Indianapolis Colts and the Atlanta Falcons will face off on Sunday in Week 11 of the National Football League 2015 regular season, and the Colts will desperate to claim a road win to try and get a grip of the AFC South division where there are still three teams within touching distance of one another at the top.
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Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan threw three touchdowns in a game for the first time this season, but also tossed three interceptions, including a momentum-shifting pick and return for touchdown by Colts linebacker D’Qwell Jackson that tied the score 21-21 early in the fourth quarter. This was his 26th career game-winning kick in the final minute of fourth quarter or overtime, and it came in his 300th game. Now Matt Ryan and Julio Jones and the Falcons look to get back to their winning ways. These teams have met 15 times in their histories and the record is pretty one-sided with the Colts taking home 13 of those 15 games. “He’s 3-0 as a starter this year”.
“It takes a certain kind of corner to know that he’s going to match up with one guy the whole game and be comfortable playing both sides of the field”, Jones said of Davis.
“He’s the definition of grit, ” said receiver T.Y. Hilton.
After losing star running back Devonta Freeman to a concussion early in the game, the Falcons still managed to build leads of 14-0 and 21-7.
Hasselbeck finished the day completing 23-of-32 pass attempts for 213 yards and two touchdowns.
So often, he found a way. His pass in the first quarter intended for Roddy White was tipped near the five-yard line and intercepted in the end zone by safety Dwight Lowery. They’ve forced just two fewer meaningful turnovers (meaningful being anything that wasn’t in garbage time).
Luck made the trip to Atlanta and watched from the sideline as Hasselbeck lived on underneath routes and dumped the ball off to his running backs. Offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski led the discussion from his spot in the press box. I think areas that we need to improve are third downs and red zone.
“We feel we can get hot”. The win evened their record up at 5-5, however, and kept them in first place. And there never was a doubt. With his latest game-winner, he’s knocked down 12 straight.
“Let’s talk about Adam, ” he said. “We’ve got to go out there and fix all the stuff we’re doing on offense and don’t just depend on him to win the game for us”. “I told Andrew I’m going to rely on him heavily”, Hasselbeck said.
Defensively, the Stage 2 Falcons are actually allowing just 20.4 points per game-two fewer points than the Stage 1 Falcons gave up. Not even the New England Patriots can routinely overcome four turnovers on offense. Statistically, he may not be the most accurate kicker in the league, but when the game is on the line, it’s like Michael Jordan: You want the game in his hands.
The aforementioned defense couldn’t get off the field for much of the game, yielding three long touchdown drives of at least 10 plays and 80 yards.
“It’s just a play I can’t make”, Ryan said. I, you know, overthought it.
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“That’s why he is a first ballot Hall of Famer and why I’m the luckiest guy in the world to have him as a mentor”.
