More halves like the second half necessary for Colts

By Anthony Bialy  |   Sunday, October 28, 2007  |  Comments( 1 )

Indianapolis Colts
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The Colts won't be able to win like this next time. The upcoming colossal game everyone's going to discuss constantly until next Sunday aside, Indianapolis shouldn't be waiting until after the half to throttle other teams. Against Carolina in Week 8, the Colts were down by four at the end of the first quarter and only up by three at the long break, and while both patience and attaining victory are virtues, coming out firing doesn't hurt, either.

The lethargic start in mind, it's also fair to defend Indianapolis by pointing out that it had to overcome injuries. Yes, every team in the sport's history has had to deal with missing guys, but relatively few have had to deal with having an all-time top receiver like Marvin Harrison shelved. Also, offensive tackle Tony Ugoh's absence was a difficult obstacle, as his stable play, especially for a rookie, has helped allow the Colts to continue steamrolling opponents. But on this team, others take their places without skipping a step.

Particularly, Reggie Wayne, a receiver who would be the best on his squad for about, oh, 27 or 28 other teams, played fantastically on an off-passing day for his team overall. He excelled individually despite the fact that his quiet superstar teammate was unavailable to attract defensive attention. Seven catches is a good afternoon, and piling up 168 yards is a terrific one, including Wayne's 59-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter where he exploded past anyone trying to defend him.

Wayne is one of the few receivers who wouldn't truly suffer by comparison to Harrison, largely because he's able to accomplish so much on his own on the rare afternoons when his counterpart is hobbled. Tight end Ben Utecht was second in receiving for the team on the day with 41 yards; it's fair to say that, when one player is responsible for almost half his team's receptions and close to two-thirds of its aerial yards, he's proved himself special without the assistance of another receiver distracting the secondary.

Also stepping right back into prominence was Joseph Addai, who sandwiched Wayne's score with a touchdown reception on the opening drive of the second half and a 12-yard rushing tally early in the fourth. He totaled exactly 100 yards on 23 carries, up from 85 yards on 16 attempts the previous week against Jacksonville in his return from injury. Complemented by Kenton Keith's half-dozen rushes for 33 yards, the ground game was the one place where the usually multifaceted Colts performed fairly well during an overall uninspiring struggle.

As for the General, Peyton Manning threw for 255 yards and the two scores, but he uncharacteristically completed fewer than half of his passes, 14 out of the 30. It's beyond a stretch to claim he had a bad game, but that percentage can't be pleasing to someone who's completed over 64 percent of his career throws. His low rate for the day was part of the reason why the ostensibly inferior Panthers hung around for at least a few quarters.

Of course, this was still a 24-point win. Plus, it can be seen as reassuring when a team plays one middling half of football and nonetheless cruises to the finish. At the same time, it's one thing to steadily set up an opponent, but it's another to simply wait to turn on the afterburners until absolutely necessary. Colts fans can take comfort, though, in their team's unblemished record at this point of the season and also in the fact that neither the coach nor its superstars/leaders will permit a flat start next week in a regular season title fight against New England.
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