Filed under: Colts, Jaguars, AFC South
We kind of had the idea the Jags would run wild on the Colts. Matt Forte and Adrian Peterson had their fun against the Colts' porous run defense in the first two weeks, and then Bob Sanders -- one of the leagues most respected run-stuffers -- went down with an injury.
Well, after 236 rushing yards and a downright absurd advantage in time of possession (41:35 - 18:25), the Jags came away with a much needed road victory. Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor, behind quality work from their offensive line, simply owned the game and kept the Colts' offense off the field.
The result was a 70-49 advantage for the Jags in offensive plays, and a game-winning 51 yard field goal for Josh Scobee.
It's hard to draw many conclusions about the Colts' offense, which looked stellar on the first and last drives of the game, with this small a sample against a quality defense. It was so long between possessions all game that it had to be damn near impossible to develop any sort of continuity, though two picks from Peyton Manning is not really included in the usual game-plan.
It had to be nice to finally see some running lanes for Joseph Addai -- and it's no coincidence that it, uh, coincided with Jeff Saturday's return to the lineup. While the Colts only had the chance to give Addai 16 carries, he made them into 78 yards (4.9 average per carry) and a touchdown.
For the Jags, they got their first '08 win out of the way, controlled the tempo, and David Garrard came through with a clutch drive when it was imperative to do so. The defense got a score, and forced Manning into a subpar (by his standards) game. The offensive line and defense had to gain a ton of confidence from this game, and you have to believe Scobee's kick salvaged this early season.
Sports
Finally, I think I saw Tony Dungy complaining about a pass interference call that gave the Jags an automatic first down after the Colts appeared to stop Jacksonville's fourth down attempt prior to the game-winner. The call was absolutely correct and must be called every time on a play like that. You have a linebacker not looking for the ball, and running into a wideout; impeding his chance at catching the football. Advantage gained = pass interference. Every day of the week.
