Week 11 Game Recap: Indianapolis Colts 14, Dallas Cowboys 21

What you need to know

Indianapolis Colts

The Colts’ offense was unable to get into a consistent flow during the game and was unable to score many points in large part due to a very aggressive and effective Dallas defense. Peyton Manning epitomized the team’s offense as he was poised and accurate at times and hurried and off target at other times. The Colts had three possessions inside the red zone during this game, and came away with one touchdown, one interception and a failed attempt on fourth down towards the end of the game. Of the 13 plays they ran inside the red zone, Joseph Addai was involved either running or catching the ball on eight of those plays. While he did not score, he was a big part of the Colts’ red zone offense. Tight end Dallas Clark was the intended target on three of the other five red zone plays, including one he caught for a touchdown and another thrown to him in the end zone that was intercepted.

Indianapolis’ rushing attack was limited to 22 attempts, and their running backs Joseph Addai and Dominic Rhodes combined for 80 yards rushing on 22 attempts. Addai was the more productive runner of the two and finished with 50 yards rushing in 13 attempts. He showed very good quickness in eluding defenders and on other occasions took on defenders, dragging tacklers for extra yardage after initial contact. There were a couple of plays inside the ten yard line where he was one tackle away from scoring

Peyton Manning had an average day by his standards. Manning completed slightly more than half of his passing attempts, at times missing open receivers and at other times making accurate passes to various parts of the field. Manning completed 20 of 39 passes for 254 yards, with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also fumbled twice, losing one of them. At times Manning connected easily with wide receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne, but at other times, he was forced to hurry his throws and missed receivers. He was unable to get into a good rhythm for a significant part of the game, due in large part to an excellent effort by Dallas’ defense. Harrison ended with 94 yards on six receptions and Wayne with 111 yards with one touchdown on seven receptions.

Indianapolis’ defense played aggressively throughout the game, but they too were plagued by inconsistency. They pressured Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo at times, but he was able to complete 19 of 23 passes. Their run defense only gave up an average of 3.67 yards per rushing attempt to Dallas’ running backs, but also gave up two rushing touchdowns. The Colts defense also committed some untimely penalties that kept a couple of Dallas drives’ alive, including one in the end zone that resulted in a Marion Barber rushing touchdown.

Dallas Cowboys

Although the Cowboys were efficient on offense, they had to overcome a rocky start when quarterback Tony Romo lost a fumble and threw an interception at the Colts’ four yard line, both in the first half. They did capitalize on their chances inside the red zone, converting both of their trips there into touchdowns. On both of their series in the red zone, Dallas followed a similar script. They featured Julius Jones running and Terry Glenn passing, and then brought Barber in once they got inside the five yard line. Jones touched the ball on six of Dallas’ ten plays inside the red zone, and Glenn was targeted twice inside the red zone. Glenn was also the targeted receiver on a deep pass that was intercepted at the Colts’ four yard line. Barber came in and scored on both of his rushing attempts.

The Cowboys did an adequate job of running the ball in terms of yards gained per carry (3.67 yards per carry combined for Jones and Barber) and an excellent job rushing in goal to go situations. Barber received both goal to go carries, and scored on both attempts, from five yards and one yard. Both players had several carries between the tackles and ran with dogged determination, with neither player going down on first contact often. Barber ran with more power, while Jones showed a willingness to run powerfully between the tackles and take on defenders.

Tony Romo overcame a shaky start where he threw an interception and lost a fumble, to lead his team to the victory. Romo completed an efficient 19 of 23 passes for 226 yards, with no touchdowns and one interception. He made some clutch throws while using his mobility to escape the Colts’ pass rush, and looked confident throughout the game. The Dallas quarterback seemed comfortable with all of the passes he was asked to throw, and showed the arm strength and touch to make them all. Romo made some key completions toward the end of the game that cemented the victory for his team. He made an adjustment after halftime, targeting Terry Glenn on seven of his 11 second half passes, completing six of those targets. The only incomplete target to Glenn came on a play where Glenn’s defender was called for pass interference in the end zone.

The Cowboys’ defense was stellar throughout the game. They contributed to Manning not getting into a consistent rhythm by using a variety of blitzes combined with solid coverage, and a lot of hustle. Although they allowed over 200 yards receiving to Harrison and Wayne, the Cowboys did not allow the Colts receivers to make many long passing plays. The Cowboys defense also contributed to the scoring by returning an interception for a touchdown.

What you ought to know

QB Peyton Manning, Pass: 20 - 39 - 254 - 2 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 1 - 8 - 0

Manning kept his team in the game, but was unable to produce enough big plays for his team to come away with a win. At times he seemed to be in sync with his wide receivers, and moved the ball well, but he did not have the same rapport with his other receivers. As such, when Harrison and Wayne were not open, he struggled to find an outlet receiver. While he showed his trademark brilliance at times, Manning had an average game by his standards.

RB Joseph Addai, Rush: 13 - 50 - 0, Rec: 1 - 7 - 0 (1 targets)

Addai played well, and although the Colts continue to use a running back by committee approach, he was the featured back on most of Indianapolis’ plays inside the red zone. He was a missed tackle away from scoring on a couple of plays inside the red zone, and ran very aggressively while showing good elusiveness throughout the game.

RB Dominic Rhodes, Rush: 9 - 30 - 0, Rec: 3 - 20 - 0 (5 targets)

Rhodes was a marginal contributor in both the running and passing game. Apart from his longest run, which was for nine yards, he averaged 2.6 yards per rushing attempt.

