Colts Recap -- Week 12

[Andy]

Jaguars 27 vs Colts 19

What the Colts did Right

The Colts played well enough to win this game! Curtis Painter woke up at the right time, the 4th quarter. He completed 2 fantastic drives, and made some great throws, but he had some help. Reggie Wayne was outstanding; he caught 5 passes for 122 yards and had a 58 yard touchdown with 3 broken tackles. He also had a clutch 40 yard catch. He's had an off year, but he could be turning it around. Donald Brown had another very good game, rushing for 84 yards and averaging 5.7 yards per carry. This former 1st round pick has had a slow start to his career, but this season has been different. Turning into a good running back. Joseph Addai had some nice runs today also. Ryan Muhaffey had a solid game blocking and had a nice one handed catch, but he unfortunately left the game with concussion-like symptoms. The blocking was very good in the 4th quarter.

On defense, Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis provided great pressure throughout the game, especially in the first half. They each recorded a sack. They have woken up from their slump. Antoine Bethea had a great performance, but in my opinion, Jerraud Powers had the best performance on defense. He pretty much shut down Steve Smith, and held him to 3 catches for 68 yards. He also made a bunch of great tackles, and had some key deflections. He's turning into a great cornerback. The defense played well throughout the game, well enough to win this game. Don't let the 27 points fool you.

On special teams, Jamaal Anderson blocked a field goal at the end of the half. Adam Vinatieri made a couple of nice kicks. Pat McAfee is really a good player. He's a great punter, and has been very crucial on stopping returners from getting touchdowns, and today was no different. He saved another touchdown.

What the Colts did Wrong

Curtis Painter played horribly for 3.5 quarters. He couldn't make throws and because of him, the Colts had a terrible 3rd down conversion percentage. He needed to stay more consistent, as his inconsistency was a main reason we lost. The blocking throughout hte first 3 quarters was bad, as they constantly pressured Curtis and even got some sacks on him. The offense was terrible on some drives, and those drives in a way, cost us the game.

On defense, they had a real tough time stopping Cam Newton and co. in the first half. He ran over them, and had a great first half. The running game was tough to stop. Although the Panthers didn't have too many big runs, they constantly pounded it down our throats, especially with Jonathan Stewart. Deangelo Williams also had some big runs. The defense also had a tough time against Brandon Lafell in the first half. They needed to stay more consistent, but it wasn't too bad. The first/beginning of the second quarter killed the Colts, as they scored no points and on the second play of the 2nd quarter, Cam Newton scored a touchdown, so they needed to play well early on.