In their return to Lucas Oil Stadium after back-to-back road games, the Colts dominated on both sides of the ball as they took down the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday afternoon by a score of 40-6.
The first quarter was a rocky one for the Colts, forced to go three-and-out on their first possession and then allowing a nine-minute drive by the Raiders to put the visiting team up 3-0 to start. Wide receiver Ashton Dulin tried to give the Colts a spark on the return, taking the punt 98 yards for a touchdown – but it was quickly called back to the Colts' own 27-yard line due to an offensive holding penalty.
The Colts kept possession of the ball heading into the second quarter, and it only took a few minutes to turn the tide. After marching methodically down the field (with the exception of another offensive holding penalty and a few incomplete passes) Daniel Jones and the Colts offense lined up at the Raiders' 11-yard line.
After a short pass to tight end Tyler Warren turned into an incomplete pass from Warren himself (lobbing it over the end zone to avoid a turnover), Jones once again found Warren with a dart right to Warren, who barreled forward for three more yards to cross into the end zone for his second touchdown of his NFL career.
The defense kept rolling with that momentum, stalling the Raiders and forcing a punt after forcing two straight incompletions. Then, on the punt, Segun Olubi lept in and got a hand on the ball to block it; it was recovered by the Raiders but put the Colts in the red zone, at the eight-yard line.
Less than two minutes later, Jonathan Taylor charged into the end zone to put the Colts up 14-3.
Kicker Spencer Shrader sustained a knee injury during the extra point and did not return.
The Raiders started to make some headway on their ensuing drive, reaching the Colts' 11-yard line – but on second-and-goal (after an incomplete pass), Laiatu Latu found himself in perfect position for an interception, stealing the ball away and stopping the drive.
The defensive end's second interception gave the ball back to Jones with just under four minutes remaining in the second quarter, and the quarterback led his team on their third touchdown drive of the day. Jones, after scrambling out of the pocket and running to his right, launched a throw on the run to Michael Pittman Jr., who navigated through heavy coverage to make the grab.
The Colts attempted a two-point conversion but failed, and the Raiders missed their last-second 57-yard field goal; the Colts took a 20-3 lead into halftime.
The Raiders were quickly forced to punt the ball away after their first possession of the third quarter, and the theme of the game remained the same: the Colts marched down the field, and ended the drive with a touchdown.
The 11-play, 68-yard drive consisted of a 20-yard completion by Ashton Dulin and an 8-yard completion by Josh Downs. It was Taylor once again, though, who navigated through tiny openings at the line of scrimmage to get to the end zone. With Shrader out, the Colts opted for another two-point conversion but were unable to convert.
But Raiders quarterback Geno Smith only had the ball in his hands for two plays before the Colts got it back, thanks to an interception by Mekhi Blackmon to set his offense up at the Raiders' six-yard line. The Colts once again opted for a series of run plays, handing the ball off to running back Ameer Abdullah twice. And on the second handoff, Abdullah charged through for another touchdown, putting the Colts up 32-3 with just under six minutes remaining in the third quarter.
With Taylor's third touchdown of the day just minutes later, the Colts tied a team record of six touchdowns on six consecutive possessions; the last time the Colts accomplished the feat was in Week 2 of the 2001 season against the Buffalo Bills. Taylor was also the one to run the ball in for the two-point conversion, making the score 40-3.
Defensive highlights from the fourth quarter included a massive sack by Zaire Franklin for a loss of 14 yards and a pass breakup by Chris Lammons, as well as another sack by Samson Ebukam. And with just under 11 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Colts brought out their reserves as backup quarterback Anthony Richardson entered the game.
In addition to Shrader, cornerback Mike Hilton also left the game with a shoulder injury.
SUN., OCT. 12 – COLTS VS. CARDINALS
Crucial Catch.
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