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November 3, 2009

Colts finding different ways to win

Indy gives credit to 49ers’ strong defense

By Tom James

Indianapolis — Everybody’s asking. Did the San Francisco 49ers defensive coaching spot something that helped them slow down the Indianapolis Colts’ offense?

Why was the Colts’ offense, which had scored 30 or more points in four straight games and 25 or more points in five of the team’s seven games this season, so sluggish against San Francisco? Just what had gotten the Indianapolis passing game, usually one of the league’s most potent, so out of sync?

“I think oftentimes people take a little bit too much away from the opponent. Now [the 49ers] played well.

They did a nice job. They hustled. They covered well. It was just sometimes a matter of timing for us. We just didn’t get in sync [offensively] like we normally do,” Colts coach Jim Caldwell said Monday.

“But I think the good thing is that we found different ways to win. To win in this league is difficult. And winning in this league requires that you find ways to win when things might not be going very well. And things weren’t going well for us consistently. But yet we were able to work through it.”

Being that the National Football League coaches like to mimic other teams who may have had success against a particular team, is it possible that Indianapolis will see anything similar when the Houston Texans come to town on Sunday? Or, for that matter, against the New England Patriots in a couple of weeks.

“I would think that’s certainly a possibility. And it wasn’t anything that we hadn’t seen before. It wasn’t anything that was revolutionary. A few a little wrinkles here and there,” Caldwell said.

“But timing is everything. On a number of situations, they were in the right place at the right time.”

• Two more home games — After playing four of their first six games on the road, the Indianapolis Colts don’t mind being back at Lucas Oil Stadium for a while.

The Colts played the first of a three-game homestand Sunday, posting a come-from-behind 18-14 win over the San Francisco 49ers. This week it’s a matchup with the Houston Texans in a game that could either give Indianapolis a very comfortable lead in the AFC South race or tighten things up considerably. And then a week later it’s a home meeting against the New England Patriots in a game that is always a national television ratings winner.

The Colts will take a 7-0 overall record and a 2-0 divisional mark into the Houston game. Indianapolis has a 2 1/2-game lead over the Texans.

“This is definitely a long season. We’ve been here [at 7-0] before. I’ve said this before, ‘We’ve been 13-0 and lost in the first round [of the AFC playoffs].’ For us, its business as usual, I guess,” defensive end Dwight Freeney said after the 49ers game.

“We’re not taking anything for granted. This is definitely a great place for our team. We’re just trying to keep this thing rolling, take it one game at a time, and we’ll see what happens in January.”

Caldwell knows that the Texans will be more than ready to play this week.

“Houston is hot right now. They are 5-3. It’s the best record at this juncture that they have had. They have won three games in a row. They have been playing extremely well. We are concerned with them,” he said.

“We have to get focused on them come Wednesday and be prepared for a real tough game. All of our games [with the Texans] have been very close over the last few years. I wouldn’t expect this to be any different.”

• Injury list — No word has come yet concerning the injuries that sidelined cornerback Kelvin Hayden (concussion/knee) and strongside linebacker Tyjuan Hagler (elbow) Sunday. The Colts hope to know something more conclusive by Wednesday.

Rookie running back Donald Brown (shoulder) and wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez (knee) aren’t expected to practice this week, but those decisions have yet to be made.

“I’m not sure what is going to happen with [Gonzalez] exactly. That is up to the doctors in terms of how he feels. I’m not certain we’ll get much out of him this week. I’m really not sure,” Caldwell said.

“He is continuing to work. He continues to be evaluated. We’ll take a look and see about the middle of the week where he is when we starting practicing on Wednesday. We’ll see what happens. I’m not certain [if Brown will be able to practice this week]. [Team medical personnel] feel he is coming along and making strides. We have to wait and see.”

• Silva returns punts — The decision not to use T.J. Rushing to return punts against the 49ers was roster-related. Rushing was not injured but was a pregame inactive. Safety Jamie Silva took over as the Colts’ primary punt returner.

Silva returned punts for the first time this season and for the first time in his two-year NFL career. He had six punt returns for a 5.3 yard average. The second-year defensive back also had five special teams tackles on the kickoff and punt coverage units.

“T.J. was not injured. At that time looking at our roster situation, it was the best move we thought we could make. It was the most constructive solution. Jamie has been returning kicks for us [in practice]. He did some in preseason as well. He’s very capable,” Caldwell said.

“[Silva was] solid [on the coverage units]. The guy makes a lot of plays. He is all over the field. He’s a force to be reckoned with every time that ball is snapped on any of our kicking teams. He gives us great effort as well.”

• No practice Monday — Caldwell is continuing the practice schedule that former Colts coach Tony Dungy originally instituted.

There will be no Monday practices if the team wins games during the months of November, December and January.



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