Editor: Joe Bryant. Game Recap Contributors: Mike Anderson, Michael Brown, Chris Burtt, J.D. Caldwell, David Dodds, Jim Enochs, Joel Faulhaber, Michael Flynn, Kevin Goldblum, Clayton Gray, Bob Harris, Fred Hebert, Jesse Hilsenrad, Drew Kendall, Jeff Lewis, Joey Matusek, Justin Oliver, Steve Prosapio, David Shick, Cody Smith, Scott Smith, Jeffrey Stout. Indianapolis 23 at Houston 3 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW Indianapolis Colts: The Colts continue now to the third week of conservative play calling. It's affecting the production and scoring opportunities of Manning, Harrison, and James. The Colts (Especially James) were unable to move the ball in the Red Zone against the Texan's Defense. 2nd week in a row James has struggled there. Stopped for no gain on two back to back carries at the 11, and then again later for no gain on a 3rd and 1 opportunity. WR Qadry Ismail only had a single reception, and from the box score, Reggie Wayne looks to have been used as the #2 WR. But Ismail was clearly the #2 WR target. Although he only had one reception, Ismail could have ended the day with 4 receptions for 95 + yards and 2-3 TDs. The potential is there for him. TE Marcus Pollard was back in the line up this week. He started slow, and was very rusty, missing the first two passes thrown to him. As the game wore on, Pollard regained some of his timing, making his two receptions towards the end of the game. Did have a 6 yard reception on 1st and Goal at the 10 that was called back on a holding penalty. DB/S Corey Bird twisted his left knee and had to be helped off the field. Backup SS Jason Doering, in for Bird laid injured on the field for awhile, but was able to get up and eventually walk off on his own power. He was replaced by Backup FS Brian Leigeb who is playing out of position. No news on either Bird or Doering was available during game time, but this could be a crushing loss to the Colt's pass defense. Houston Texans: The Texan's running game struggled behind James Allen for much of the game. Coming in for an ineffective Allen, Jonathan Wells ran with power and hit the holes aggressively. He was quite successful against the Colt's Run Defense averaging 6.6 ypc (14 for 93 yards including a 37 yarder) Keep a very close eye on this one as we've been expecting Wells to take over. This is the second straight week the Texans have failed to score a touchdown. At one point, they had the ball at a 6 yard line and were only able to come out with a field goal. After 15 sacks in the 1st two games, the play calling for David Carr has changed dramatically. Gone are the 7 step drop passes, replaced with quick 3 and 5 step passes, and Shotgun formations in their place. This worked very well for most of the game, with the first of Carr's sacks coming in the second half, and only 4 on the day as compared to 7 last week. Carr was able to stay on his feet much better this week. LT Tony Boselli, out with double shoulder surgery, is still sorely missed in Carr's protection. QB David Carr was held under 100 yards passing for the second time in as many weeks . After throwing two touchdowns in the first game, Carr has gone two games without a touchdown pass. The WRs had 3 drops in the first half. Carr is not afraid to take off and run with the ball and was effective picking up a couple of 3rd down conversions while running. WHAT YOU OUGHT TO KNOW Indianapolis Colts QB: Payton Manning - Completed 75% of his passes (21 of 28) for 272 yards and 2 passing TDs. Manning was sacked 3 times, but did not throw an INT. Had 2 Carries, one for a yard, and another for -1 yards for a net total of zero on the day. After two failed James carries for no gain at the 11, Manning was shut down for no gain on a bootleg on 3rd and 10 at the 11. On 3rd and 5 and Manning in the shotgun, he hit James for a pick up of 7. The TD to Reggie Wayne was a 43 yard reception where the Manning pass went straight to CB Marcus Robinson for the easy INT, but Robinson couldn't get a handle on it, and popped it straight up into the air. Wayne was in the perfect position to grab it out of the air, and scamper in for the score. This was a lucky play and score for the Colts. 2 of Manning's 3 sacks came from a blitzing LB Jeff Posey who beat LT Tarik Glenn often. Glenn was turned around often, causing a number of Manning hurried passes. Manning hit Ismail in the Chest on a 3 yard hitch route, Ismail didn't get his hands on it, popping it into the air, where it was almost picked off. WR Marvin Harrison beat CB Aaron Glenn deep for what would have been a 51 yard TD at the Goal line. He looked back to Glenn before he secured the ball, and it slipped through his fingers. SS Eric Brown broke up a pass to Ismail in the End Zone that would have been a 20 yard TD reception. Ismail had CB Marcus Coleman beat and was wide open for what would have been 30 yards in the air, and then whatever else he could get on the ground (Possibly a score), but Manning over threw him. RB: Edgerrin James - 25 carries for 88 yards, and 4 receptions for 29 yards. Did