Colts vs. Giants: Full Report Card Grades for Indianapolis
The Indianapolis Colts were able to bounce back and looked like an AFC contender once again on Monday Night Football, getting a 40-24 win over the New York Giants.
Despite a rough start, the offense got rolling under Andrew Luck, especially by the second half. The Colts finished with 446 total yards of offense but, more importantly, didn't have a single turnover.
The defense did a much better job than they did last week against the Pittsburgh Steelers, completely shutting the Giants down until the game was well out of hand. Before the fourth quarter, the Giants were able to score only 10 points.
The Colts were in command at halftime, up 16-3, then quickly broke it open early in the second half after Luck found T.Y. Hilton for a 31-yard touchdown. Luck threw two more touchdowns in the third quarter to go up 37-10 before the final 15 minutes.
While the offense and defense both played well, the special teams was as consistent as ever, continuing to look like one of the best units in football. Thanks to the win, the Colts will head into their bye week with plenty of momentum but will have a tough opponent to face in two weeks in the New England Patriots.
With the game over, let's take a look at the complete report card grades for the Colts win.
Quarterback
1 of 10
Andrew Luck didn't have a lot of time to throw in the first half, but he managed as usual. Through the first two quarters, he went 17-of-31 with 202 yards and a touchdown. Some of the decisions that he had weren't great, but at least there were no turnovers.
The one thing I want to figure out about Luck is why he sometimes randomly has horrible throws, and there's usually at least one a week. I've started calling them "derp throws" because it feels like his brain just shuts down and makes strange decisions at times.
The third-year quarterback started to make adjustments in the second half, and they payed off. While he continued to get hit, Luck was able to find plenty of open receivers, finishing the game 25-for-46 with 354 yards and four touchdowns.
Even when he's not at his best, Luck continues to put up monster numbers, as he keeps looking like a legitimate MVP candidate.
Grade: A
Running Back
2 of 10
The running backs were used very sparingly in the first half, with Trent Richardson and Ahmad Bradshaw each getting just two carries for 10 yards. Both also had two catches each for a combined 16 yards.
It won't show up on the stat sheet, but Bradshaw made a great blitz pickup in the second quarter, keeping the pocket clean for Luck so that he could complete a pass in the red zone.
Even up big in the second half, the Colts still focused more on the passing game, but both running backs put up solid numbers on limited reps. Bradshaw and Richardson had just seven carries each, but finished with 83 rushing yards combined, averaging almost six yards per carry.
Dan Herron got some work in garbage time, carrying the ball eight times for just 10 yards, but his purpose was only to run the clock.
They didn't get a lot of work in, but the running backs did their job when called upon.
Grade: B+
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
Playing against his old team, Hakeem Nicks was more productive than he's usually been this season, getting off to a nice start with three catches for 44 yards in the first two quarters. He didn't do anything else in the second half, but he didn't need to with the lead the Colts had.
Returning from injury, Reggie Wayne was still able to get involved. He caught two passes for 23 yards in the first half, looking much better than he did two weeks ago when he suffered an elbow injury against the Cincinnati Bengals. Wayne finished with 70 yards on four receptions, including a 40-yard touchdown.
Hilton continues to look like one of the most underrated players in the NFL, as he keeps making big plays. He finished with just three catches, but they went for 71 yards and included a 31-yard touchdown when the wideout ripped the ball out of the opponent's hands.
Coby Fleener seemed to be out of sync early with Luck, but that quickly changed on the first drive of the second quarter, as the former Stanford tight end caught two passes for 53 yards. The first reception may have been bobbled out of bounds, but Luck hurried the offense up and snapped the ball before the Giants could challenge and found Fleener behind a disorganized New York defense for a 32-yard touchdown. Fleener still gets lost from time to time, but you can still see the potential.
In the nine games the Colts have played, Dwayne Allen has scored in seven of them. He had another touchdown this week along with 48 yards on four receptions and continues to look like one of the best all-around tight ends in the league.
Luck didn't have a lot of time in the pocket, so give the receivers a lot of credit for finding ways to get open quickly and frequently.
Grade: A
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
The coaches decided to start Lance Louis over Hugh Thornton, but the Colts guard made his presence felt early on with a great block on Indy's first running play of the game.
That was one of the few early highlights from the offensive line against New York. The Giants weren't afraid to blitz early and often, and the O-line couldn't hold, forcing Luck to deal with constant pressure. He was sacked only once through the first two quarters but was hit a handful of times.
The pressure continued in the second half, and the offensive line had no answers for Robert Ayers, who kept getting to Luck. Gosder Cherilus still looks slow at right tackle, and the interior of the Colts offensive line looked out of sync.
At the beginning of the year, the offensive line looked like one of the team's biggest improvements, but now I'm not so sure.
Grade: C-
Defensive Line
5 of 10
Although he's not played well most of this season, Josh Chapman made a great play to force a fumble while hitting running back Andre Williams. The Giants got the ball back, but it forced them to throw on 3rd-and-long, and they were unable to convert.
Even after Ricky Jean Francois left the game, other players continued to emerge as run-stoppers. Cory Redding was as solid as always, but sophomore Montori Hughes stood out with some nice stops.
