9/24 Colts win articles

[JAFF]

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.

[JAFF]

10 thoughts on Matt Gay, Gardner Minshew and the Colts' overtime win over the Ravens

BALTIMORE - Ten thoughts on the Colts' 22-19 overtime win to the Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium:

1. Matt Gay is a hero. At least for one day. In a stadium owned by the greatest kicker in NFL history, it was suddenly not Justin Tucker nailing the 50-yard plus field goal through the wind and rain to win the game. It was Gay, nailing it from 53 yards in overtime for his fourth field goal of at least 50 yards on the day -- the most in a game in NFL history.

The Colts needed someone to lift them out of a messy road game played with a backup quarterback against a star like Lamar Jackson. Anthony Richardson wasn't here. Jonathan Taylor wasn't here. Zack Moss was banged up. But Gay stepped up and delivered a monster performance in a way a Colts kicker hasn't in several years.




Game recap:Matt Gay's record day lifts Colts to overtime win over Ravens

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

2. Once the game status reports came out on Friday, you had a feeling this was going to be a low-scoring and discombobulated game. The Colts were without Richardson and Ryan Kelly, falling down to a third-string center and immobile quarterback on the road. The Ravens had a host of players out, notably including two offensive linemen, which was going to play into the Colts' strengths up front. Add in the rain and wind, and we knew we weren't going to see a shootout.


The Ravens have a quarterback who could make things happen on the move and out of structure, which became the theme of a rainy day. Indianapolis somewhat contained big plays on defense, both on the perimeter during Lamar Jackson's scrambles and deep in coverage against deep shots. He still finished 22-of-31 for 202 yards and ran 14 times for 101 yards and two touchdowns.

3. The Colts offensive line held up for most of the day in its 1-on-1 matchups, which tracks with how that group has played through the first three games. The issues came, predictably, in handling the Ravens' bevy of blitzes on third downs as the crowd ramped up the noise and third-string center Wesley French tried to handle all the protections. Some of that fell on Gardner Minshew, though, as his struggles throwing on the move came out whenever he drifted back.


Dropping back eventually caught up to the line in the fourth quarter and overtime, when the Ravens were teeing off. It goes to show how valuable that running game is to keeping these guys fresh for the pass snaps.

4. This is who Minshew is: He can get a team pretty organized stepping in as a backup, even in adverse circumstances. He can play an efficient game within a script, throwing early, on time and on target to limit negative plays while allowing some skill players to do their thing.




But when the game falls on him, he's not likely to match a franchise quarterback on the other side. That came to a head in the fourth quarter, when that efficiency kept dropping off and the Ravens got him constantly on the move. Once they pinned the ball down at the 1-yard line on Isaiah McKenzie's questionable decision not to field a punt in the final few minutes, Minshew was trapped. He avoided one safety, but eventually the room squeezed down against the pass rush, and he stepped out of the end zone for a safety.

5. Give Minshew some credit for the final drive of the fourth quarter, bouncing back from the safety by leading a 44-yard drive with efficient and sharp decisions, including when the Ravens sent their trademark blitz with Hamilton and he lofted it over his head on a throw that let Josh Downs get out of bounds in Baltimore territory. Minshew also threw a dime down the left sideline to Alec Pierce that Brandon Stephens broke up at the final moment to force a field goal.



He isn't going to lose the game, which ended up mattering in overtime of a game this tight. This won't work week-in and week-out. But the Colts hope this is the one time they needed it, and a heroic kicking effort, a stable run game, a great defense and a safe enough backup quarterback prevailed.

6. What an incredible catch from Michael Pittman Jr. in overtime. It was 2nd-and-10, with the Ravens pass rush bearing down on Minshew, with passing yards so hard to come by and the run suffocated, and Minshew heaved a late pass down the left side and Pittman Jr. went over the defender through contact to pull down a 34-yard catch as his helmet came off.


Pittman Jr. has some other areas to fine-tune to become a No. 1 wide receiver, but he’s displayed some incredible jump-ball abilities, and that’s just not something you can go to the draft and find very easily. Something to consider as they develop Richardson and search to find him security blankets he can trust in the most chaotic of moments.



7. The Colts decided to rip the band-aid off at outside cornerback and start second-round Warren Central High School rookie JuJu Brents while making Darrell Baker Jr. inactive. That was a 180-degree reversal of the first two weeks, when Brents was a healthy scratch and the Colts didn't form even a rotation with the outside spots.

It was just time. Brents has gotten in eight of nine practices the past three weeks without any injuries. Baker Jr. had a rough day in Houston last week, when C.J. Stroud threw for 384 yards, mostly by peppering players in space and letting them run as Baker played with too much cushion. Dallis Flowers has been decent this season, but the lane is open for someone to become the Colts' top outside cornerback.

