Five Observations: Indianapolis Colts Vs. Houston Texans

The Indianapolis Colts finished their first round of games against the AFC South on Thursday Night Football. Just like with the other games against AFC South competition the Colts won but this time it wasn’t a blowout. The Colts got to an early 24-point lead in the first quarter, only to see that lead fade away throughout the game. At the end of the game the Colts still got the win and saw some very promising play from their team.

Offensive line vs. Watt

One of the main narratives coming into this game was about J.J. Watt vs. Andrew Luck. Both players put on great performances but it took Watt a while to get going. This makeshift Colts offensive line was able to keep Watt relatively quite through the first half of this game. Most people would expect that having two backup guards playing with an undrafted rookie in his second game at center against Watt is a recipe for disaster. However, the interior of the offensive line was able to make Watt look much less like the truly dominant force he is. Most of Watt’s success came on the outside against Gosder Cherilus but he also had to go one-on-one against Watt much more frequently than the other lineman. Overall it was a good day for the offensive line.

Joe Reitz finally got to start at left guard and showed off why some Colts fans have been calling for him to play more. Depending on the severity of the injuries to Mewhort and Thorton, it could leave room for Reitz to get more playing time and possibly earn a starting job. Even if he can’t earn the starting job, I believe that he should at least get the chance to backup the guards over Lance Louis.

T.Y. Hilton dominates the Texans

T.Y. Hilton has had a lot of impressive moments and games in his short career. Some teams struggle to contain Hilton but none have had the same struggles that the Houston Texans have. Coming into the game on Thursday, Hilton had already collected 31 catches for 611 yards and six touchdowns; all of that was through five games against the Texans. You would think that with this type of success that the Texans might want to gameplan to take away Hilton. Well, if that was their plan, then they failed miserably. Hilton caught nine passes on nine targets for 223 yards and a touchdown in what was one of his more impressive games so far in his career.

You play to win the game

Herm Edwards made this saying famous during a little freak out while he was the head coach of the New York Jets. It seems like a simple principle but many coaches in the NFL will coach to not lose. This has been one of the bigger problems that Colts fans have had with Chuck Pagano’s regime for the past two years. Whether it was punting on fourth and short in opponent’s territory at the wrong times, running the ball too much or just not taking chances, the Colts have been far too conservative. So far this season, Chuck has turned it around and I couldn’t be happier. In this game alone, Pagano showed off his new gambler attitude when he decided to kick an onside kick, go for the two point conversion and the way he continued to allow the Colts to throw the ball late in the game. Not every one of these gambles will pay off but it is even more encouraging to see Pagano stick with it even after some of his decisions didn’t work. You could say that he has, “stuck to the process.”

Pat McAfee continues to shine

Pat McAfee has been a fan favorite in Indianapolis for a long time. He was not always one of the best punters in the league but he did have a great attitude. Throw in his charity and how active he can be on social media and its no wonder that Colts fans love him. So far Pat McAfee is having a great season and once again on Thursday he left his mark on the game. With just over 11 minutes in the first quarter, Pat kicked and recovered a perfect onside kick. This was his third of the season and at the time he did it, no other team even had one. Pat also added a few booming kicks that pinned the Texans back inside their own 20 yard line.

Start Quick

Last season, the Colts would constantly start the game slow and then make some halftime adjustments so that Luck could rally the team to a win. Way too many times it seemed like the Colts coaches just didn’t have the players prepared to play or had created an awful game plan. So far this season, that problem hasn’t reared its ugly head. In fact the Colts got out to a scorching hot start. The Colts started by forcing a three-and-out and then driving to kick the field goal. A surprise onside kick and Trent Richardson touchdown later and the Colts had already built a 10-point lead. Then another three-and-out followed by a Colts touchdown by Ahmad Bradshaw had the Colts sitting on a nice 17-0 lead. After another three-and-out, the Colts continued to try and score points instead of trying to establish the run game. This led to another scoring drive that ended in a Coby Fleener touchdown reception. All of this happened in the first quarter and it was the most points a Colts team has scored in the first quarter since Johnny Unitas was quarterbacking.