18 Plays (sort of) from the Colts/Texans game
Ok,
so it’s not the witty banter you’re used to from the podcast, but we
went to all the work to make these brilliant observations, the least we
could do was write them down for you…
Quarter 1
1.
12:19 Indy ball, 4th and 1 from the Houston 41. Joseph Addai runs for
six yards and a first down to set up the Colts first field goal.
DS: Nice block by Darrell Reid. Addai does a good job stepping out of Demeco Ryans’ tackle.
DZ:
Gijon Robinson threw a nice block as well. Joe Addai is a great back,
who routinely has no where to go, but gets it done anyway.
2. 4:07 Indy ball, 4th and 1 from the Houston 45. Manning hits Wayne for 36 yards and a first and goal.
DS:
Here’s a max protect scheme with both TE’s in blocking. Reeves has
solid coverage on Wayne, but Manning drops it on a dime after a nice
play fake.
DZ: This play was
sick. There is nothing wrong with Manning that can’t be solved by
giving him a normal amount of time to make the deep throws. Going for
it on 4th and short on consecutive drives led to 10 points. The Colts
lose this game if they don’t go for it. That’s winning football.
3. :13 Texans ball, 1st and 10 from the Indy 43. Rosenfels hits Daniels for 20 yards
DS:
Great call by Kubiak and company. When the run is working, plays like
this are great. The PA fake and line block to the right, Rosenfels
rolls left and hits Daniels who slipped past Brackett.
DZ:
Brackett bites ever so slightly on the run fake, which let Daniels get
past him. I love Gary Brackett, but he did NOT deserve to be player of
the week. Freeney (with two forced fumbles) or Mathis (who also forces
the pick at the end) deserved it far more.
Quarter 2
4. 10:51 Indy ball, 3rd and 15 from the Indy 17. Manning throws incomplete on a drop by Anthony Gonzalez
DS:
The Colts were backed up after Mario Williams destroyed Diem and
Robinson on the previous play. Manning does a brilliant job escaping
the pressure and throws a perfect pass to Gonzo who lets it go right
through his arms. This was hard to watch. Very hard to watch.
DZ:
Jamey Richards let his man get in on #18, who clearly isn’t bothered by
the knee. This was a beautiful play that should have happened and
stemmed the Texans momentum. I have to wonder when Gonzo got his
concussion. If it was before this play, it could explain why he dropped
it.
5. 9:17 Texans ball, 3rd and 1 from the Houston 40. Rosenfels hits Andre Johnson for 39 yards
DS:
Johnson goes in motion and makes a sweet move just before the snap. He
squares his body to the line, but continues to hop sideways. This makes
him moving when the ball is snapped and he just destroys MJax on a
simple slant.
DZ: Johnson is a great
receiver. I heard how Jackson struggled, but after watching the game, I
don’t blame him. Sometimes, the other guy is just too good to be
handled. He played a tremendous game. His size/speed/hands were
shocking. Great job by him.
6. 3:32 Colts ball, 3rd and 12 from the Houston 31. Manning throws incomplete to Wayne in the end zone.
DS: Charlie Johnson’s false start backed the Colts up and AV would miss the FG after this play.
DZ:
Manning had to step up because Mario Williams is WHIPPING Charlie
Johnson (detect a pattern?). Wayne is clearly open for a TD, but the
pressure makes Peyton leave the throw about a yard or two short. With a
clean pocket, it’s an easy 6. Analyzing the Colts’ deep passing game is
easy. If there is time, they have a chance. There is almost never time.
7. :51 Texans ball, 3rd and 2 from the Indy 30. Rosenfels hits Davis for 6 yards.
DS: This was a sharp throw and a nice grab despite a big hit on Davis. It set up the go ahead touch down just before the half.
DZ: My copy of the game skipped this play. Someone forgot to hit record coming out of a timeout. Sigh.
Quarter 3
8. 11:08 Indy ball, 1st and 10 from the 50. Manning throws incomplete deep to Harrison
DS: After the Texans drive stalls on two dropped passes, the Colts
drove to midfield. On this play, Pollack gets beat, and Peyton doesn’t
step up, possibly because it would have killed the timing of the play.
Marvin has his man beat outside, but Peyton throws way short and
inside. It was ugly, and it’s unclear why the throw was so bad.
DZ:
After the drive stalled, they were arguing coming off the field.
Manning was making hand gestures like he wanted Marvin to cut in (which
is why the pass was so short). Marvin had his man beat to the outside,
and it should have been a big gain. I don’t know where Marvin was
supposed to be, but it sure looked like Manning should have recognized
what was happening better than he did. Then again, he was under
pressure.
9.
4:53 Texans ball, 3rd and 17 from the Houston 33. Slaton for 8 yards,
but a first down is given on a defensive holding penalty.
DS:
This one almost drove me over the edge. Brock is blocked by two guys,
and pulls the guard to ground to open up space for the LB. It was
clearly a good call on replay. The joke is that two guys missed the
tackle after Raheem opened things up for them.
DZ: Brackett missed the tackle anyway. I’m telling you, he didn’t have a great game at all.
10. 3:14 Texans ball, 3rd and 6 from the 50. Rosenfels hits Johnson for 19 yards
DS:
Rosenfels gets time as Johnson is being lazily covered by Tim Jennings.
Did I mention that Jennings will be starting for Kelvin Hayden on
Sunday!
