It’s been an up-and-down season in Indianapolis, but the Colts ended the year on an upswing.
Today’s dominating 30-10 win over the Jaguars sends the Colts into the playoffs on a three-game winning streak, with all three of those wins being one-sided affairs. Indianapolis has to feel good about its chances as it heads to the playoffs.
It was never close against the Jaguars. Donald Brown scored a one-yard touchdown at the end of the Colts’ first drive, Trent Richardson scored a two-yard touchdown at the end of the Colts’ second drive, and Adam Vinatieri kicked a 23-yard field goal at the end of the Colts’ third drive. It was 17-0 before the first quarter was over, and the Colts coasted the rest of the way.
In the fourth quarter, they pulled Andrew Luck and gave veteran backup Matt Hasselbeck some work, and the later portions of the game were noteworthy mostly because kicker Adam Vinatieri became the seventh player in NFL history with 2,000 career points.
The Colts’ defense played well, particularly Robert Mathis, who took the league lead in sacks and jumped ahead of St. Louis defensive end Robert Quinn, who will now try to take the lead back from Mathis in the Rams’ game against the Seahawks. Mathis is a strong candidate for the Defensive Player of the Year award.
And the Colts are a strong team heading into the postseason. They’re not the favorites to come out of the AFC, but they’re going to be a tough team to beat.