Blackmon forces fumble to lift Colts to 34-31 OT victory over Packers
The Colts defense didn’t start well at all, but it sure as heck finished beautifully. Rookie safety Julian Blackmon, quickly becoming a star in Indianapolis, forced a fumble in overtime, leading the way to Rodrigo Blankenship’s game-winning 39yard field goal to lift the Colts to a 34-31 victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium.
After the Packers won the coin toss in overtime, Blackmon split a pair of wouldbe blockers on a wide receiver screen and popped the ball out of Marquez ValdesScantling’s hands. Deforest Buckner jumped on it, and four plays later, Blankenship delivered the Colts (7-3) a signature win of the season.
They now face a matchup next Sunday with the Tennessee Titans (7-3), which will go a long way towardeciding the fate of the AFC South.
To put themselves in position to win Sunday, the Colts had to rally from down 28-14 at halftime.
The first half was a wild ride in which the defense could find almost no answers
for Packers’ hall-of-fame-bound quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers took the Packers into the intermission leading 28-14 following a half that included as many touchdowns passes (three) as incompletions. He finished the first two quarters 13-of-16 for 160 yards and three scores. He also threw one interception — a heck of a play by Rock Ya-sin to jump into the passing lane. However, Rodgers got his revenge against Ya-sin late in the half.
With less than a minute to go, Rodgers flipped the ball 51-yards down the field to a streaking Marquez Valdes-scantling in oneon-one coverage with Ya-sin. The Colts cornerback hooked ValdesScantling’s arm and was flagged for a critical pass interference. On the next play, Rodgers hit Jamaal Williams for a four-yard touchdown to push the Packers’ lead to 28-14.
Offensively, the Colts didn’t play poorly in the first half. Rivers was particularly effective, completing 12-of-17 passes for 153 yards and two touchdowns. He also threw an interception but it came off a batted pass at the line of scrimmage that bounded into the waiting arms of linebacker Christian Kirksey. Aside from that unluckly bounce though, Rivers played quite well, first hitting Michael Pittman on a short crosser that the rookie took 45 yards for a touchdown. He also led the Colts on a much-needed 12-play, 75-yard drive that he capped with a gorgeous 17-yard touchdown pass to Trey Burton.
Where the Colts offense failed was in taking advantage of opportunities. The Packers botched the snap on their opening drive, but after Darius Leonard recovered, the Colts couldn’t capitalize. Later in the half, Rodrigo Blankenship missed a 50-yard field goal after a Rodgers interception, meaning the Colts scored zero points off turnovers where the Packers got 14. That, maybe not coincidentally, was the difference in the half.
Philip Rivers plays nearly flawless football
Philip Rivers went toe-to-toe with Rodgers and came out looking like his equal. While the season-long numbers would prove what is undeniably true — Rodgers is an MVP candidate and the superior quarterback— Rivers erased any gap between them on Sunday.
He led the Colts on six scoring drives while racking up 288 yards on 24-of-36 on passing. Rodgers, meanwhile finished with 311 yards and three touchdowns on 27-38 passing.
They each threw one interception.
While Rivers played quite well in the first half, he was exceptional in the second, leading the Colts from down 28-14 to a 31-28 lead. To open the half, he led on a nearly eight-minute, 14-play drive and came away with a field goal. While a touchdown would have been better, keeping Rodgers off the field was a nice benefit of a sustained drive
On the Colts’ next possession, Rivers was forced to throw two touchdown passes after the first was nullified by a penalty. The other was a six-yard bullet to Jack Doyle over the middle.
On yet another Sunday this season, Rivers proved he is more than capable of carrying the Colts on his shoulders when he needs to. While he had the benefit of a solid running game (at least in the second half) for the first time in awhile, Rivers was the motor that made the offense run.