Colts vs. Patriots: Full Report Card Grades for New England
The New England Patriots advanced to the Super Bowl Sunday night with a decisive 45-7 victory over the Indianapolis Colts, as Bill Belichick and Tom Brady notched their 20th postseason victory as a coach-quarterback tandem.
It was a complete game by New England, with nearly stellar performances from all of its units, from quarterback and running backs to linebackers and special teams.
With the dominance the Patriots displayed on both the offensive side of the ball, coached by Josh McDaniels, and the defensive side of the ball, coached by Matt Patricia, they proved themselves as a team ready to take on the Seattle Seahawaks in Super Bowl XLIX.
Brady, with a completion rate of 71.4 percent, had one of the most accurate postseason performances of his career. But this game belonged to LeGarrette Blount, who had three touchdowns on the night and rushed for 148 yards on 30 carries after the Patriots totaled just 14 rushing yards last week against the Baltimore Ravens.
The Patriots have amassed 14 rushing touchdowns in their last four meetings with the Colts, and they continued to wear down Indianapolis' defense on Sunday with a power-running game. That kind of offensive balance will serve them well in Glendale in two weeks.
Let's break down the Patriots' outstanding performance, with complete grades for each unit.
Quarterback
1 of 10
Tom Brady had another postseason performance for the books against the Colts, finishing 25-of-35 for a completion rate of 71.4 percent, throwing three touchdowns and one interception for 226 yards. It was the third-highest completion percentage of Brady's 28-game postseason career, and his ninth with a passer rating of 100 or higher.
He also surpassed Peyton Manning to set a new postseason passing record.
Brady was intercepted early in the second quarter by D'Qwell Jackson when the Patriots were up 14-0 and were attempting to take a significant 21-0 lead, but though it seemed momentous at the time, it proved nearly insignificant to the outcome of the game. The interception was an ill-advised forced pass to Rob Gronkowski in the red zone, and it gave the Colts the momentum they had been missing to get on the board.
However, it proved to be the first and last time Indianapolis would score, while Brady remained on the field nearly the entire game—long after it was put away. Jimmy Garoppolo was in for a few snaps on the Patriots' last drive of the game, but he did not attempt a pass.
With the win, Brady now becomes the first quarterback in NFL history to play in six Super Bowls.
Grade: A
Running Back
2 of 10
New England surpassed its average for rushing yards in a game—107.9 in the regular season—and certainly its posteason average against the Colts on Sunday. In the divisional round against the Baltimore Ravens, the Patriots had just 14 rushing yards total.
Against the Colts, New England had 177. 148 of those yards came by way of LeGarrette Blount.
Going to Blount early and often worked out for the Patriots, as he scored on his third carry of the game on a one-yard rush after his run on the previous play was initially ruled a touchdown but reversed after review.
Demonstrating the trust he has built with Belichick since he returned to New England in November, Blount was the linchpin of New England's offense on Sunday. He ran the ball 16 times for 68 yards and the aforementioned touchdown in the first half, while the only other carries by New England in the first half were by Brady and Julian Edelman.
He finished with a whopping 30 carries. Jonas Gray and Shane Vereen combined for five, though each had led the Patriots in rushing at previous points in the season.
Blount sealed the win for New England late in the third quarter, when he turned an interception by Darrelle Revis into points with a 13-yard rushing touchdown to put the Patriots up 38-7. The Colts proved powerless to tackle Blount, not only on that play but throughout the game.
By the time Blount scored his third touchdown of the game, New England was already in blowout territory. Belichick subbed Gray in the backfield to run out the clock, resting Blount after his incredible performance.
The backfield-by-committee approach has worked well for the Patriots in recent years, and the same was true in 2014.
Grade: A+
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
Brady connected with eight different pass-catching weapons against the Colts, spreading 226 receiving yards among them. It was surprisingly close to New England's regular-season average of 268.2 receiving yards per game, considering that New England played with the lead throughout the entire matchup and thus ran the ball often.
Edelman was Brady's most targeted receiver, with 11 passes thrown his way, but there were seven worrisome offensive snaps that Edelman missed for New England with an injury in the first half. However, he returned to the field later in the second quarter and proved to be crucial on third downs for New England, ending his night with five third-down catches (and two on fourth down) for 98 yards.