WR Reggie Wayne, Rec: 7 - 111 - 1 (10 targets)

Wayne seemed to be open on intermediate routes throughout the game. Two of the incomplete passes thrown his way were very high passes that he jumped for but could not bring down. He also displayed excellent route running and hands throughout the game, along with superior quickness.

WR Marvin Harrison, Rec: 6 - 94 - 0 (10 targets)

Harrison had a good game, although he fumbled his first target of the game. He also was targeted on a deep pass in the end zone, but the pass fell incomplete. Apart from those plays, Harrison displayed the excellent route running and hands that have been his trademark for some time, and proved to be a handful to cover.

WR Aaron Moorehead (2 targets)

Moorehead had two passes thrown to him late in the first half but was unable to catch either.

TE Ben Utecht, Rec: 2 - 18 - 0 (4 targets)

Utecht’s role was minimal, and he converted half of the passes thrown to him.

TE Dallas Clark, Rec: 1 - 4 - 1 (7 targets)

Although Clark was targeted seven times, he could not get in sync with Manning and only caught one pass, which was for a touchdown. Clark was targeted two additional times in the end zone, one of which was intercepted, but he and Manning could not connect.

PK Adam Vinatieri 0 - 0 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 2 points

Vinatieri was only asked to attempt two extra point attempts, and he converted both successfully.

IND Rush Defense

Indianapolis’ rush defense was not very effective, as although they gave up less than their average in terms of rushing yards against, they gave up two rushing touchdowns on first and goal to go plays.

IND Pass Defense

Indianapolis’ pass defense was active, but only recorded one sack. This was in some part due to Romo’s ability to escape the pass rush and Dallas calling plays that required him to pass the ball quickly. As a result the Colts’ pass defense gave up a high percentage of passes, and could not keep Dallas from completing a third down 22 yard pass late in the game that sealed the victory.

QB Tony Romo, Pass: 19 - 23 - 226 - 0 TD / 1 INT, Rush: 5 - 3 - 0

Despite throwing an interception and losing a fumble, Romo was very efficient and did what was asked of him. He looked comfortable directing the offense, and made several nice throws on the run to his receivers. Romo did not attempt many long passes, but he was very accurate, missing only four of his pass attempts. He made several plays as a result of his ability to elude the Colts’ pass rush and buy additional time in the pocket. Romo spread the ball around in the first half, but made an adjustment in the second half and successfully targeted Terry Glenn several times, which helped the Cowboys’ offense be more productive.

RB Julius Jones, Rush: 22 - 79 - 0, Rec: 3 - 25 - 0 (3 targets)

Jones ran hard and was fairly effective. He showed he could reach the extra gear quickly, but did not have many opportunities to get past the second wave of defenders. As a result, he did not have any big gains, but showed he could handle getting the tough yards running up the middle.

RB Marion Barber III, Rush: 9 - 35 - 2

Barber was asked to make the tough yards and did a commendable job of doing that. He was especially effective on his two rushing attempts close to the goal line, punching in both attempts for touchdowns. He ran with strength and determination, powering through tacklers on his rushes, and rarely going down at first contact.

WR Terry Glenn, Rec: 6 - 78 - 0 (8 targets)

After being targeted just once in the first half, a deep pass that was intercepted at the Colts’ four yard line, Glenn was more involved in the second half. He took advantage of that by showcasing his route running ability as well as his speed, to have a significant contribution in this game. Glenn was also targeted in the end zone on a play where his defender fouled him, and proved difficult to defend with single coverage.

WR Terrell Owens, Rec: 4 - 70 - 0 (4 targets)

Owens caught all of the passes thrown to him, including a deep pass at the end of the first half that set up a field goal attempt that was missed. While he was not targeted much, his four catches were on a variety of routes, and he showed good hands on a couple plays where he was closely defended.

WR Patrick Crayton, Rec: 2 - 6 - 0 (4 targets)

Crayton was a minimal performer in this game, catching half of the short passes that were thrown in his direction.

WR Sam Hurd (1 targets)

Hurd was not a factor in this game.

TE Jason Witten, Rec: 3 - 25 - 0 (3 targets)

Witten caught all of his targets, but was not targeted in the second half, as Romo focused most of his passes towards Glenn. Witten’s contributions were catching short passes in the first half and blocking in the second half.

TE Anthony Fasano, Rec: 1 - 22 - 0 (1 targets)

Fasano made the most of his lone target, converting a long pass into a nice catch late in the game to keep Dallas’ final drive alive, and ultimately sealing the victory.

PK Mike Vanderjagt 0 - 2 FG, 3 - 3 XP, 3 points

Vanderjagt struggled in this game, missing both of his field goal attempts and converting all three of his extra point attempts. His misses were from 43 and 46 yards.

DAL Rush Defense

Dallas did a decent job of preventing the Colts' running backs from breaking long running plays, and held them to 3.67 yards per rushing attempt. Even when the Colts’ running backs were able to break free from the first tackler, the other Cowboys’ defenders did a good job of swarming to them and preventing big gains.

DAL Pass Defense

Dallas’ pass defense was aggressive and did not allow many big plays by the receivers while creating some of their own. In addition to applying pressure to Manning for most of the game, they were able to cause Harrison and Manning to fumble, and recovered both of them. They also intercepted Manning twice, and returned one of them for a touchdown. They turned in an aggressive, yet focused effort during the game.