Indianapolis — Keiwan Ratliff was a second-round draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2004. Now a cornerback for the Indianapolis Colts, Ratliff has a hard time believing that the Bengals have fallen as much as they have.
“It was tough, what with all the talent that they have over there, to see what’s happened. So many of the guys that were there when I was there, like [quarterback] Carson [Palmer], [wide receiver] T.J. [Houshmandzadeh], [wide receiver] Chad [Johnson, or Ocho Cinco]. It’s hard to understand it all,” Ratliff said after Sunday’s 35-3 win over the Bengals.
“I had a good time playing against them.
“It was just like I was back at practice [with Cincinnati], going up against Housh and the guys. We’re all still friends and we’re all really competitive in everything that we do. So that part of it was fun.”
Ocho Cinco, by the way, did not start against Indianapolis due to what was termed a “coach’s decision.” He saw limited playing time the rest of the way, although he did have five catches for 79 yards.
Middle linebacker Buster Davis, meanwhile, get to set his sights on this week’s home game with the Detroit Lions. Davis was a third-round draft pick by Arizona last season but spent most of his rookie year on the Lions’ practice squad. He was released by Detroit on Aug. 31 and was quickly picked up by the Colts.
With starter Gary Brackett sidelined for the next few weeks with a cracked right fibula, Davis stepped in and made his first NFL start against the Bengals. He was credited with three unassisted tackles but did a nice job of helping to get the Colts in the right defensive alignments.
“I told you [media] to come back and talk to me after the [Cincinnati] game,” Davis joked. “I do want to play well [against the Lions]. But that’s the game coming up. I always want to play well. The Colts have given me a chance to play now and I want to make the most of the opportunity.”
• One streak snapped — Despite Indianapolis’ win Sunday, the Tennessee Titans clinched the AFC South title with a 28-9 win over the Cleveland Browns.
The Colts had won the last five division crowns. It’s the second time since the AFC South was created in 2002 that Tennessee has annexed the division title. The Titans were able to clinch due to all possible tiebreakers.
• Injury list — Strong safety Bob Sanders started for the first time in four weeks after being sidelined with a swollen right knee. Sanders responded with a team-high eight tackles against the Bengals.
Center Jeff Saturday (calf) was close to playing but was a last-minute scratch by the Indianapolis coaching staff. He is expected to be available for work against the Lions this week. Defensive tackle Keyunta Dawson (hamstring) and Brackett were also sidelined.
Running back Joseph Addai missed practice time last Friday due to a sore knee but started against Cincinnati. He saw limited work after incurring a shoulder injury during the game.
“He probably could have come back in, but we decided to hold him out the rest of the game,” Colts coach Tony Dungy said.
Rookie running back Chad Simpson (ankle) and rookie defensive tackle Eric Foster (pinched nerve in his shoulder) were also hurt. Both are expected to play against Detroit. Safety Melvin Bullitt came out of the game briefly but was able to return. He has been bothered by sore ribs in recent weeks.
• Record-keeping — Peyton Manning completed 26 of 32 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns against the Bengals. Manning had a quarterback efficiency rating of 134.0. His 81.3 completion percentage was his 10th career game with 80 percent or better (with a minimum of 15 attempts).
His three touchdown passes marked the 51st career three-touchdown game and his 100th career two-plus-touchdowns game.
Manning passed former NFL New England and Dallas quarterback Drew Bledsoe for the seventh-most passing yards in league history Sunday. He now has 44,611. He also posted his 11th consecutive 20-plus touchdown season (22 this year), the second-longest such streak in NFL history behind Brett Favre’s 12 (1994-2005). He is also the first NFL player to post 11 consecutive 20-plus touchdown seasons to start a career. He had been tied with Dan Marino with 10.
He also eclipsed 3,000 seasonal passing yards for the 11th consecutive season and he is the only player in NFL history to post 3,000-plus passing yards in the first 11 seasons of a career.
Marvin Harrison recorded his second reception of 67 yards this season (the first was against Baltimore Oct. 12). It was the seventh-longest catch and run of his NFL career. Harrison had three catches for 78 yards against the Bengals.
Defensive end Robert Mathis now has a team-leading 11.5 sacks (53.5 for his career) and five forced fumbles this season. He has totaled multiple sacks in three consecutive games. It was Mathis’ third career double-digit sack season. It also marks the 13th double-digit sack total in franchise history.
Defensive end Dwight Freeney, meanwhile, now has 9.5 sacks and 27 quarterback hurries for the year. Freeney’s 69.5 career sacks is a franchise record.
Cornerback Kelvin Hayden had the first multiple interception game by a Colts player since Brackett against Baltimore last Dec. 9. His fourth quarter 85-yard interception return for a touchdown, his second pick of the game, was the sixth-longest in franchise history and the first returned for a touchdown since safety Matt Giordano had an 83-yard interception return for a score against New Orleans on Sept. 6, 2007.
• Pregame inactives — The Colts’ pregame inactives were outside linebacker Tyjuan Hagler (knee), linebacker Rufus Alexander, tight end Jamie Petrowski, wide receiver Roy Hall, rookie defensive end Curtis Johnson, Brackett, Saturday and Dawson.
Hagler did not practice last week but might be able to return for this week’s game with Detroit.
Colts
Colts Notebook: Indy corner Ratliff can’t believe how far his old team has fallen
- Colts
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Colts welcome Manusky aboard as defensive coordinator
On Thursday, Indianapolis Colts general manager Ryan Grigson, coach Chuck Pagano and potential No. 1 draft pick Andrew Luck led the parade.
