Indianapolis Colts Report Card 09/16/12
Indianapolis Colts 23 Minnesota Vikings 20
Well it wasn’t a pretty win, but a win is a win. The Colts drive down the field in the final seconds to pick up a first time win for Coach Chuck Pagano and rookie quarterback Andrew Luck. Great to see Luck engineer that final drive to set up the game winning field goal.
Passing Game: B
Sep 16, 2012; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts Andrew Luck (12) throws a pass against the Minnesota Vikings during the first half at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas J. Russo-US PRESSWIRE
A solid outing for Andrew Luck, despite the two sacks, one of which was took the Colts back too many yards. Rookie mistake and hopefully Andrew Luck will realize you can’t scramble backwards against some of these defensive guys. But the passing game of 21-30 with two touchdown passes is good enough for a B rating. No interceptions to report, which is always a good thing as well. How about Donnie Avery with his 111 yards on 9 catches and Reggie Wayne having 7 catches good for 71 yards? Both guys were over 10 yards per catch, which is a great day at the office receiving wise.
Running Game: C
Nothing stands out for this, so a middle of the road rating is what I give it. Scary to see Luck running four times in a game, that’s probably three too many. Donald Brown got 16 carries, but ran only 45 yards. That’s a measly 2.8 yard per carry, so I probably should knock down the rating.
Passing Defense: C
Sep 16, 2012; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver (12) Percy Harvin gets tackled by Indianapolis Colts safety Antoine Bethea (41) at Lucas Oil Stadium. Indianapolis defeats Minnesota 23-20. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-US PRESSWIRE
Christian Ponder throws for 245 yards with 104 of those to Percy Harvin. That’s not a bad passing defensive stand, but still a lot of yards to give up. Harvin looked to beat his man a few times, but didn’t always get the ball.
Run Defense: B
If you thought Adrian Peterson would get over 100 yards, raise your hand. That was the feeling at times that Peterson could run all over the Colts. But holding Peterson to 60 yards on 16 carries is good enough for the B rating I gave.
Game Rating: B
The Colts get a win, so you have to be proud of the effort. Luck made some mistakes, but nothing major that can’t be fixed along the way. The Colts defense let the Vikings pick up those two scores to tie the game, which will have to be talked about. But for a team that probably won’t have many wins, this one feels good. It was one that most fans thought the Colts could get, and they did get the win.