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Indianapolis Colts Drop One Spot in Power Rankings

By Garrett Hagan

Sep 11, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) looks to pass the ball in the second half of the game against the Detroit Lions at Lucas Oil Stadium. the Detroit Lions beat the Indianapolis Colts by the score of 39-35. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 11, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) looks to pass the ball in the second half of the game against the Detroit Lions at Lucas Oil Stadium. the Detroit Lions beat the Indianapolis Colts by the score of 39-35. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Indianapolis Colts lost 39-35 to the Detroit Lions this past Sunday thanks to a Matt Prater game-winning field goal. The loss puts the Colts down one spot from last week in ESPN’s week two power rankings.

The Indianapolis Colts lost on Sunday in perhaps one of the most painful ways an NFL team can lose a game.

Quarterback Andrew Luck had found tight end Jack Doyle in the end zone to put the Colts up 35-34 with 37 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

That’s when Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford carved up a Colts secondary that had been decimated by injuries all afternoon.

With three timeouts, the Lions drove 50 yards in just 25 seconds, setting up Prater for a 43-yard field goal that would ultimately win the Lions the game after the Colts failed in a forward lateral in the end zone.

ESPN Stats and Information released their week two NFL power rankings, and have the Colts at No. 19.

"19. Indianapolis Colts2016 record: 0-1Week 1 ranking: No. 18The Colts lost in Week 1, but Andrew Luck didn’t throw an interception and took only two sacks, so they have to feel good about that. The reigning champs are up next, but Luck is 3-1 in his career against Denver, including the playoffs."

Despite allowing 448 yards on defense to the Lions in their first game of the season, Colts fans have to be happy that the team didn’t slip too much in the rankings — even though the rankings mean little-to-nothing at the end of the day.

While Luck was near-perfect in his first game back from injury (406 total yards, four touchdowns), putting up 35 points was clearly not enough as the Lions managed to still win the game.

It is not every single week that Luck will have such a spectacular game, which puts even more pressure on the defense to perform well enough for the Colts to compete with other teams as the season goes on and their schedule becomes more challenging.

The Colts take on the defending-champion Denver Broncos this coming Sunday, who boast one of the league’s top defenses. If the Colts wish to earn a victory in this bout, the defense will have to be at least somewhat productive in stopping the Denver offense — or else things could get out of hand quickly.

Next: Colts Vs. Broncos NFL Week 2 Preview

This marks the third-straight year that the Colts have started off their season with a loss, and they are certainly going to try and avoid their third-straight 0-2 start to the season as well.

The Colts will attempt to turn things around next Sunday when they travel to Denver to take on the Denver Broncos at 4:25 p.m. ET.

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