INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -Indianapolis knows what others are saying about its ground game.
Yes, the 3.5 yards per carry rank below the NFL norm, and the 80.9 yards per game are last in the NFL. And no, that’s not the traditional way to win a Super Bowl.
The Colts also believe those numbers do not tell the whole story, something they intend to prove starting Saturday night against Baltimore.
“I feel confident in what I’m doing, and I feel good about what’s going on out there,” running back Joseph Addai said with a confident smile.
Indy (14-2) learned just how damaging the lack of a running game can be when it failed to convert two third-and-shorts late in regulation during last year’s wild-card game at San Diego. The Chargers eventually won in overtime.
So the Colts spent the offseason revising the game plan.
er he missed all of last season with a knee injury. They moved veteran Charlie Johnson from left guard to left tackle, benching former second-round pick Tony Ugoh, and they brought back longtime offensive line coach Howard Mudd after his brief retirement.
But seven games into the season, Addai, who had topped 1,000 yards in 2006 and 2007 and went to a Pro Bowl, was averaging a paltry 3.29 yards per carry.
Then in November, Indy made one more change, putting Kyle DeVan in at right guard and benching 2008 second-round pick Mike Pollak. Addai’s per-carry average since then has jumped to a more efficient 4.21 yards.
“From a statistical standpoint, you can look at it and say it’s not very good,” coach Jim Caldwell said of the No. 32 ranking. “But I certainly don’t feel like that from a schematic standpoint and what we’re trying to get accomplished.”
All that work, however, hasn’t changed the overall numbers much.
Last season, the Colts ranked 31st in rushing with averages of 3.4 yards per carry and 79.6 yards per game.
Yet things have changed.
The Colts are more effective now in short-yardage situations than last season, having closed out several close games by running for first downs. They’ve scored more touchdowns rushing than last season (16 to 13) and have proven more efficient in the second half of the schedule than the first – all indications of improvement.
uld have Brown at full strength. He missed five games this season with shoulder and chest injuries and should provide a boost with his fresh legs.
“I’m just trying to complement the run and, hopefully, the defense will be playing pass,” he said. “Once we start getting the ball going, the defense won’t be as close to the line of scrimmage and we can make the most of it.”
Team officials envision the combination working as effectively as it did in the 2006 playoffs, when Addai and Dominic Rhodes closed out a 15-6 divisional-round victory at Baltimore, then combined for 191 yards rushing to beat Chicago in the Super Bowl.
The first big test comes Saturday night against a Ravens defense ranked No. 5 against the run and which allowed only 64 yards on 18 carries in Sunday’s 33-14 rout at New England.
Indy knows what to expect. The Colts beat the Ravens 17-15 on Nov. 22 – on a day Addai was effective – and have won seven straight in the series dating to 2002.
“They create turnovers and they’re an opportunistic team,” Caldwell said. “They take chances, they gamble, they have instinctive guys on that side of the ball. Couple that with a pass rush, and overall that defense can be smothering.”
The solution, of course, is to run a balanced attack, something Peyton Manning has been talking about all season.
And the Colts understand that now is the time they have to get their running game going.
“I think there are times that we need to run the ball and we’ve been able to run the ball,” Caldwell said. “I think we’re better than our numbers indicate, but we’ve still got to get better.”
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