Colts coach Chuck Pagano says he expects quarterback Matt Hasselbeck to play this weekend against Jacksonville with a fractured rib and a sore neck.
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Cameron Brate (84) scores a touchdown in front of Indianapolis Colts strong safety Clayton Geathers (42) during the first half of an NFL football game in Indianapolis, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2015.
The Pittsburgh quarterback threw for 364 yards and four touchdowns in a 45-10 dismantling of the decimated Colts on Sunday night, giving him 866 yards and 10 touchdowns – with no interceptions – his last two starts against Indianapolis. The 40-year-old quarterback was replaced by Whitehurst in the fourth quarter. William Gay and Antwon Blake played in the base defense and Ross Cockrell came on to play outside, with Gay moving into the slot, in the five-defensive backs “nickel” package. I don’t know. I wish I could get some plays back. “I think just being in the hunt to make the playoffs… just being in position to make it where we are now, we’re happy with that (and) I think we’re anxious to get back on the field after that win”. “They had me out of sync with the dropping eight and rushing three”.
Having Roethlisberger back in the starting lineup for the foreseeable future directly correlates to the main reason the Steelers feel fortunate at this point: the fact that they essentially control their own destiny in the AFC wild-card picture.
Johnson, a rookie, had 99 yards on 22 carries in his first start and caught one of two TD passes by Carson Palmer.
“It’s always a fun game”, said Antonio Brown.
Brown is one of several incredible young wide receivers in the National Football League right now and while he might not make the one-handed catches Odell Beckham Jr. or DeAndre Hopkins make, he remains an incredible player who is impossible to shut down.
“I don’t know about that yet”, Hasselbeck said. With that said, however, Hasselbeck was bad on Sunday.
Just when you thought it was safe to start feeling good about the Colts, the Steelers came along.
Or maybe here is when you got the idea this wasn’t going to be the Colts’ night: Twice in the red zone, the Colts got called for delay of game penalties. Yet when Ben Roethlisberger is healthy, Pittsburgh is just as explosive as Todd Haley promised during the offseason when the uber-aggressive offensive coordinator predicted his unit should average 30 points. Somebody, quick, tell me whatever happened to Jonathan Newsome, who was the Colts’ leading sacker previous year in his rookie season? The Colts remain tied with Houston for the lead in the AFC North.
The best news is Roethlisberger finished the game in one piece.
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Andrew Luck isn’t expected to return from a lacerated kidney and abdominal muscle injury until at least Week 15, according to NFL Network, so Whitehurst would get the nod this week if Hasselbeck is out.