Edelman's hip injury did flare up again after his last catch late in the fourth quarter, but there were no reports immediately after the game that it would affect him in Super Bowl practices.
Rob Gronkowski didn't have his first reception until the third quarter, though he was targeted four times before that. One target was the attempt by Brady into double coverage that resulted in the interception.
After his first catch, however, more came in bunches for Gronkowski. With 3:19 left in the third quarter, Gronkowski caught a five-yard touchdown pass from Brady to put New England up a decisive 31-7.
Gronkowski finished his night with three receptions for 28 yards.
Though he didn't see much action out of the backfield, Shane Vereen proved to be a valuable pass-catching weapon for Brady as well; he was targeted four times and caught three passes for 41 yards.
Grade: A-
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
The offensive line factored into the game in a special way on Sunday, when Tom Brady connected with left tackle Nate Solder on a 16-yard touchdown, for his first career reception. Solder reported as eligible on the play, and the Colts defense was completely ill-prepared to cover him.
The offensive line also gave Brady plenty of time in the pocket, allowing Indianapolis' defense just one sack and two hits.
Facing a tall order to step up after rookie center Bryan Stork injured his knee last week against the Baltimore Ravens, Josh Kline made his first playoff start when he slid into the starting role at right guard, while Ryan Wendell started at center.
The shifts on the offensive line had no impact on the game, however. Both Kline and Wendell played outstandingly, and the line kept Brady protected, while giving LeGarrette Blount open lanes to rush for 148 yards.
To support the run game, the Patriots used a heavy-personnel package that included rookie offensive tackle Cameron Fleming coming in as a sixth offensive lineman on 29 snaps, per ESPNBoston.com's Mike Reiss.
Performing as well as it did without Stork already earns this unit high marks, but Solder's touchdown run secures its high grade. This offensive line has come a long way from Week 1 and is prepared to hold its own against the Seattle Seahawks.
Grade: A
Defensive Line
5 of 10
New England tied with the St. Louis Rams and the Carolina Panthers for the 13th-most sacks in the league during the regular season, with 40. However, they had none during the course of the postseason, joining the Denver Broncos as the only other team not to register one.
However, New England's failure to sack Andrew Luck on Sunday didn't really register anywhere but on the stat sheet. Luck was held to 12-of-33 passing for just 126 yards, and the Patriots registered five hits on him—including two by defensive end Rob Ninkovich and two by defensive end Chandler Jones.
And perhaps more importantly, flourishing Colts running back Dan "Boom" Herron was held to just 51 rushing yards on 10 carries. Overall, the Colts only amassed 83 rushing yards.
Ninkovich also had two passes defended, putting together an impressive game against Indianapolis. Even though New England doesn't have a sack to its name this postseason, it doesn't mean the defensive line hasn't quietly had an extremely effective potseason.
Grade: B+
Linebacker
6 of 10
Rising star second-year player Jamie Collins' stock continued to soar on Sunday, as he amassed a team-high four tackles, defended a pass, registered a hit on Luck and then intercepted him late in the fourth quarter.
It was the linebacker's second career postseason interception.
The Patriots linebackers proved on Sunday that they are a unit that can legitimately contend with the Seattle Seahawks' Russell Wilson and his read-option plays. Collins has excelled in zone coverage as well as in man-to-man this season, and that was especially true against Indianapolis.
Collins was so fluid in coverage and prevented the Colts from making so many plays on shallow routes, as he demonstrated when he picked off Luck's attempt to Zurlon Tipton.
Linebacker could have been a weak link for New England in the postseason after the Patriots lost Jerod Mayo in Week 6. But Collins and Dont'a Hightower have stepped up. Hightower added another three tackles to the Patriots total on Sunday, giving the linebacker group more total tackles than any other position against Indianapolis.
Grade: A
Secondary
7 of 10
New England avoided a potential disaster when Revis returned to the game after he was shaken up on a play early in the first quarter. He matched up against five receivers in the first half, according to ESPN Boston's Kyle Brasseur, with primary coverage on Donte Moncrief.
Revis missed five defensive plays with the injury, but his return proved to be momentous late in the third quarter, when he intercepted Luck on a crucial Colts drive as they struggled to breach the 31-7 scoring gap. His interception led directly to points for New England, as Blount scored the game-sealing touchdown on the very next play.
