Colts’ aggressive offense vs Packers showed they’re real contenders

The Colts’ first few weeks showed a sputtering offense beating bad teams in close games, but these past two weeks have given us complete team wins.

The Indianapolis Colts offense showed what they’re capable of this week, as they knocked off the Green Bay Packers 34-31 in overtime, proving once and for all their offense could win games as well as the defense. Philip Rivers made good decisions with the football, which led to another three-touchdown outing with nearly 300 yards of passing. Michael Pittman Jr., who is quickly becoming my favorite player on this team, scored his first touchdown in his career on a crossing play he took to the house.

The running game also made strides in the right direction, as the Colts got rookie Jonathan Taylor the ball nearly 20 times for over 90 yards with a big touchdown run taken back for a holding call. Jordan Wilkins was the next highest ball carrier, with four carries for 21 yards, cementing Taylor as the bell cow for this team. The most impressive performance was Philip Rivers today.

Rivers has received heavy criticism by Colts fans since taking over, and rightfully so. His first game in a Colts uniform was against Jacksonville, a game in which he struggled. The next few games showed him playing against bad teams with mixed results.

The last three weeks, though, we have seen the Colts play three very good teams in the Titans, Ravens, and Packers, all teams who went deep in the playoffs last season. Going 2-1 in those games gives me hope the Colts can continue to win games, but the biggest difference has been the aggressive offensive play.

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The Colts beat the Titans handily last Thursday night and showed that they can still be the team to beat in the AFC South, despite the success the Titans have had in the past two years. The Titans did knock off the Ravens in overtime on Sunday, leading some to still claim that, despite the record, the Titans are still the best team in the AFC South. I’d be inclined to believe this was true if it weren’t for our second-half shut out of Tennessee’s offense.

While the defense made plays in overtime to win the game, the Colts offense put up 16 unanswered points to take the lead 31-28, proving the defensive clamps weren’t all for naught and forcing the Packers to use all but one timeout before the final drive of the game. It was nice, however, seeing the Colts’ offense making plays and keeping the pressure off the defense towards the end of the game.

Watching the Colts take care of business against one of the NFC’s top teams gives me hope they can make some more improvements, leading to a deep playoff run in January.

Colts: Michael Pittman Jr’s breakout game came at perfect time

Rookie wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr.'s breakout game came at a perfect time for the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday night.