LANDOVER, Md. (AP) – Maybe this is simply who Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts are in 2010: a mistake-making bunch that manages to get by.
Against the Washington Redskins, Manning threw three passes that should have been intercepted in the first half. Then Manning lost one of the Colts’ three fumbles in the second half. With a chance to run out the clock late, Indianapolis went three-and-out – on three incompletions by Manning.
Plus, the defense looked shaky at times, missing tackles in bunches, and kicker Adam Vinatieri missed two field-goal attempts.
Overcoming all of those shortcomings, the Colts edged the Redskins 27-24 Sunday night, thanks mainly to two touchdown passes by Manning and 128 yards on the ground from Joseph Addai before he left with a banged-up shoulder.
The Colts improved to 4-2, tied atop the AFC South – but a far cry from the dominating group that began last season 14-0 en route to the Super Bowl.
“The standards and expectations of our team are so high,” said Colts cornerback Jerraud Powers, whose first-quarter interception of Donovan McNabb set up a score, “that whenever we have a few bumps in the road, people seem to panic: ‘The Colts are going to have a bad year.’ … We’re working on being more consistent and finding our identity.”
Now Indianapolis gets a bye week, which will give it time to do that sort of work, and perhaps heal. In addition to Addai’s injury, receiver Pierre Garcon hurt his right ring finger, and starting middle linebacker Gary Brackett missed the game entirely with a groin injury.
Manning completed 25 of 38 passes for 307 yards and two touchdowns, including a 57-yarder to Garcon to make it 7-0. Addai’s big day included a 13-yard TD, part of the Colts’ season-high rushing output of 170. Garcon also made the play of the day, a spectacular, backhanded, one-handed catch while falling down for a 21-yard gain that set up a 43-yard field goal by Vinatieri in the second quarter.
“Man, it was just really luck, man,” Garcon said. “I raised my hand and I tried to grab it and it really stuck to my gloves.”
There were problems for the Colts, though.
Even with all of his usual choreography at the line of scrimmage, Manning did not always fool Washington’s defensive backs.
“I certainly threw some balls they had their hands on,” Manning said, acknowledging it “was lucky” that Carlos Rogers dropped a possible pick on the game’s third play.
Rogers also let another ball drop, and safety Kareem Moore later muffed his own chance at an interception.
“It’s tough to confuse (Manning), but we got to him a little bit. We just didn’t make the plays,” Redskins cornerback DeAngelo Hall said. “We had wide-open layups; just didn’t make the layups.”
The Redskins turned three Colts fumbles into 10 points in the second half, but they twice got the ball in the final three minutes and couldn’t move downfield.
The first of those late chances came when the Colts held the ball for less than 30 seconds after starting at their own 20.
On first down, Manning threw incomplete.
On second down, same thing.
On third down, ditto.
“We got looks that required us to throw the ball,” Colts coach Jim Caldwell explained. “We certainly know the situation there … but we needed to get a first down in that situation.”
After a punt, the Redskins got the ball back at their own 38 with 2:13 to go and all three timeouts – but McNabb threw long and incomplete on fourth-and-10.
There was even time for Washington to get the ball again with under a minute to go, but McNabb’s long pass was picked off – one-handed – by Aaron Francisco.
McNabb finished 29 of 45 for 246 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions for the Redskins (3-3), who fell a game behind the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants in the NFC East. Ryan Torain’s 100 yards on 20 carries – his first 100-yard game in the NFL while replacing an injured Clinton Portis – included two TDs against a Colts defense that tends to have problems stopping the run.
And all of those second-half fumbles by Indianapolis allowed Washington to stay close.
The Colts, though, insist that whatever whispers there may be about just how good they are this season will eventually be silenced.
“It’s very important for us to fight through adversity. Just got to take care of the ball, especially on special teams,” said Kenny Moore, whose fumble on a punt return led to a field goal by Graham Gano that cut Indianapolis’ lead to 24-17. “But it’s a good thing that we’re finding a way to win a game, even though it’s not going our way. So we’ll put it all together soon.”
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