Well, That Sucked: Colts lose to the Jets

The Jets got their running game going in the 2nd half and managed enough offense to force the Colts into what looked to be a game-winning drive.  That drive ended with a 50 yard field goal by Adam Vinatieri to give the Colts a two point lead.

What looked to be a hopeless situation for the Jets turned into great field position via a long kickoff return by Antonio Cromartie.

I thought Manning played really well overall, but our failure to *consistently* run on a defense that at times only had a single lineman on the field was our undoing.  Until the Colts can punish defenses that load up on the pass they will continue to be ineffective.

Colts accept Christmas gifts from Titans and Jags - make playoffs

The Colts beat the Titans on Sunday in a game that ultimately only decided playoff seeding.  Now they are heading for a rematch of last years AFC Championship game against the NY Jets.  Had they not won, they would have been playing the Baltimore Ravens.

This was a typical Colts - Titans game where it seems not to matter what they respective records are, usually the outcome is decided as this one was, by a FG.

All indications are that this is the last time we will see Jeff Fisher on the sideline for the Titans.  I think he is one of the best coaches in the NFL and I will be glad to see him out of the division.  Hopefully he leaves the AFC altogether.

Some thoughts about this game:

• Dwight Freeney lined up at defensive tackle in some passing situations with Keyunta Dawson playing the RDE position.  This allowed Freeney to try his spin moves against the left guard - who typically has less lateral quickness.  It may be that they were trying this out for use in the playoffs, or just trying to get into the heads of their next opponent.
• The Titans primarily played man to man coverage all game and we had problems with it.  Expect to see lots of man coverage for the rest of this season.  The loss of Collie and Clark hurts us here the most.
• Garcon struggled all day to get free against the man coverage of the Titans.  Other than one long touchdown catch, he was not getting separation. 
• The offensive line continued their improved play.  Manning had time to throw for the most part and we had some nice runs from the shotgun formation.
• The defense has picked the right time to peak.  They allowed virtually no running room for the Titans.

I'll be posting short updates all week and hopefully will have a full blown preview of the Jets game up later in the week.