Colts Earn Comeback Win in Meaningless Week 17 Game
By Kyle Nishida
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
| Colts | 0 | 3 | 14 | 7 | 24 |
| Jaguars | 10 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 20 |
The Indianapolis Colts end their 2015 NFL season on a high-note with a 24-20 comeback win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Unfortunately, the win was meaningless.
The Indianapolis Colts were already knocked out of the playoff chase after a Week 16 loss to the Oakland Raiders. As a result, they played like it in the first half.
Indianapolis was sloppy, sluggish and undisciplined which is how they have played pretty much this entire season. The Jaguars capitalized on the Colts’ mistakes and jumped out to a 17-0 lead; and held a 17-3 lead at halftime.
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The Colts could have quit and coasted through the second half. However, something happened at halftime because they looked like a completely different team.
They managed to tie the game at 17 with two touchdowns in the third quarter. The tie last deep into the fourth and was broken by a Jaguars’ field goal with 1:33 left.
However, that was too much time for Andrew Luck. He orchestrated a brilliant eight-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a one-yard Jack Doyle receiving touchdown with nine seconds left.
As a result, the Colts finished the season with an 8-8 record as opposed to an abysmal 7-9 record. The Jaguars finished the season 3-13 and have clinched themselves another Top 5 pick in the NFL Draft.
After only completing seven of his first 17 passes with less than 90 passing yards and an interception, Luck finished the game with 321 yards in the air, two touchdowns and that interception.
Frank Gore and Robert Turbin gave Luck some much needed assistance on the ground. Gore had 62 rushing yards; surpassing 1,000 yards rushing this season in the process ( the first Colt to do so since Joseph Addai in 2007). Turbin added a rushing touchdown.
The Colts’ top receiver T.Y. Hilton extended his NFL-lead in receiving yards. He had 95 receiving yards today and now has 1,448 yards on a season ( a new career-high). Wide Receivers Odell Beckham and Julio Jones can still surpass Hilton this afternoon.
Unfortunately, this game and these numbers are rather pointless to discuss because the Colts’ missed the playoffs. Their season is over, and now, very important offseason moves loom for Indianapolis.
Owner Jim Irsay is reportedly unhappy with the team. So, head coach Chuck Pagano and general manager Ryan Grigson could be gone within the next week.
Meanwhile, the Colts have $60+ million in salary cap space and will likely have a mid-first round pick. The offense is pretty set outside of the offensive line, but the defense needs to be overhauled. The cap space and draft picks will be key to address that issue.
Ultimately, it was nice to see the Colts finish the season a nice note. However, it is hard to overlook the countless times this team has disappointed or let golden opportunities slip away.