Click here to see all recaps on a single page
| Other Week 9 Game Recaps | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARI at STL | ATL at OAK | BAL at CLE | DAL at NYG | DET at CHI | GB at TEN | HOU at MIN | JAX at CIN |
| MIA at DEN | NE at IND | NYJ at BUF | PHI at SEA | PIT at WAS | TB at KC | ||
Week 9 Game Recap: New England Patriots 15, Indianapolis Colts 18
What you need to know
| New England Patriots |
The New England Patriots continue to use a very conservative and safe offensive game plan during life without QB Tom Brady. QB Matt Cassel was able to lead the team on a series of long, sustained scoring drives that ate up a lot of clock and kept the vaunted Colts offense off of the field. A bizarre misuse of time outs in the second half by head coach Bill Belichick limited the Patriots chance to win the game in the fourth quarter.
Belichick challenged a play on the field in the third quarter because he thought the Colts had twelve defenders on the field but the challenge failed. The Patriots then burned a time-out because of confusion at the line of scrimmage. The final timeout was called by Belichick as he ran out onto the field as his team was attempting to convert a fourth and one in the red zone. The team converted but the time out had been called before the play. The team was forced to settle for a field goal.
Cassel was limited mostly to screens and passes at or behind the line of scrimmage. He did not regularly target his outside receivers until the second half. Despite the offense's limitations they managed to score on long, time-consuming drives throughout the first half and into the second.
Since RB Laurence Maroney, RB Lamont Jordan, and RB Sammy Morris are all injured, the Patriots relied on the duo of free agent rookie RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis and veteran RB Kevin Faulk. Both backs played well and were instrumental in the team's ability to control the ball.
WR Randy Moss and WR Wes Welker pulled in thirteen combined receptions but did not manage to run much with the ball after the catch because of the Colts' swarming defense. WR Jabar Gaffney dropped a sure touchdown in the second half and the team was forced to settle for a field goal.
TE David Thomas was flagged for an unnecessary roughness call late in the fourth quarter for leveling a Colts defender after the play was whistled dead. Green-Ellis had nearly reached a first down but instead the Patriots faced a third and long situation that eventually turned into a fourth and 15. The team went for it on the fourth down because they had run out of timeouts and only four minutes remained in the game. They failed to convert the first down and the Colts went on to win the game.
The Patriots defense was generally unable to stop the Colts' passing game but prevented any big gains on the ground.
| Indianapolis Colts |
The Indianapolis Colts faced a must-win situation today and managed to pull out the victory despite having a defense that struggled to stop the dink and dunk offense of the New England Patriots.
QB Peyton Manning had a solid game and spread the ball around to a variety of receivers. He was accurate and strong and had the offense firing on all cylinders throughout the game.
RB Joseph Addai returned from injury and ran well but he was unable to get a single run over five yards. RB Dominick Rhodes served as the back-up running back and did not see much playing time.
WR Reggie Wayne looked good and had a solid game despite a lingering injury. WR Marvin Harrison was grabbing his back at the end of the first half and appeared to be in great pain but finished the game. WR Anthony Gonzalez hauled in two touchdown passes. TE Dallas Clark played well and lined up as both a tight end and wide receiver in the win.
The defense struggled despite playing against the conservative and safe play calling of the Patriots. New England was able to put together a string of long, time-consuming scoring drives with mostly run plays and short passes.
What you ought to know
| QB Matt Cassel, Pass: 25 - 34 - 204 - 0 TD / 1 INT, Rush: 5 - 20 - 0 |
QB Matt Cassel continues to run a very conservative offense for the New England Patriots. He was able to lead the team on a series of sustained drives in the loss but rarely went deep. Many passes to the wide receivers were at or behind the line of scrimmage. The team continued to use a lot of short passes and screens.
Cassel was also forced to run for a few first downs but managed to avoid sacks. His only interception was deflected into the hands of DB Bob Sanders on a fourth and fifteen late in the fourth quarter.
Cassel also lined up as wide receiver when the Patriots used the wildcat formation.
| RB Kevin Faulk, Pass: 1 - 1 - -2 - 0 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 10 - 60 - 0, Rec: 5 - 38 - 0 (5 targets) |
RB Kevin Faulk had another strong game in an increased role. He was a threat out of the backfield as both a runner and receiver. As long as the Patriots are low on backs, Faulk should continue to be a main feature in the Patriots conservative offense.
