9/24 Colts win articles

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Matt Gay's record day puts Colts in first place in AFC South with OT win

Gay proves his worth

The two highest-paid kickers in the NFL were both on the field Sunday, Ravens legend Justin Tucker and the highly-paid free agent the Colts signed in the offseason, Matt Gay.

Gay ended up winning the battle, blasting a 53-yarder through in overtime to hand Indianapolis the win and becoming the first kicker in NFL history to make four field goals of 50-plus in a single game.


The two put on a show in the second half. Gay made five field goals in the game, burying kicks from 31, 54, 53, 53 and 53 yards, and Tucker blasted a kick through from 50 yards to take the lead later. After a lot of seasons spent dealing with inconsistent kicking, the Colts finally have a kicker capable of going toe to toe with a player like Tucker.

Indianapolis needed him on the final drive of the game.

When Alec Pierce had the ball batted away from him on the game-tying drive, it set up a game-tying field goal by Gay, and the veteran kicker blasted another one through from 53 yards, previewing his game-winner.

Indianapolis Colts running back Zack Moss (21) is congratulated by tight end Kylen Granson (83) a Moss touchdown on Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023, at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
Zack Moss guts out big day

For the second consecutive week, Jonathan Taylor’s backup turned in a starting-caliber performance, and this one was the stuff of legends.

The fourth-year back was clearly compromised in the second half, taking breaks at times and moving gingerly on his right leg.




But Moss was also the Colts’ most consistent weapon offensively for most of the day. Moss opened the day by ripping off a 24-yard run over the left side, then got Indianapolis back in the game with a sublime 17-yard touchdown catch against tight coverage from Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen, the kind of play Moss hasn’t been known for making in his NFL career.

At some point in the middle of the game, Moss started coming out due to the injury, giving way to recently promoted veteran Trey Sermon, but instead of sitting out the rest of the game, Moss kept banging, running through tackles in short-yardage to pick up 122 yards on 30 carries, the second 100-yard game of his career.


The biggest run came in overtime, ripping off 13 yards on the first play of the Colts’ final series to set up a game-winning attempt for Gay.

Fourth-down calls come up short

Facing a fourth and 1 in overtime at the Baltimore 46, the new Colts head coach elected to go for it in overtime, a call that echoed Frank Reich’s fourth-down call against Houston back in 2018.


Working without an injured Anthony Richardson, Steichen couldn’t call the rugby-style quarterback sneak he used so often in Philadelphia, and the head coach elected instead to hand the ball off to Moss, who was banged up at that point, running on a bad leg.

Moss never had a chance.

Baltimore’s interior defensive line blew up the Indianapolis line of scrimmage, leading to a tackle-for-loss by Ravens cornerback Brandon Stephens and linebacker Patrick Queen, handing the ball to Baltimore at midfield.

The Ravens had their own chance to make essentially the same call on the next series of downs, going for it on fourth-and-3 from the Baltimore 47, but Jackson threw incomplete to a crossing Zay Flowers with Indianapolis linebacker E.J. Speed in hot pursuit.

Gardner Minshew can’t come up with big play

Forced into the starting lineup by Richardson’s concussion, Minshew turned in a statistical line that doesn’t look bad on the surface.



Minshew completed 27 of 44 passes for 227 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions, and although he was sacked three times in the first half by Baltimore safety Kyle Hamilton, fumbling once, Minshew did not turn the ball over.

But Minshew’s risk-averse short passing game was far from enough to put pressure on the Ravens. Minshew averaged just 5.1 yards per attempt, didn’t do much to avoid a blitzing Hamilton in the first half and struggled when he did escape the pocket, including a big miss on a critical third-down in the fourth quarter when he underthrew rookie receiver Josh Downs at the sticks.

When Minshew did throw down the field, particularly early in the game, he was inaccurate, overthrowing Alec Pierce on a crosser on the team’s first drive and then throwing too far for Pierce, who had a step on the cornerback, on one of the few Colts’ deep throws of the game.

Indianapolis signed the veteran quarterback because of his familiarity with Steichen, his leadership ability and his ability to manage a game, but on a day when Richardson wasn’t available and Lamar Jackson was the difference for Baltimore, Minshew’s limitations were too much for the Colts offense to overcome.



Handed one last chance to right the day with a two-minute drill, Minshew struggled with the rush, threw incomplete twice and then stepped out of the back of the end zone for what seemed like a crippling safety.

Handed a chance at redemption, Minshew drove the Colts 33 yards in six plays, and his best throw of the day was knocked away from Alec Pierce at the last second by a leaping Brandon Stephens. In overtime, Minshew took a sack on first down, completed a short throw and then had an open Alec Pierce on the sideline after a Baltimore cornerback fell down, but Minshew overshot him.

The big play finally came from Michael Pittman Jr., going up to get the ball for a 34-yard gain while taking a vicious shot in the back to jump-start the Indianapolis drive in overtime.

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) tries to evade Colts tacklers on Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023, at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
Colts defense trades blows with Lamar

A stout Indianapolis front seven took advantage of a battered Baltimore offensive line, keeping the Colts in the game against an AFC favorite.

The Colts sacked Jackson four times — from Samson Ebukam, Zaire Franklin, Kwity Paye and Taven Bryan — and forced two turnovers. The first came when rookie cornerback JuJu Brents chopped the ball out of the hands of Kenyan Drake and recovered it to stem Baltimore’s early momentum, the second fumble coming on a play where Jackson lost the ball as he tried to pull it back after a pump fake.


But Jackson is one of the NFL’s most electric quarterbacks, and he made the Colts pay at times, with his legs and his arm. Jackson completed 17 of 20 passes for 153 yards, and with his legs, he rushed 14 times for 101 yards and two touchdowns, including a go-ahead score from the 10 on a quarterback draw, then an incredible escape later to set up Justin Tucker’s go-ahead 50-yard field goal.

Jackson nearly drove the Ravens for a game-winning field goal at the end of regulation, but a huge sack by Paye put Baltimore behind the sticks, and despite a key completion, the Ravens couldn’t get any closer than a 61-yard field goal attempt for Tucker — who needed a few more yards than that.