In primary coverage on Colts receiver T.Y. Hilton most of the time, Kyle Arrington, who played in the base defense, made one of Luck's top weapons nearly a non-factor. Hilton was held to just one reception for 36 yards; the Colts as a whole only had 126 receiving yards on the night.
All together, Revis, Brandon Browner, Devin McCourty, Logan Ryan, Arrington and Tavon Wilson held Luck to 12-of-33 for 126 yards. Luck's completion percentage of 36.3 is the lowest by a quarterback in the playoffs with a minimum of 30 attempts since 1997, per ESPN.com's Mike Wells.
During the 2014 regular season, Indianapolis led the league in receiving yards per game, with 316.4. New England's secondary made sure that wasn't the case on Sunday.
Grade: A
Special Teams
8 of 10
New England's special teams unit made a statement early in the win over the Colts. After Josh Cribbs muffed the first Ryan Allen punt of the game, Darius Fleming recovered the ball for New England, which went on to turn the turnover into points on the subsequent drive with a LeGarrette Blount touchdown run.
Patriots all-time leading returner Julian Edelman also had a fantastic game for the Patriots, amassing 71 yards on three punt returns, including a long of 45. On his first return, he set the Patriots up on their own 44-yard line; he got them to their own 30 and then to the Colts' 45-yard line on his third return of the night.
Both on special teams and on offense, Edelman put the Patriots in position to succeed throughout the game.
New England didn't have much need for field goals, but Stephen Gostkowski made his one 21-yard attempt of the night, as well as six extra point-after attempts. Allen didn't have his best night punting, coming in shy of his season average of 46.4 yards per attempt at 36, but it didn't have much effect on New England's game.
Edelman pushed this unit over the edge and will be a huge asset for New England against the Seattle Seahawks.
Grade: A-
Coaching
9 of 10
One week after enraging Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh with their use of ineligible receiver packages, Bill Belichick and Josh McDaniels were at it again.
New England made a bold statement in the third quarter of the win over Indianapolis, when the Patriots were already up 17-7. Left tackle Nate Solder reported as eligible and connected with Brady on a 16-yard touchdown pass.
Belichick didn't take his foot off the gas once, which was never more apparent than early in the fourth quarter when the Patriots were up 38-7 and facing 4th-and-4 at the Colts 34. Brady threw a short six-yard pass to Edelman to convert the first down, on a drive that culminated in a LeGarrette Blount touchdown.
Trickery aside, however, Belichick demonstrated once again on Sunday why his postseason coaching record is so dominant. With his 21st win, Belichick surpassed Tom Landry as the league's all-time leading head coach in the postseason.
Unsung hero defensive coordinator Matt Patricia also led his unit to a dominating performance over Indianapolis. It's a little strange that in the league's coaching shuffle, Patricia hasn't gotten a sniff, but for New England's part, it's certainly happy to keep him. The Colts were held scoreless throughout the second half.
The personnel have varied over the Patriots' improbable 14-year dominant stretch, but one element has remained constant. Belichick deserves much of the credit not only for Sunday's win but also for making New England a contender every season.
Grade: A
Final Grades
10 of 10
| Position | Final Grades |
| QB | A |
| RB | A+ |
| WR/TE | A- |
| OL | A |
| DL | B+ |
| LB | A |
| Secondary | A |
| Special Teams | A- |
| Coaching | A+ |
| Cumulative Grade | A |
There was hardly a mistake on the night for this Patriots team, as nearly every unit excelled against the struggling Colts. As usual, New England was led by one of the best coaching staffs in the league, as Bill Belichick, Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia made all the right calls in the dominant win.
Though the defensive line didn't record a single sack this postseason, it still got pressure on the quarterback and kept the Colts to less than 100 yards rushing. And while Ryan Allen didn't have his best night punting, Julian Edelman and the early muffed punt recovered by Darius Fleming helped the special teams unit shine.
At running back, New England had one of its best performances of the season. Though Jonas Gray, Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley all led the Patriots in rushing at one point in the season, LeGarrette Blount has been the star this postseason. His three touchdowns and 30 carries proved he is capable of being the workhorse New England needs in its power-running game.
With a backfield that versatile, behind Tom Brady and his assortment of pass-catching weapons—who weren't called upon as much as usual Sunday as the Patriots had a multi-score lead most of the game—the Patriots have proven themselves as the best team in the AFC, and as we'll see in two weeks, possibly the NFL.
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