keep Bruce Arians from leaving.

The Cinderella story is over, and the 2013 Colts will carry the expectation of winning.  They sound as though they’re up to the challenge.  As usual, all quotes from today’s Notebook are courtesy of the Indianapolis Colts Public Relations Department. 

Must Read: Pat McAfee

Pat McAfee started out as a good, serviceable punter early in his career but then came on strong after his public intoxication embarrassment in 2010 (The Broad Ripple Canal, folks, not the nice clean Downtown Canal, the muddy one with all the ducks).  McAfee issued his own heartfelt apology via Twitter instead of releasing an official statement through his agent, which may have won some people over in Indianapolis  (note: the incident is only mentioned here to avoid seeing anything about it in the comments).  After serving a suspension and putting the incident behind him, he went on to set a Colts franchise record the following season of 46.6 yards per punt.  In 2012, he followed up his breakout year by beating his own franchise record, raising the bar to 48.2 yards per punt.

The Colts closed out their 2012 season with a 24-9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in the Wild Card round of the NFL Playoffs. Join Kyle and Greg for the final Monday Night Breakdown of the season as they put a bow on the game and the Colts season!

It felt like the ride would never end. If leukemia didn't stop them, why would their pass rush, their secondary, their offensive line, or their youth and inexperience? None of that mattered. Until it did.

The Indianapolis Colts ended their season with a 24-9 loss at the hands of the painfully average Baltimore Ravens. For a half, they looked like the better team. But when the clock struck zero, the pumpkin emerged because of their inability to make plays with their pass rush, their secondary, their offensive line, or their young WRs.

Of course, the 2012 Colts won't be remembered for any of those deficiencies. They will be remembered for the innocence of youth - they never knew they were supposed to be bad. They will be remembered for their comebacks, the unexpected triumphs. And they will be remembered for their fight.

Cheer up, Colts fans, and welcome to what should be an exciting off-season.  Today, we’re going to discuss how this team believes they’ll better for the experience gained on Sunday.  We’ll also talk about red zone inefficiency, and big game hunting…so to speak. 

This Will Make Them Better

After their storybook season ended in defeat on Sunday, twenty-one different Colts players can call themselves playoff-tested for the first time.  This team was as inexperienced as it was out-manned on Wild Card Weekend.  Of course, the hope is that what happened on Sunday will galvanize and prepare the young core of players for some sustained playoff runs in the future.  Meanwhile, there is finally the time to reflect on this character-building experience.

Chuck Pagano, though he certainly wasn’t satisfied, was pleased with how his young team kept fighting on Sunday, and all season.  “We had opportunities, just watching this team fight and fight and fight, week in and week out,” he said. “To accomplish what they accomplished. I told them all, when you walk out of here, you hold your head high and be very, very proud of how you played this game, how you’ve represented this organization. We talk about legacy a lot and trust, loyalty and respect and things like that. And they did that. They should be very, very proud of themselves. And again, how they carried themselves and how they represented the ‘shoe.’”

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The Indianapolis Colts magical season came to an end with a 24-9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.  Join us live after the game at 4:30pm ET as we look at what went wrong, and where the Colts go from here.