DZ:
Tough play. The pressure arrived just a tick late. Johnson is doubled
by Brackett who takes away the short route, and Jennings who takes away
the out, leaving the safety to take away the middle. Bethea arrives
just a hair late and delivers a massive shot to Johnson who hangs on.
This guy is a seriously great player. He would leave the game after
this play because Bethea jacked him up so bad, but he hung onto the
ball.
Quarter 4
11: Indy ball 13:02 3rd and 4 from the 50. Mario Williams sacks Manning for a loss of 7.
DS: CJ blocks no one and Addai gets cleaned up. Enough said.
DZ:
CJ is starting again this Sunday, did I mention that? Horrible. He just
stands there at the line blocking no one, looking confused while Addai
is swallowed by Mario Williams. Simply unacceptable. It is interesting
that Addai doesn’t try to cut William, which might have worked. We read
a few weeks ago that the Colts don’t let their RBs cut pass rushers
because they don’t want anyone diving at Manning’s knees. It led to a
sack here, but is still a good policy.
12. 12:12 Texans ball, 2nd and 10 from the Indy 20. Slaton rumbles for 41 yards.
DS:
Slaton looks very fast, and the play was well blocked. Somehow Brackett
and MJax get sucked inside and then Bethea misses the tackle 10 yards
downfield, giving up another 30. Sessions makes a great play to stop a
touchdown.
DZ:
Bullitt comes down alongside the LBs, but jumps inside too quickly
instead of flowing to the ball. He is crushed by a blocker. Jackson
takes an awful angle and misses a chance to make the play for minimal
gain. Failures by at least 4 players (Brackett, Bullitt, MJax, and
Bethea) make a huge gain inevitable.
13. 6:16 Indy ball, 2nd and 5 from the Houston 44. Manning hits Wayne for 22 yards.
DS:
The line miraculously creates a clean pocket, and Manning hits Reggie
on an easy slant. This used to be a normal thing. Suddenly 3 seconds of
protection is the lead story.
DZ: This
drive was hilarious. Every other play, Manning was getting crushed. The
play before this, he completed a pass while horizontally flying through
the air while being hit. When he had time to throw, it was a big play.
When he didn’t, it was ugly.
14. 4:10 Indy ball, 4th and 6 from the Houston 7. Manning hits Santi for a TD.
DS:
Charlie Johnson finally blocks someone (not Mario Williams), and
Manning guns it to Santi who has guys draped all over him. Crazy catch
that almost squirts out of his hands.
DZ:
Santi is playing because AG is hurt. Going for the TD here instead of
the FG is probably not the play that many would make. The extra 4
points did put pressure on the Texans though, and may have created
everything that comes after it. Emotionally, the Texans would have felt
more secure if up 14, and possibly don’t make all the mistakes that
came later.
15. 3:54 Texans ball, 3rd and
8 from the Indy 39. Rosenfels scrambles for 7 and Freeney forces a
fumble. Brackett returns it for 68 yards and a score.
DS:
Very similar run fake as we mentioned earlier. Rosenfels tries to
vault MJax. He get hits low and high, and Dwight Freeney knocks the
ball loose. Just huge. I love you Gary Brackett. I love you so
hard. What…a….gaffe…by Rosenfels. Schaub looks on in disgust.
The funny thing is it looks like Owen Daniels is open again on the play.
DZ:
I love the fact that Raheem Brock is downfield blocking at the goal
line for Brackett after initially hitting Rosenfels and helping to
cause the fumble. Great hustle.
16. 2:50 Texans ball, 3rd and 8 from the 21. Mathis sacks Rosenfels, strips the ball and recovers it.
DS:
Freeney is getting doubled teamed but still manages to force Rosenfels
to scramble left. For some reason the qb thinks he has tons of time
because he slows up as he nears the line of scrimmage so he can throw.
Mathis comes all the way around from the left side to make the play.
It was so sweet looking watching him dive. He recovers it himself.
This is what I expect to see when I tune into watch this defense.
DZ:
Brock shows up again to hit Rosenfels after the ball comes loose. He
takes him out of the play so that Mathis can recover. Just an amazing
play by Mathis, which lets you see that the Colts are loaded with both
amazing athletes and several fill-ins. This play was amazing on every
level.
17. 2:00 Indy ball, 1st and goal from the 5. Manning hits Wayne for a touchdown and the lead.
DS: I don’t think it’s a coincidence that they called a play which required no pass protection. That catch was badass.
DZ: SICK
18. :50 Texans ball, 2nd and 10 from the Indy 43. Bullitt picks off Rosenfels to end the game
DS:
Just a terrible effort. Where was he throwing that? Foster gets a
hand up in his face as he throws. Dan Dierdorff summed it up best:
“I guess the old adage is true: if you play quarterback long enough something really bad is going to happen. And today is Sage
Rosenfels turn. Oh my Lord.” Thanks Dan.
DZ: Foster and Mathis provide the pressure, and Rosenfels throws it off his back foot. I still can’t believe we won that game.
General observations:
The
O-line was horrible. Charlie Johnson is going to get Peyton killed
before too long. Brackett and Bethea struggled all day. The Texans are
very talented. That shocked me. They clearly have some players, and may
well be the best 0-4 team ever. The Colts are in trouble on Sunday if
Freeney and Jackson are out as well as Hayden.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
