Colts Back in Super Bowl Contention with Blowout Win over Giants

Remember last week, or is it already forgotten? 

Remember when the Indianapolis Colts were demolished defensively, allowing Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to throw for six touchdowns and over 500 yards? 

Remember when quarterback Andrew Luck turned the ball over three times and directly caused nine Steeler points with a pick-six and an unfortunate safety? 

Remember when the Colts were suddenly turned on their heads, having no chance at a deep playoff run? *See some of the responses to this tweet*

In the "Not For Long" league, those concerns are likely already forgotten. 

Monday night's win over the Giants reminded us that even after allowing 51 points in embarrassing fashion on one weekend, the next week's result always takes precedence. The overreaction to the Steelers' loss was rampant, despite the larger bulk of evidence saying the Colts were still one of the league's better teams, one of the teams that still had a shot at Super Bowl contention. 

Monday night reminded us of that evidence, evidence that isn't going away during a second half of the season that has the Colts with one of the easiest schedules in the league. 

The Colts strengths played like strengths on Monday and those are what will carry the Colts through any playoff run that happens to occur. 

Andrew Luck: an MVP Candidate

When a team throws the ball 31 times in a half, it's usually because of a noticeable deficit, not a double-digit lead. But with the Colts, it's just another indication of the reliance that this team has on Luck and the passing offense. 

Despite the talking heads regurgitating the Colts coaches rhetoric about the running game and using it to balance the offense, the truth is that this offense always has and always will rely on the arm of Luck. The Colts pass the ball at one of the highest rates in the league: Before the last two weeks, the Colts were the second-most pass-happy team in the league, per Chase Stuart of Football Perspective, and they've been even more so since. 

Luck is on pace for 699 pass attempts, which would be second-most in NFL history. He's averaging nearly 44 attempts a game, one of just two quarterbacks to throw more than 40 passes per game. Drew Brees being the other. 

High-volume passing is usually a recipe for lower efficiency. But Luck has managed to put up remarkable efficiency numbers despite the record-setting load he's carrying. He's in the top 10 in touchdown percentage (which should rise after throwing four more on Monday night), yards per attempt, net yards per attempt, adjusted yards per attempt, passer rating, etc. This list goes on and on. 

The Colts lead the league in yards per game and points per game, and while the overall offensive efficiency has suffered because of a lackluster running game, the Colts can score points with anybody. Having weapons like T.Y. Hilton, Reggie Wayne, Dwayne Allen and Ahmad Bradshaw (among others) helps.

Luck has shown up every single week and thus clearly separated himself from the other young quarterbacks of the league and done so against a variety of opponents. There's nothing left for him to prove, save for his ability to continue to shoulder this kind of load through an entire season. 

Another week, another reminder that Luck keeps the Colts on the shortlist of contenders. 

The Defense Will be Fine

Last week's performance against Pittsburgh was an aberration. I've said it since the clock hit 0:00 last Sunday. Any time a quarterback throws for six touchdowns and over 500 yards against a defense, it's an aberration. 

The defense simply won't allow that to happen every week. It just won't. 

We were reminded of that this week, as the Colts shut down Eli Manning and the Giants offense for the vast majority of Monday night's game. Manning was 9-of-23 for 97 yards in the first half, and never really improved until the Colts backups entered the game in the fourth quarter. The Colts strengths, man coverage by the secondary and stunts and blitzes by the front seven, were on point on Monday once again, and the defense excelled because of it. 

Does this defense have questions? Absolutely. There is little top-end talent, especially in the front seven, and it's incredibly scheme-dependent (which means it can be figured out). 

But it's not one of the bottom-feeders. It will likely have its struggles against top quarterbacks, as it did against Roethlisberger, but not to that extreme. The Steelers provided a poor matchup with Indianapolis, and they are currently playing as well as they will all season. 

With Vontae Davis leaving the Steelers game early, the Colts were just in the midst of a perfect storm. With Davis healthy against the Giants, the storm was in the Giants huddle.

They very well could allow the Patriots to put up big numbers in two weeks. And that's okay. The Patriots, after all, just put up 43 points on what's been a very effective Denver defense. Even above-average defenses have their bad days, usually against good quarterbacks. 

But the ability to shut down mediocre and bad offenses isn't something to complain about. It's an asset. It allows the Colts to coast to wins in the regular season, as they have in four of their six wins. It allows them to occasionally rise to the occasion against good offenses, as they did against Denver in Week 1. 

The Colts will need the defense to avoid games like the one against the Steelers in the playoffs. But they don't need them to be the Steel Curtain, or the early 2000s Ravens. There is potential there for stretches of very good play, and with an elite quarterback, that's all you need. 

Back Where They Belong

The Colts are one of the league's better teams, maybe even one of the best. Last week's loss didn't change that, it just forced some knee-jerk reactions, because that's what NFL fans, media and analysts do. It's in our nature.

Now, with a convincing, well-rounded win (the special teams had a fantastic week yet again), the Colts have reminded us that they do belong in the group of Super Bowl contenders. One loss to one of the hottest teams in the league never should have changed that. 

Much like the questions and nitpicking of Luck never should have happened last week, neither should the doubting of the Colts' long-term viability. 

With Davis healthy and Luck and the offense playing as well as any in the league, they'll continue to be on that shortlist, because they belong there. It's not unlike the feeling that surrounded the Manning teams of the 2000s.

Yes, last week's loss to Pittsburgh has already been forgotten. As it should be.

Statistics courtesy of Pro Football Reference.