Colts vs. Texans: Indianapolis Grades, Notes and Quotes

With so much talent offensively, one of the best cornerbacks in the league and a genuine MVP candidate, the Colts had high expectations heading into the season, and against the Houston Texans they showed exactly why.

All it took was four poor performances and an injury to Andrew Luck to get the best out of the team.

For the first time all year the Colts came out of the gates strong, with an interception making up for defensive efficiencies on the opening drive that could have changed the game, and actually took a lead into halftime.

A big offensive second half counteracted some defensive struggles as the Colts held on for a 27-20 win against the Texans, their third straight against AFC South opponents this season.

There were still issues as the offensive line was not great in pass protection, DeAndre Hopkins had a field day and the offensive numbers weren’t the best the league has ever seen, but there were the first real signs of life for a Colts team that sleep walked through its opening four games.

Position Grade for Colts

Patric Schneider/Associated Press

Position	Grade
QB	A
RB	B+
WR	B
TE	B-
OL	C+
DL	B-
LB	C+
DB	C-
Special Teams	A
Coaching	B-

Another week without Andrew Luck, another outstanding performance from Matt Hasselbeck. Despite suffering from an illness leading up to the game, the veteran quarterback found a way to rewind the clock for the second straight week and led the team to its third straight win.

Much as the ageless wonder Hasselbeck did, Frank Gore and Andre Johnson wound back the clock for at least one night. The veteran duo both found the end zone for the Colts and were part of an offensive performance that, while not the most statistically impressive, was closer to what fans expected out of Indianapolis this season.

There were signs of improvement for Indy on the offensive line, with the running game getting going in large part because of a much better game for the interior linemen. But once again stopping the pass rush of the Texans was a concern at points as Hasselbeck saw a decent amount of pressure.

Both the defensive line and linebackers had up and down performances, but did their jobs relatively well in slowing down Arian Foster and the rushing attack. The pass rush wasn’t great again, but it didn’t matter in the end as DeAndre Hopkins and Jaelen Strong would have been open anyway.

Once again the Colts cornerbacks were abysmal. Greg Toler returned and looked worse than Jalil Brown had starting in place of him, Vontae Davis was clearly not at full strength and Hopkins and Strong were seemingly open every time Mallett or Hoyer dropped back.

Health Issues Taking Their Toll

Patric Schneider/Associated Press

Missing Andrew Luck for another week didn’t turn out to be too much of a problem for the Indianapolis Colts as Matt Hasselbeck put up another impressive performance in relief duty, but the sooner the star quarterback is healthy the better.

The offense is running fine with Hasselbeck taking snaps, but he isn’t going to beat out Luck and the longer he is out the longer it will take the rest of the offense to find their rhythm playing with him.

On the other side of the ball things are looking much more bleak. The cornerbacks weren’t in a strong place heading into the season and a number of injuries weren’t helping.

Indianapolis might have had its ideal lineup of cornerbacks on the field Thursday, but with Vontae Davis clearly not 100 percent and not shadowing DeAndre Hopkins—as he typically does with the No. 1 receivers—the defense was still vulnerable to the pass.

Greg Toler coming back was a start, but Davis needs to return to full strength as soon as possible or the Colts could continue to struggle slowing down opposing receivers. With a game against the Patriots looming, Indianapolis can’t have its secondary at anything but peak condition.

Andre Johnson Isn’t Done Yet

George Bridges/Associated Press

For the first four weeks of the year, one of the Colts biggest offseason acquisitions had been largely disappointing. Despite a Hall of Fame-calibre career with the Texans, wide receiver Andre Johnson had looked a shadow of his former self through the opening quarter of the year.

Instead of being granted new life with the offensive power that the Colts were expected to be, the veteran receiver was yet another piece in what has been a largely disappointing start to the season. But apparently a trip to the similarly struggling Texans was just what they needed to find their form and look like the players the Colts had hoped they were signing in the summer.