Brents' skill set is a great fit for Gus Bradley's style of defense, with his 6-foot-3 height, 36-inch arms and physical brand. And he flashed in a messy game like this by chasing down Kenyan Drake from behind, punching the ball out and recovering it along the sideline. He brought the wood on some run stops. He broke up a pass to Mark Andrews across the middle, potentially getting away with early contact, but playing in the gray is going to be his game.



Life as a rookie outside cornerback isn't always easy. This was a nice confidence boost for Brents.

8. The Colts have one of the better linebacking corps in the league, and that's still with Shaquille Leonard trying to work back to his old form. E.J. Speed is flashing on run stops and blitzes. Zaire Franklin is one of the most sure tacklers in the game who can also lay the wood.

But it remains confounding how teams can effectively get away with quarterback draws out of empty sets against them. When Jalen Hurts did it to win a game last year, Bradley took the heat, saying the issue was the call. But it happened again in this one, with Lamar Jackson facing a 3rd-and-1 from the Colts 10, and they just made it too easy for him to get into the end zone.

9. This was a heroic performance from Zack Moss, whose downhill and forward-falling style fits a messy game like this. One week after playing every running back snap against the Texans, Moss was headed for a similar day until he got up gimpy on a third-quarter run. But he gutted it out to finish with 30 carries for 122 yards, including a first-down run in overtime that gave Gay the chance at the winning field goal.



He's looking like a more-than-adequate fill-in for Jonathan Taylor, at least for now. The issue is the depth behind him, as the No. 2 back in this game was Trey Sermon, whom the Colts signed off the street last week. The other issue is the lack of explosiveness in the offense, which is as much about the entire personnel set than it is about him.

10. Moss is looking like a sneaky add-on to the trade Nyheim Hines requested a year ago. Moss's production is coming at a great time, for the Colts without Taylor and for himself in a contract year.

[JAFF]

Doyel: Don't try to make sense of the Colts' win vs. the Ravens, just enjoy first place

What are you looking at me for? Don’t tell me you’ve come here to make sense of the Colts’ 22-19 overtime victory Sunday at Baltimore. Don’t you dare. Because that game was just silly, with Indianapolis’ Matt Gay turning in the best kicking performance in NFL history after Ravens coach John Harbaugh messed up and his tight end messed up and a referee messed up and there was a safety and a jump ball and Michael Pittman Jr.’s helmet rolling across the field and I just can’t.

You hear me? I cannot.

And don’t listen to anyone who says they understand what we just watched, because that’s gibberish. It’ll be as nonsensical as whatever was coming out of Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew II’s mouth as Gay’s fourth field goal of more than 50 yards sailed through the uprights with 1:14 left in overtime and the Colts were running around the field at M&T Bank Stadium and Minshew was throwing back his head and howling to the heavens.

It’s impossible that the Colts went into Baltimore and won this game without quarterback Anthony Richardson (head injury), center Ryan Kelly (head injury) and running back Jonathan Taylor (head case). The Ravens had former MVP Lamar Jackson at quarterback, and he’s playing some of the best football of his career. They had Justin Tucker, the GOAT kicker in NFL history, apologies to our guy Adam Vinatieri, and Tucker had the game on his hoof in the final seconds of regulation and the crossbar 61 yards away and that’s a layup for him and the ball’s heading right down the middle. All it had to do was get there, and it just couldn’t.

Insider Joel A. Erickson: Kicker Matt Gay's record day leads Colts past Ravens in OT


And I just can’t.

Should’ve known this game – a 10-7 offensive nothingburger at halftime thanks to the remnants of Tropical Storm Ophelia – would go off the rails after CBS’ Boomer Esiason said something so inane, so insane, that it presaged all the madness that would come in the second half. Esiason had said, with God and a national TV audience as my witness, something like, “It doesn’t matter who you play, but when you play, and the Colts won that battle.”

The Ravens had some missing players, Boomer was saying, so the Colts were the lucky recipient of good timing. On a day they were without their franchise quarterback, All-Pro running back and Pro Bowl center.

Never mind making sense of Boomer. Let’s try to make sense of what we just watched.

We’re going to fail, you know. We’re going to fail spectacularly.


Zaire Franklin and JuJu Brents and Quenton Nelson oh my!

Stars of this game? Let’s go down the list, starting with the offense:

Minshew threw for 224 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions. Zack Moss ran for 122 yards and caught a 17-yard TD pass. Pittman had nine catches for 77 yards, including a 34-yard jump ball in overtime between two Ravens who hit him high, one hit knocking his helmet loose and the other knocking it off. Pittman also ran down a fumble by Minshew in the final seconds of the first half, recovering it after left guard Quenton Nelson had hustled there first, denying Baltimore a scoop-and-score touchdown.


