Three Things We Learned from the Colts Win over the Redskins

The Indianapolis Colts defeated the Washington Redskins 49-27 on Sunday.  What did we learn from the game?  Here are three takeaways (and we're using the team "learn" loosely):

More Moncrief and Herron

For much of the season Colts fans have been clamoring for more of rookie wide receiver Donte Moncrief and second year running back Dan Herron in the lineup, and on Sunday we saw that.  The payoff?  Moncrief caught three balls for 134 yards and two touchdowns and added 6 yards on a rush, while Herron rushed for 88 yards and a touchdown on 8 carries and added 8 yards on 2 catches.  Combined, the two racked up 236 yards (out of the team's 487 total), accounting for nearly half of the offensive yardage and three of the six offensive touchdowns.  Moncrief was a star and looked great, and Herron ran great - though also having a costly fumble.  Ultimately, it looks good moving forward for the Colts' offense with these two players (if Herron can get his fumbling issues taken care of), and there's plenty to be encouraged by.  If they continue to get those two more involved, it will be a good thing for the Colts' offense.

Colts Won the Pass Rush Battle

It was a game that featured two of the worst offensive lines in the NFL, but it was a battle that the Colts absolutely won.  Andrew Luck was sacked just once - on the first play of the game - and while he was under pressure on other plays, the pocket was much cleaner than it was last week and overall it wasn't bad.  The Redskins didn't give Colt McCoy the same protection, however, as the Colts sacked the Washington quarterback six times in the game.  Erik Walden notched 2 of them, Jonathan Newsome notched 1.5 of them, Jerrell Freeman and Greg Toler recorded 1 each, and Arthur Jones notched 0.5 sacks.  It was an impressive showing from the Colts pass, and though it was against one of the worst lines in football, it was good to see.  Because any time the Colts get pass rush, I'm not going to complain.  It has been an issue this season, but we saw again today that they can get to the passer at times - and today was one of those times.

Coby Fleener is Stepping Up

On Sunday, Coby Fleener caught 4 passes for 127 yards and 2 touchdowns, putting his season total at 35 catches for 594 yards and 6 scores.  By comparison, only five tight ends in the NFL have more receiving touchdowns than that this season (including Fleener's teammate, Dwayne Allen).  The tight end has topped 100 yards receiving in two of the last three games and is really stepping up his game.  His six touchdowns tie his total from his first two seasons combined and he is having a solid year.  Not every tight end is going to be Rob Gronkowski and put up stats that rival wide receivers.  We know that Fleener's hands aren't great.  And we know that he has been heavily scrutinized by Colts fans.  But recently, Fleener has been producing.  Say what you want about Coby Fleener, but you can't ignore what he has done in the past couple of weeks and if he can keep that up over the remainder of the season, that would be huge for the Colts' offense.

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