Faulk also took a couple of snaps out of the wildcat formation. He ran it once and passed to WR Wes Welker on the second attempt. He also failed to score on a two point conversion attempt.
| RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Rush: 15 - 57 - 1, Rec: 1 - 8 - 0 (2 targets) |
RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis appears to be a find for the Patriots. He runs powerfully for his size and seems to keep pumping his legs until he can't go forward anymore. He was a big reason the team was able to maintain such long drives and eat up the clock.
| RB Heath Evans, Rush: 2 - 3 - 0 |
RB Heath Evans only had two carries in the loss despite the lack of running backs for the Patriots.
| WR Wes Welker, Rec: 7 - 37 - 0 (7 targets) |
WR Wes Welker ended up with a bunch of receptions but not many yards. He was often targeted at or behind the line of scrimmage. The Colts quick defense was able to snuff out the quick pass plays and limited Welker's yards after catch ability.
| WR Randy Moss, Rec: 6 - 65 - 0 (8 targets) |
WR Randy Moss was not even targeted in the first half. His first catch in the second half was only for a yard but eventually QB Matt Cassel was able to work him into the action.
| WR Jabar Gaffney, Rec: 1 - 11 - 0 (3 targets) |
WR Jabar Gaffney let a well thrown wide open touchdown pass go through his hands in the second half. The Patriots were forced to settle for a field goal following that drop. Otherwise, Gaffney was not a big part of the offense.
| TE Ben Watson, Rec: 3 - 14 - 0 (7 targets) |
TE Ben Watson had two balls intended for him batted away by Colts defenders but otherwise he was not a large factor in the offense.
| TE David Thomas, Rec: 3 - 29 - 0 (3 targets) |
TE David Thomas received a costly unnecessary roughness call in the fourth quarter after RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis nearly gave the team a first down. The penalty resulted in a third and 16 for the Patriots and they were unable to recover and eventually turned the ball over.
| PK Stephen Gostkowski 3 - 3 FG, 0 - 0 XP, 9 points |
PK Stephen Gostkowski was perfect on the day.
| NE Rush Defense |
The Patriots run defense limited RB Joseph Addai's yardage in his return from injury and did not let up big plays on the ground.
| NE Pass Defense |
The Patriots pass defense was unable to get much pressure on QB Peyton Manning and he had a very strong game spreading the ball to his receivers despite the limited time of possession for the Colts.
CB Terrence Wheatley appeared to injure his hand in the first half and was seen going to the locker room.
| QB Peyton Manning, Pass: 21 - 29 - 254 - 2 TD / 0 INT |
QB Peyton Manning threw the ball well and spread the ball among a variety of receivers. Despite the limited possessions, Manning put up strong numbers and the entire offense looked confident and capable. He hit WR Anthony Gonzales for two touchdown passes on the right side and seemed to make the pass every time the team needed a first down.
| RB Joseph Addai, Rush: 17 - 32 - 0, Rec: 2 - 10 - 0 (3 targets) |
RB Joseph Addai returned from injury and looked fairly strong. He was able to gain yardage but failed to put together any long runs and did not have any carries for more than five yards.
| RB Dominic Rhodes, Rush: 4 - 15 - 0, Rec: 1 - 7 - 0 (1 targets) |
RB Dominick Rhodes spelled RB Joseph Addai at times but returned to his back-up status.
| WR Reggie Wayne, Rec: 5 - 65 - 0 (7 targets) |
RB Reggie Wayne played well and did not show any signs of slow down from the injury that had him listed as questionable heading into the match-up. He ran well and showed some nice footwork to avoid defenders and get out of bounds when necessary. Wayne also lined up in the slot for one play instead of his usual outside position and showed incredible determination on his two point conversion catch in the back of the end zone.
| WR Marvin Harrison, Rec: 4 - 50 - 0 (7 targets) |
WR Marvin Harrison grabbed his back and appeared to be in severe pain on the final play of the first half. He had grabbed a first down pass but failed to get out of bounds as he was hit very hard by the defender. He then sat on the sideline for a second and continued to grab his lower back as he went back to the line of scrimmage.
Harrison also returned a punt.
| WR Anthony Gonzalez, Rec: 4 - 55 - 2 (7 targets) |
WR Anthony Gonzalez caught two touchdown passes in the win. The first catch was an over the shoulder grab as he ran into the end zone. QB Peyton Manning hit him in nearly the same spot for the second touchdown as Gonzalez turned around and grabbed the ball before the defender could swat it away.
| TE Dallas Clark, Rec: 4 - 63 - 0 (5 targets) |
TE Dallas Clark continues to be a reliable target for QB Peyton Manning. He lined up both as a wide receiver and a tight end.
| PK Adam Vinatieri 1 - 1 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 4 points |
PK Adam Vinatieri was perfect in the victory. He hit a rare 52 yard field goal that proved to be the game winner in the fourth quarter.
| IND Rush Defense |
The Colts rush defense had trouble with RB Kevin Faulk and RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis. The Patriots were able to string together numerous long drives that ate up a lot of clock and yardage.
| IND Pass Defense |
The Colts pass defense was unable to get persistent pressure on QB Matt Cassel. The Colts were able to snuff out some of the screens and quick passes that the Patriots attempted and for the most part kept WR Randy Moss in check. Luckily, WR Jabar Gaffney dropped a sure touchdown in the second half because he was wide open and had a clear path to the end zone.