That was one of the biggest plays of the game, Nelson’s hustle definitely saving a touchdown and Pittman’s recovery probably saving a field goal Baltimore would’ve kicked had it recovered.

And that play might not register because of everything that came later.

That included plays by some stars on defense. Linebacker Zaire Franklin had 15 tackles, including a sack and a chase-down tackle of the speedy Jackson where Franklin rose with Jackson’s cleat still in his hand and Jackson’s foot still in his cleat. Jackson wasn’t happy, but Zaire had zero, um, Franklins to give. He was sending a message to Jackson: All day, baby. All 60 minutes, and whatever else is needed.

Another defensive star was cornerback JuJu Brents, the rookie cornerback from Kansas State and some high school I can’t recall JUST KIDDING IT’S WARREN CENTRAL. Making his NFL debut after a lingering preseason hamstring injury, Brents changed the game in the first quarter:

Baltimore leads 7-0 and is nearing the red zone when Brents chases down Ravens running back Kenyan Drake at the 22 and clubs the ball loose, then clambers off Drake and dives onto the ball before it can go out of bounds. Without that play, the Ravens are going to score again for a lead of 10-0 or 14-0, like it matters. If the Ravens score there, at home, in that weather? Start the Colts’ bus to BWI Airport, because this one’s over.

The Brents fumble-and-recovery was the defensive version of the Nelson/Pittman fumble recovery. Without one, definitely without both, this game doesn’t go to overtime and you’re not here to read this Gardner Minshew-like howl to the heavens.

Here comes the final two minutes of regulation, then overtime. Buckle up. We’ve got to move fast, and it’s about to get bumpy.


Gardner Minshew II, Dan Orlovsky and the AFC South

First, why isn’t Colts returner Isaiah McKenzie fielding that punt? He’s calling for a fair catch at the Indianapolis 14 with 2:14 left, which is fine. The Colts trail 17-16 and need to get near the Baltimore 40 to try the game-winning field goal, but McKenzie steps to the side and lets the ball bounce down to the 2, which is how Minshew came to be running alongside the back of the end zone where he channeled his inner Dan Orlovsky and unknowingly stepped out of bounds for a safety.

Yes, that happened with 2:03 left in regulation to give the Ravens a 19-16 lead. Yes, we’re getting to it only now. Crazy game. Wait ‘til you see what else we’ve not mentioned yet.

Stuff like the Colts preparing for the ensuing free kick, needing a three-and-out to get the ball back again – though with just one timeout left, they’ll be lucky to have 20 seconds left UNLESS THE RAVENS FAIR-CATCH THE FREE KICK AND THEN COMMIT AN OFFENSIVE PENALTY.

Which they did.

By not fielding the free kick, the clock never started on the play, saving the two-minute warning as an extra timeout for the Colts. They used their last timeout, the two-minute warning and the Baltimore penalty to stop the clock three times, getting the ball back with 1:36 left.

Seriously. And Harbaugh won a Super Bowl?

Anyway, Minshew drives the Colts into Gay’s range – a 53-yarder, after he’d already made kicks from 54 and 53 in the second half – to tie the game with 57 seconds left.

Baltimore’s ball. They get within Tucker’s range – he holds the NFL record at 66 yards – but his 61-yarder comes up short. Don't ask how. Just keep it moving.

Overtime. Things happen early, interesting things, but the bar’s high today so let’s move onto the Ravens’ final drive. They’re near midfield, needing about 10 more yards for another Tucker try, but tight end Isaiah Likely drops a pass on third down and officials miss a penalty as Colts linebacker E.J. Speed was defending a pass on fourth down. What did Speed do, defensive holding or pass interference? He did both. Grabbed Ravens receiver Zay Flowers before the ball was in the air, and was still holding onto him – spinning him like a dance partner – as the pass sailed past.

More:Pass interference or not? No call against E.J. Speed helps Colts in overtime

Look, it happened. If the officials call either penalty on Speed, Tucker’s going to get one more chance to win this game. Before Sunday he’d been 26-for-28 on kicks in the final two minutes. He’d missed two clutch kicks in 12 years in the NFL, in other words. He’d already missed one in this game. Think he was missing another?

But officials missed the call, and with the Baltimore sideline still pouting and its defense still dazed, Moss ran four times for 16 yards to get into Gay’s range. He drills a 53-yarder to win it.

What does all of it mean? On one hand, this game showed just how badly the Colts miss Anthony Richardson, if not Jonathan Taylor. What’s on the other hand? Nothing. Time’s up, Colts fans. You’ll be going bed, and waking up, with a 2-1 team sitting atop the AFC South, which makes it your turn to howl to the heavens.