The Indianapolis Colts started their last game of the season with a playoff appearance still an outside possibility. Of course a hundred or so things had to happen for this to occur, not the least of which was that the Horseshoe had to be victorious over the Tennessee Titans. Not as easy as it sounds because the team was going to have to put a quarterback that had just been pulled off the streets under center. With Andrew Luck, Matt Hasselbeck, and Charlie Whitehurst on the IR, Chuck Pagano was going to have to play either Josh Freeman or Ryan Lindley. The Titans would have to start backup Zack Mettenberger, as rookie Marcus Mariotta was injured. After three previous disastrous outings, the Colts defense got into gear and gave the Titan offense a rough way to go. Admittedly, the Titans were among the league’s least effective teams, but the Colts were on the Tennessee lads like flies at a picnic. Inside linebacker Jerrell Freeman seemed to take things very personally. He added two quarterback sacks to his total for the year and intercepted Mettenberger for a 23 yard touchdown in the third quarter. Mettennberger was injured and replaced by Alex Tanney — yet another thrower from off the street. By the end of the game nobody knew who was what. Cornerback Vontae Davis left the field with an injury as well. The Colts managed to eke out a 30 to 24 victory. Before the game was over, the Colts learned that they had been eliminated from playoff contention because of the Houston Texans’ victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. As to the victory, “Automatic” Adam Vinatieri probably was the game’s most valuable player. He nailed three field goals, including a 52 yarder. The Colts finished with an 8-8 record — not really terrible, but disappointing when you consider that the team was the fashionable pick in the off-season to be the AFC representative in Super Bowl 50.
Consider some personal stats. Runningback Frank Gore gained 967 yards, rushing on 260 attempts for a 3.7 yards per carry average and 6 rushing touchdowns. It was the first time since 2010 that Gore has not gained 1,000 yards in a season. It’s the most amount of yards that a Colts back has gained since 2007 when Joseph Addai gained 1,072 rushing yards. Gore’s longest run was a 37 yard touchdown run. Gore had 4 fumbles — a lot for him. He lost 3 of them. Frank Gore did not have a 100 yard game during the season for the first time in his career. Gore is 32 years old. Robert Mathis tied for the team’s sack lead with 7. He also was in on 20 tackles. His rehab, after missing all of the 2014 season, should be considered successful. Mathis is 34 years old. T.Y. Hilton lead the team in receptions and reception yardage with 69 catches for 1,124 yards and a 16.3 average per catch. He had the longest offensive play of the year for the team, an 87 yard touchdown catch. He had 5 touchdown catches. Inside linebacker D’Qwell Jackson led the defense with 150 tackles. He had 3 quarterback sacks and an interception for a touchdown. Jackson is 32 years old. Safety Mike Adams lead the team with 5 interceptions. He also made 72 tackles to lead the secondary. Adams is 34 years old. The Colts have the oldest roster in the NFL. Many of their key players are close to retirement age. Matt Hasselbeck is 40 years old. Adam Vinatieri is 43 years old. The Colts are definitely going to have to inject some youth into the team.
Chuck and Ryan Aren’t Going Anyplace
The news that both Chuck Pagano and Ryan Grigson have been given four year contract extensions caught the media by surprise. Pagano in particular had been given up for dead after failing to lead the Big Blue to the Super Bowl. The rumors of a feud between Pagano and Grigson had been floating around since preseason and the Colts’ stumbles added fuel to the fire. When the Colts didn’t make the playoffs, everybody assumed that Coach Pagano would be released. The only question was Grigson’s status. On Black Monday, Colts fans waited all day for the news. It came Monday. They are both back. Everyone seemed generally pleased that Chuck Pagano was staying with the club — not so much Ryan Grigson. Time will tell.
snicewanger@yahoo.com