Carson Wentz threw for 272 yards and three touchdowns, Jonathan Taylor rushed for 172 yards and two touchdowns, and the Indianapolis Colts rolled to a 45-30 victory over the New York Jets on Thursday night.
The Colts led 42-10 with 6:02 left to play in the third quarter before the Jets started to cut into the final deficit with a barrage of scores by third-string quarterback Josh Johnson. Taylor’s 172 rushing yards were the second-highest mark of his career and included a 78-yard touchdown in the third quarter that gave the Colts their largest lead of the night.
Johnson, playing for an injured Mike White, competed 27 of 41 passes for 317 yards and three touchdowns in the relief effort for the Jets. However, the hole got way too large for the Jets to keep up. White injured his forearm in the first quarter when his hand hit DeForest Buckner on his follow through.
After Nyheim Hines got the Colts on the board with a 34-yard touchdown run, White answered back with a 19-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Moore to even the game at 7-7. White exited the game on the Jets’ next possession and did not return.
The Colts then took full control as Taylor scored on a 21-yard run and Jack Doyle caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from Wentz to take a 21-7 lead. Matt Ammendola‘s 33-yard field goal cut into the Colts lead but Michael Pittman Jr. added an 11-yard touchdown catch from Wentz with 12 seconds left in the half to make it a 28-10 game at the break.
Backup guard Danny Pinter caught a 2-yard touchdown pass from Wentz on a tackle eligible play and Taylor sprung free on his 78-yard touchdown run as the Colts took a commanding 42-10 lead in the third quarter. Pinter’s touchdown is the first by a Colts offensive lineman since Anthony Castanzo caught a touchdown against the New England Patriots in 2014.
The Jets then clawed back into the game on the scoreboard in what was essentially garbage time over the final 20 minutes of the game.
Johnson hit Moore for a 19-yard touchdown, tight end Ryan Griffin for a 13-yard score and running back Ty Johnson on a 22-yard touchdown as New York cut the deficit to 45-30 around a Michael Badgley field goal. Johnson nearly added a fourth score for the Jets but a pass intended for Keelan Cole was deflected at the line of scrimmage by Taylor Stallworth that was picked off by Bobby Okereke at the Colts 7-yard line to stop the rally from progressing any further.