:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/23327491/188033663.0.jpg)
Once again the Colts trailed big in the first half. They were down 17-6 to the Tennessee Titans at halftime, and once again the offense hadn't done much to impress - and neither had the rest of the team, either.
As the second half began, however, the Colts quickly scored two straight touchdowns and took a 20-17 lead, going on to win 30-27. It won't go down as a fourth quarter comeback for Andrew Luck, but it was indeed a comeback. And once again, it was sparked by Andrew Luck.
In the second half, the Colts scored 24 points on 5 drives (not including a drive consisting of only 3 kneel downs), and on those five drives Andrew Luck completed 11 of 15 passes (73.3%) for 124 yards (8.27 yards per attempt) and rushed 3 times for 25 yards (8.33 yards per attempt) and an 11 yard touchdown run.
The second half was by far the best the Colts offense has played without Reggie Wayne so far this year, and Andrew Luck looked very good too. He avoided pressure like we have come to expect from Luck and he made plays that we have come to expect from Luck.
The Colts still started off slowly, but Andrew Luck and the offense finished as hot as we have seen them play for weeks. Hopefully, that will carry over to this week's game as well.
Statistics:
General: 23/36 (63.89%), 232 yards (6.4 yards per attempt), 0 TD, 0 INT, 82.2 passer rating, 68.7 QBR, 1 sacks, 6 rush attempts for 31 yards and 1 touchdown (5.17 yards per carry) (not including 3 kneel downs to end the game)
Number of Drives: 10 (including a drive consisting only of 3 kneel downs to end the game)
Number of Plays: 69
Number of Passing Plays: 43 (62.32%)
Shotgun Snaps (pass plays): 25 (58.14% of pass plays)
Play Action Attempts: 10 (23.26% of pass plays)
Drops: 3 (6.98% of pass plays)
Passes Charted by Field Position:
Number stands for the number of the player who caught the pass. X stands for an incomplete pass (number in parenthesis was intended receiver). Blue number stands for a touchdown. Red X stands for an interception. Green X stands for a drop. Red headings along upper and lefthand side indicate how the areas of the field are broken down
* IMPORTANT NOTE: All of these statistics are not guaranteed to be 100% accurate whatsoever and some of them (number of plays pressured) are subjective. While I strive to be entirely accurate and correct, these numbers are prone to inerrancies occasionally. Either way, they will give you a very good idea of the point being made.
Other Notes:
- The past two weeks against both the Texans and the Rams, Andrew Luck looked rattled and seemed to have more time avoiding pressure and making plays than normal. He left quite a few plays on the field during those weeks, but this week he looked back to normal. He was avoiding pressure and making the plays that we have come to expect, and he made most of the plays we expected him to make. He looked back to normal Thursday night, and that was about as encouraging of a sign that we could have had.
-
Luck's touchdown run was beautiful. I loved it. From the 11 yard line, the Colts ran a quick screen to Griff Whalen to the right. At least that was the plan. Griffer was indeed open for the screen pass, but Derrick Morgan came rushing around the edge and leaped into the air just as Luck was making his throwing motion. Morgan leaped into the air to try and swat the ball down or even pick it off, but Luck amazingly pulled the ball back, tucked it and turned up the field. He took off running and nobody tackled him, as he ran into the end zone with an 11 yard touchdown rush, ending it with a spike. On the picture below you can see Luck looking like he was going to throw to Griff Whalen (number 17 on the right side, wide open) but you can see Derrick Morgan (number 91, circled) in the way. At another point he actually leaped in the air trying to block the pass. Luck tucked the ball and ran upfield right in between Morgan and the offensive/defensive line. Touchdown. What a play.
- The Colts ran perhaps the first flea flicker in NFL history to result in a 3-yard quarterback rush. I haven't looked it up or anything, but I doubt it has happened many other times, if at all. But the Colts managed to do just that.
-
Andrew Luck in the second half was phenomenal, as was the rest of the offense. Here's a comparison of his first and second halves against the Titans (not including the final drive, which consisted of only 3 kneel downs):
Andrew Luck vs. Titans: 1st vs. 2nd Half Cmp. Att. Cmp% Yards YPA Rush RushYPA Drives Points Points per Drive 1st Half 12 21 57.14% 108 5.14 3-6-0 2.0 4 6 1.5 2nd Half 11 15 73.33% 124 8.27 3-25-1 8.33 5 24 4.8
What Others Are Saying (or said during the game):
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Andrew Luck hasn't lost back-to-back games as a starting QB since he was a redshirt freshman at Stanford in 2009.</p>— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) <a href="https://twitter.com/AndrewSiciliano/statuses/401080420735127552">November 14, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>When was the last time Andrew Luck was actually able to step into a throw? Hard to do with guys in your face EVERY time.</p>— Stephen Holder (@HolderStephen) <a href="https://twitter.com/HolderStephen/statuses/401179196702990336">November 15, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Luck has never lost back-to-back starts (26games). Per Elias only 2QBs w/more starts b4 b2b L (Dan Marino – 33, Kordell Stewart – 28) <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Colts&src=hash">#Colts</a></p>— Cecil Lammey (@cecillammey) <a href="https://twitter.com/cecillammey/statuses/401454996815761408">November 15, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>