A touchdown in the first quarter was his first since joining the Colts in the summer, a welcome sight for the Indianapolis brass. Maybe all it took was the friendly confines of NRG Stadium to get Johnson going once again.

Finishing the game with six catches for 77 yards and two scores, Johnson recorded a season high in both yards and catches, and he sent a reminder to the young receivers around him that he can still play.

Johnson putting up big numbers isn’t necessary for the Colts to win games, as shown against the Titans and Jaguars, but it is a big plus and gives opponents something else to worry about on offense.

Same Old Problems Plaguing the Colts

Patric Schneider/Associated Press

The unbelievable Hail Mary to end the first half from Brian Hoyer to Jaelen Strong might have looked a little bit fluky in the moment, but it was symptomatic of even deeper problems for the Indianapolis Colts. The secondary has been awful this year and that didn’t change against the Texans Thursday.

A returning Greg Toler was supposed to alleviate some of the struggles against the pass, but being paired with DeAndre Hopkins because Vontae Davis wasn’t fully healthy was not the best way to bring a player back into the fold.

While the rest of the secondary didn’t look as bad as they had in previous weeks, going against Strong and Keith Mumphery is a task most secondaries should be up for, so nothing should be read into that.

On the other side of the ball the Colts offensive line was better, but there were still some issues with the pass protection for Matt Hasselbeck. The run blocking improved significantly, with Frank Gore more than willing to take advantage for his best performance of the season, but the protection for the quarterback is something that needs to continue to improve.

These have been issues that have troubled the Colts since the start of the season and unless something is done they could be enough to derail whatever postseason hopes the team have.

Andrew Luck and Matt Hasselbeck on Big Game

Patric Schneider/Associated Press

For the second consecutive week, Andrew Luck wasn't able to go for the Indianapolis Colts and handed the reins off to Matt Hasselbeck, and for the second consecutive week he took them with aplomb.

Recording back-to-back 200-yard-plus games while leading the Colts to victories in both contests, Hasselbeck has stepped up when the Colts needed him most, leaving Luck impressed and himself a little lost for words, per Zak Keefer of the Indianapolis Star:

"

Andrew Luck on Matt Haseelbeck: "He balled out. Seriously. Balled out."

— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) October 9, 2015"

"

Hasselbeck: "I honestly feel like this isn't real right now."

— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) October 9, 2015"

Against the odds Indianapolis continues to win against its division opponents and it has been in large part thanks to the performance of its backup quarterback.

Chuck Pagano on Setting an NFL Record

Patric Schneider/Associated Press

In the grand scheme of things it might seem like something that isn't all that important, but with the Indianapolis Colts' win against the Houston Texans Thursday they set the record for most consecutive wins against divisional opponents in the league at 16.

The team's complete dominance over the AFC South has constantly kept it ahead of the pack in the playoff hunt and it is something coach Chuck Pagano said the entire squad can enjoy together, according to Mike Berman of IndySportsCentral:

"

Pagano on new NFL record (16 straight wins in division): "It's something everyone on this team can share."

— Mike Berman (@MikeBermanIndy) October 9, 2015"

Winning so regularly against divisional opponents means the Colts now have built a big lead in the AFC South despite how early in the season it is and leaves the team in poll position to head back to the playoffs.

Dwayne Allen on Andre Johnson's Big Night

George Bridges/Associated Press

Through four games this year, Andre Johnson had seven catches for 51 yards for the Colts. Thursday against the Texans he recorded six catches for 77 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

It was a bit of a coming out party for Johnson who had disappointed since joining the team in the summer, and his teammates came away from the game impressed with the veteran wide receiver, per Kevin Bowen of Colts.com:

"

Dwayne Allen on Andre Johnson: “He felt at home & looked at home. People kept questioning, ‘Where’s Andre?’ I think they found him tonight.”

— Kevin Bowen (@KBowenColts) October 9, 2015"

Johnson is still the second or third option in the passing attack at best, but he showed against the Texans that when he gets going he is tough to stop.