Grigson and Pagano confirmed the hiring of several assistant coaches, including defensive coordinator Greg Manusky, Marwan Maalouf (special teams), Roy Anderson (safeties), Alfredo Roberts (tight ends) and Brandt Boyer (assistant special teams). -
Mathis, Garcon at top of Colts’ wish list; Wayne isn’t
Expect defensive end Robert Mathis and wide receiver Pierre Garcon to be priorities for the Indianapolis Colts during free agency.
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Back home again in Indiana
Former Indianapolis Colts coach Jim Caldwell has landed a job as quarterbacks coach for the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens announced Caldwell’s hiring Monday.
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Patriots first to arrive in Indy
Welcome to Super Bowl Week.
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Pagano wants aggressive defense with Colts
When the Colts went looking for a new head coach, a good portion of the team’s fans made it clear that they wanted a departure from the laid-back style of former coaches Tony Dungy and Jim Caldwell.
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Irsay: Manning comments should have stayed in-house
Not only did the Colts introduce new head coach Chuck Pagano during an afternoon press conference, team owner Jim Irsay also made his feelings known about recent comments that quarterback Peyton Manning made.
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Colts go with defensive specialist
The Indianapolis Colts, after a weeklong search process, finally landed themselves a head coach Wednesday.
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Caldwell can’t survive 2-14 season in Indy
The offseason moves just keep on coming for the Indianapolis Colts.
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Colts fire head coach Caldwell
Tribune-Star correspondent Tom James reports that Colts head coach Jim Caldwell has been fired. No other details are known at this time.
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Colts hire Eagles exec Grigson as GM
The Indianapolis Colts formally announced former Philadelphia director of player personnel Ryan Grigson as the team’s new general manager Wednesday.
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Colts hire Eagles executive Grigson as GM
The Indianapolis Colts have hired Eagles executive Ryan Grigson as their new general manager.
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Irsay: Colts are in 'rebuilding stage'
So are the Indianapolis Colts in a retooling or a rebuilding mode heading into the offseason?
If you ask the players, they would prefer to use the retooling philosophy. In their minds, get some injured players back and the Colts can be right back in the thick of the AFC South title race and once again be a contender for the AFC championship.
Team owner Jim Irsay, though, sees a tougher road ahead. -
Colts give the boot to Polian duo
It didn’t take long for Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay to start making moves with his team.
One day after Irsay’s Colts dropped a 19-13 road decision to Jacksonville, giving Indianapolis a 2-14 record and the No. 1 pick in the 2012 National Football League draft, longtime Colts executive Bill Polian and his son, vice-president/general manager Chris Polian, were both fired.
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Interesting subplots abound in Colts-Jags game
This afternoon’s AFC South matchup between the Indianapolis Colts (2-13) and Jacksonville Jaguars (4-11) is the regular-season finale for both teams.
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Colts players a fan of Murphy's promotion to defensive coordinator
Cohesion. That’s the word the keeps coming up when coach Jim Caldwell and many of the team’s players are asked about the turnaround of the Indianapolis Colts’ defensive unit.
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To win or to lose? For Colts fans, it's not an easy question
With the No. 1 draft pick on the line if the Indianapolis Colts were to lose Sunday at Jacksonville, it’s easy to see why a lot of the team’s fans wouldn’t mind seeing the team fall to the Jaguars.
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Colts’ Freeney to play in seventh Pro Bowl
Despite a team record of 2-13 heading into the final week of the National Football League regular season, there was some good news coming out of the Indianapolis Colts’ West 56th Street facility Tuesday night.
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Colts’ last game not without questions
Are the Indianapolis Colts treating Sunday’s game at Jacksonville as the final game of the season or just the next game on the schedule?
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Colts celebrate second straight division victory
Indianapolis Colts fans finally got a little luck on their side Thursday night at Lucas Oil Stadium.
It may not have been Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, who is expected to the top pick in next spring’s National Football League draft. -
With latest win, Colts provide suspense for 2012 draft position
Now that the Indianapolis Colts have posted two straight wins in their last two games, including Thursday night’s 19-16 victory over AFC South champion Houston, many of the team’s fans find themselves in quite a quandary.
The Colts will take a 2-13 record into next week’s New Year’s Day regular-season finale at Jacksonville. -
Colts face another tough running test
The credit for the Indianapolis Colts’ win over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday can go in a couple different directions.
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Colts taking no risks with injured Manning
Both Bill Polian and Jim Caldwell are looking to the future when it comes to injured quarterback Peyton Manning.
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More wins to come?
With a win finally under their belts, the Indianapolis Colts (1-13) now look forward to two days of intensive work beginning today.
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FINALLY! THEY WON
It was a day of firsts for the Indianapolis Colts.
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Polian hopes to set ‘record straight’
Indianapolis Colts vice chairman Bill Polian didn’t like what he was hearing prior to and during Sunday’s National Football League home game with the Tennessee Titans.
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Polian shares thoughts on QB situation
With the Indianapolis Colts’ chances of clinching the No. 1 pick in the 2012 National Football League draft getting closer with each succeeding loss, talk among fans and team observers invariably goes to the possibility of the team selecting Stanford junior quarterback Andrew Luck.
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Colts prepared for Hasselbeck or Locker
The Indianapolis Colts defense is preparing to face a two-pronged offensive attack when the Tennessee Titans visit Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday.
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Colts could still become spoiler
Time is running short for the 2011 Indianapolis Colts.
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Colts have three more chances to win
The Indianapolis Colts may be 0-13 for the season, but the team keeps battling.
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