By Tom James
INDIANAPOLIS — Don’t bother asking anybody associated with the Indianapolis Colts what their thoughts are about a possible undefeated regular season. Or even about potentially earning home-field advantage throughout the upcoming AFC playoffs.
These Colts are dialed in to the here and now, not what may or may not happen in the future after getting past a tough Tennessee Titans team that had won five games in a row before coming to Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday.
Now 12-0 for the season and winners of 21 straight regular-season games, Jim Caldwell’s team will rest on its laurels for a relatively short time. The Colts will have the next 48 hours to appreciate what they’ve accomplished thus far before beginning preparations for the Denver Broncos, the next team up on the schedule and the next team to visit “The Luke.”
“[Winning streaks are] not something that you take for granted. It’s funny, we’ve had a lot of guys that have been here for four, or five or six years now. You try to tell these guys when you win a couple in a row, or three or four in a row, that this is not normal. It’s not normal to win 10, 11 or 12 games every year. But these guys who have been here for five years look at me and say, ‘It is normal for us.’ That’s all they’ve known,” Colts quarterback Peyton Manning said after Sunday’s game.
“I guess when you go 3-13 as a rookie and have a 6-10 season, you certainly do not take it for granted. It’s obviously hard to win [in the NFL]. It does build momentum. But we have taken it one week at time and try to enjoy it. We’ve been allowed to enjoy it when we come to work the next week [and begin to prepare] for the next opponent.”
n Red zone stands — The Indianapolis defense was able to hold the Titans on downs three times, once at the 2-yard line and once at the 14-yard line.
“Once you get in the red zone, you want to eliminate those touchdowns and hold them to field goal attempts. Because if they try it on fourth down, you’ve got to come up with a big stop,” Colts middle linebacker Gary Brackett said.
“I think it was huge. I think we held them in the red zone twice. If they get that 14 points, it’s a different ball game. Give credit to [the entire defensive team]. I think [rookie cornerback] Jerraud Powers made a great play on one of those fade [patterns] down there. We’ve got to keep it going in the red zone.”
The Colts remain one of the league’s best at keeping teams out of the end zone, allowing just 16.8 points per game.
“I think it’s because we’ve been in that situation a few times now. We just play with a whole bunch of poise,” Brackett said. “Guys don’t press. There’s really no arguing out there. Guys just keep making plays. [Sunday] it was Jerraud [Powers] and [rookie cornerback] Jacob Lacey. And next week it will be someone else.”
n Injury list — Defensive end Robert Mathis left the game in the second quarter with a quadriceps injury. He did not return. There probably won’t be any updates on his injury until Wednesday at the earliest.
Defensive end Dwight Freeney (abdomen) played Sunday but did not start. He came in on passing downs. Freeney registered the Colts’ only sack of the game.
Cornerback Kelvin Hayden (knee) played in his first game since suffering a sprained knee against San Francisco on Nov. 1. He did not start. Hayden, though, very nearly had an interception in the game. He wound up with two tackles and a pass broken up.
Sitting out were rookie running back Donald Brown (chest), safety Aaron Francisco (ankle), offensive tackle Charlie Johnson (foot), defensive end Keyunta Dawson (knee), quarterback Jim Sorgi (right shoulder), wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez (knee), placekicker Adam Vinatieri (knee) and tight end Tom Santi.
n Stat book — Wide receiver Pierre Garcon had six catches for 136 yards against the Titans. The 136 receiving yards were a season and career high for Garcon.
Placekicker Matt Stover now has 1,990 career points. Stover, who had six points Sunday, is the fourth-leading kick scorer in NFL history. He needs 54 more points to tie John Carney’s total of 2,044 points for third place.