The Giants running numbers are a bit deceptive because of some breakaway runs, including a few late, but they still only ran for 89 yards on 20 carries. Andre Williams seriously struggled to get through the Colts defensive line, running for just 22 yards on 12 carries.
The depth on the defensive line has been a big help, and that was apparent with Arthur Jones out once again. This was one of their better games of the season, and hopefully they can continue to stop opposing running games.
Grade: A
Linebacker
6 of 10
Rookie Jonathan Newsome was able to get the second sack of his career before halftime, but he wasn't done there. In the third quarter, Newsome was able to get another sack, this time stripping the ball away from Manning, helping the Colts score the game-sealing touchdown a couple of plays later. The former Ball State player is continuing to improve, and he may end up being an answer to rushing opposing quarterbacks.
Bjoern Werner had another nice game even without registering a sack. He had two tackles for loss, a hit on Manning and a great open-field tackle while in coverage to prevent a third-down conversion. The second-year linebacker is still adjusting to the NFL, but the improvement is visible.
The inside linebackers were quite active in the running and passing game, but Jerrell Freeman stood out in a couple of instances, shooting through the gap to blow up running plays, even registering a tackle for loss. D'Qwell Jackson still looks like an aging veteran, but he didn't have any noticeably bad plays.
The pass rush still isn't great, but Newsome's presence was felt, and Colts fans should look forward to seeing what he can do the rest of the season.
Grade: B+
Secondary
7 of 10
The secondary got a lot of help on Monday because of some terrible play and constant drops from the Giants receivers, but you still have to give them credit for the job they did.
On the very first possession, Greg Toler did a nice job recovering after getting beat by his receiver, leaping to break up a great pass from Manning. He's not the fastest corner, but his length helps him a lot in one-on-one coverage.
Now healthy again, Vontae Davis continued to play like a shutdown corner. Manning didn't throw at him often, but when he did, the results were almost always not good for the Giants. So far, Davis has lived up to his contract. However, his presence is vital to this defense's success, so he'll need to stay healthy.
Manning may have completed 27 passes for 359 yards and two touchdowns, but he also had 52 attempts and struggled against the Colts secondary when trying to throw deep.
The safety play of Sergio Brown and Mike Adams hasn't been elite, but it's been much better than fans were expecting. They continue to provide good coverage deep downfield but are also able to make plays in run support or when blitzing.
When Davis is healthy, everyone seems to fit into their respective roles in the secondary. But when he isn't, things go wrong. This was a good game, but the health of Davis is more important than arguably anything this season for the Colts.
Grade: A-
Special Teams
8 of 10
It's starting to become redundant writing about the special teams every week, mostly because they continue to come through.
Adam Vinatieri is still perfect this season despite a busy day on Monday. He made all four field-goal attempts, including two from 48 yards out, as well as all four of his extra points. The veteran kicker has now made 26 consecutive field goals, the longest streak of his career.
Meanwhile, Pat McAfee keeps having a Pro Bowl season. His six punts averaged only 40 yards per attempt, but three were pinned well inside the 20-yard line, and one ended up being just his second touchback of the year. If he's not in the Pro Bowl at the end of the year, I'll be shocked.
Grade: A+
Coaching
9 of 10
Offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton deserves all of the credit in the world for his play-calling today. Hamilton usually likes to balance the offense by establishing the running game, but he recognized a thin secondary plagued by injuries and decided to keep airing it out.
The decision paid off, with the offense averaging 6.2 yards per play while not turning the ball over a single time.
Greg Manusky's blitz schemes started to work again with Davis back at corner, and the Colts were able to put pressure on Manning. It wasn't consistent, but they were still able to rack up three sacks.
After last week's loss, Chuck Pagano and company made sure that their team was ready to play. The Colts had lost back-to-back games only once with him as head coach, and he made sure that it didn't happen a second time.
Grade: A
Final Grades
10 of 10
| Position | Grade |
| QB | A |
| RB | B+ |
| WR/TE | A |
| OL | C- |
| DL | A |
| LB | B+ |
| Secondary | A |
| Special Teams | A+ |
| Coaching | A |
| Cumulative Grade | A- |
With the exception of the offensive line, almost every unit played great for the Colts in Monday night's win. Fans that were freaking out over last week's loss to Pittsburgh can finally settle down, because this team is capable of beating teams on the road when needed.
While it's nice to take a two-game lead in the AFC South, this game was more important in terms of helping the Colts get their confidence back heading into the bye week. They have arguably their toughest test since Week 2 after the bye against the Patriots, and Tom Brady's offense has been playing at an extremely high level up to this point.
The Colts offensive line will need to regroup, but there are still questions as to why A.Q. Shipley was benched, not to mention Hugh Thornton, who was benched this week for Lance Louis. The defense isn't perfect either, but at least it has found ways to get to opposing quarterbacks.
The path to a Super Bowl will rest on Luck's shoulders, but if he keeps playing like he's been to start the season, then the Colts can go toe-to-toe with anyone that they meet in the postseason.
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