Colts vs Buccaneers: After Further Review

The Colts were able to split the season series with the NFC South with a win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.

The first half of this game was defined by the defenses of the opposing teams, as each held strong in the redzone. The Colts went into the half down by six points. However, as usual the Colts came out strong in the second half.

Thanks to some excellent adjustments at halftime, the Colts were able to get pressure on Jameis Winston. On the offensive end the Colts looked great in the second half. With that win the Colts are still in front in the AFC South, and are above .500 at 6-5.

Let’s get into some takeaways from this fun Colts win.

Takeaway number 1: Adam Vinatieri is not human

The past two games, the Colts have won on the heels of two Vinatieri game-winners. In the first half of this game, the Colts relied on Vinatieri as their sole source of point production. He hit two field goals in the first half, and then in the second half he hit three more. Making him five for five on the day.

In case you forgot(because sometimes I do) Adam Vinatieri is 42 years of age. As in he’s twice as old as Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston. This man cannot be human! He just can’t be. I’m sure most of you are saying Oh well he’s a kicker, so that’s why he’s still playing. Sure he doesn’t get hit as much, but not only is he still playing at 42, but he’s playing at an unbelievably high level. He is still arguably the best kicker in the game today! To say that’s not impressive is just ignorant.

And yes, he missed an extra point today, but Matt Overton will tell you it wasn’t Vinatieri’s fault, it was his.

Takeaway number 2: Matt Hasselbeck deserves our highest praise

Another ageless wonder is Hasselbeck. He threw for 315 yards and two touchdowns on Sunday, and boy was he on one. Do not let the first half score fool you, Hasselbeck was on all game long. He was making tremendous reads, and he was giving his receivers perfect balls to catch.

Credit needs to be given to the Buccaneers redzone defense, as they halted a few Colts drives in that first half. The second half was all Hasselbeck and the Colts offense however. He continued his strong play, by throwing some serious dimes to Donte Moncrief and T.Y. Hilton. In fact, I’d say Hasselbeck had more dimes today than Drake did last night at the club.

All jokes aside, Hasselbeck played tremendous again today, stretching his record to 4-0 this season. It’s not like Hasselbeck has had it easy either, he’s been playing behind a mediocre, banged-up offensive line. It was evident on Sunday, as Hasselbeck got knocked around quite a bit by a good Bucs pass rush.

At some point it can no longer be a fluke the way Hasselbeck has played. He deserves recognition for the way he’s carried this team in Andrew Luck‘s absence.

Takeaway number 3: Colts football is fun again!

More from Horseshoe Heroes

The first half of this game was something similar to what we’ve seen all season from the Colts. Okay offense, and okay defense, which translated to overall mediocre play. However, in the second half Colts football became fun to watch, the first time it has all season.

The offense played terrific, and the defense stepped up and played great as well. It just looked like the Colts were finally in a groove on the football field. This is something we expected to see all season, but alas it has finally come here in week 12.

Hopefully, the Colts can carry this momentum into next week against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Again, enjoy this win Colts fans, let’s hope we see more of this in the future!

Home/Colts News