Colts survive late push by Falcons, Brissett plays big

The first half was great for the Colts, while the second half was not. But the Colts were able to hold off Atlanta for a 27-24 win.

It looked like it was going to be a blowout. The Colts had a 17 point lead in the first half, as they led 20-3 when the teams went into the locker room. Then Indianapolis came out flat, and the Falcons scored 14 straight points. After that, it was a close game the whole way.

Jacoby Brissett started the game 16/16 and looked great in the first half. Frank Reich had some excellent play calls and looked to put this offense in a great position to succeed. They did just that in the first half. But the second half was a completely different story.

It was always going to be hard to stop Julio Jones and the Falcons passing attack, but the Colts defense fell apart in the second half. They let Jones pick them apart down the field. Jones had a critical touchdown catch with 4 minutes left in the game that cut the deficit to 3.

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But the offense came up late when they needed to. They had a great final drive when they needed to run the clock out. They did so behind the offensive line, who played great late after a slow start. In fact, the running game struggled early.

Marlon Mack didn’t get many open holes.. He did have a four yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter that was key, and ran for a 26 yard scamper late in the game. But he wasn’t quite as sharp as he was in the first two games.

Offensive linemen don’t get as much credit as they deserve. But Quenton Nelson deserves some love. He was key on that final Colts drive, as they ran the ball behind his blocks. He is so good at getting downhill and eliminating defenders in his way.

Brissett played brilliantly today. He finished 28/34 for 310 yards and two touchdowns. Most importantly, he didn’t turn the ball over. The Falcons came in game planning to force him to beat them, and he did just that.

The defense needs some work though. As I mentioned before, they let Jones pick them apart late. Part of it was because Darius Leonard missed the game with a concussion. The Falcons picked on his replacement, rookie Bobby Okereke, and threw the ball over his head.

Another big storyline in this game was Adam Vinatieri. He came into this game kicking for his job. The Colts brought in six kickers last week to work out. Vinatieri was perfect on the day, making two field goals and two extra points. He saved his job for another week.

It wasn’t pretty, but a win is a win. It’s time other teams around the league take this Colts team seriously. They are a really good team, and can still make the playoffs.