not score. James was patient, letting blocks set up. He is showing all the classic James moves of hopping, shifting, and cutting in traffic, and low to the ground running. Most of his yards came running to the left against DT Jeremy DeLoach. Still struggling in the red zone like the previous week. Stopped for no gain on two back to back carries at the 11. Resulted in a FG. On 3rd and 1 at the 29, James was stopped for no gain by the Texan's Defense. Also resulted in a FG. On 3rd and 5 and Manning in the shotgun, he hit James for a pick up of 7. Detron Smith - Full Back. No offensive carries or receptions, and was far below his usual outstanding job of providing crushing blocks for James. Definitely a down game. WR: Marvin Harrison - 8 receptions for 110 yards. Did not score. Harrison was able to take advantage of CB Aaron Glenn often during the course of the game. Glenn played him very physical, employing a bump and run tactics for most of the game, but Harrison was able to overcome the physical play. 16 of Harrison's yards came on a square out and up pattern where CB Aaron Glenn bit on the square out allowing Harrison to get open all alone up the field. Harrison beat Glenn deep for what would have been a 51 yard TD at the Goal line. He looked back to Glenn before he secured the ball, and it slipped through his fingers. Qadry Ismail - Only one reception for 42 yards, but it was for a long TD. It was a totally deceptive play action fake to James. CB Marcus Coleman bit hard on the run, allowing Ismail to get wide open in the secondary. It was an easy jog for the 42 yard TD. Manning hit Ismail in the Chest on a 3 yard hitch route, Ismail didn't get his hands on it, popping it into the air, where it was almost picked off. SS Eric Brown broke up a pass to Ismail in the End Zone that would have been a 20 yard TD reception. Ismail had CB Marcus Coleman beat and was wide open for what would have been 30 yards in the air, and then whatever else he could get on the ground (possibly a score), but Manning over threw him. Although he only had one reception, he could have ended the day with 4 receptions for 95 + yards and 2-3 TDs. Reggie Wayne - 3 receptions for 53 yards with a TD. Will seem to be more involved in the Offense that Ismail from the box score, but that's a little deceiving. Lost a fumble in the Red Zone after a reception over the middle. Two of Wayne's receptions totaled 10 yards combined. The other reception was a 43 yard TD where the Manning pass went straight to CB Marcus Robinson for the easy INT, but he couldn't get a handle on it, and popped it straight up into the air. Wayne was in the perfect position to grab it out of the air, and scamper in for the score. This was a very lucky play and score for the Colts. Wayne could have easily ended the day with 3 total looks, and 2 receptions for a total of 10 yards. Troy Walters - 4th WR and Punt/KO returner. Did not catch a ball, and was not used in the Offense. Excelled in special teams with both KO and P returns. TE: Marcus Pollard - 2 catches for 25 yards. Did not Score. Pollard was back in the line up this week. He started slow, and was very rusty, missing the first two passes thrown to him. The first pass thrown to him was a well thrown pass over the middle that he should have caught. It went in and out of his hands, would have been an 8 yard gain on a key 3rd down play. The other ball was simply under thrown and uncatchable. As the game wore on, Pollard gained some more of his timing, making his two receptions towards the end of the game. A 5th opportunity to Pollard was a completed 6 yard reception on 1st and Goal at the 10 that was called back on a holding penalty. Jermaine Wiggins - One reception over the middle for 8 yards. Lost the ball on a Fumble after his only reception. Joe Dean Davenport - Working exclusively over the middle in the first two games, Davenport's only catch of the game came in the flat for 8 yards. Colts Pass Defense: 4 Sacks, and 1 Interception. Carr's only Interception on the day was an easily catchable ball that was popped up by TE Rod Rutledge right into the hands of FS Idrees Bashir. On 3rd and 6 from the Texan 30, Carr almost had another Interception that would have been returned for a TD. OLB Mike Peterson had both hands on the ball but dropped the easy INT from Carr. Peterson was looking up at what would have been an easy TD instead of securing the ball properly. DB/S Corey Bird twisted his left knee and had to be helped off the field. Backup SS Jason Doering, in for Bird laid injured on the field for awhile, but was able to get up and eventually walk off on his own power. He was replaced by Backup FS Brian Leigeb who is playing out of position. No news on either Bird or Doering was available during game time, but this could be a crushing loss to the Colt's pass defense. Colts Rush Defense: One Forced Fumble, recovered by Marcus Washington. Although James Allen was able to move the ball off tackle early on, the Colt's Defense totally shut him down up the middle, necessitating the Texans to go with Jonathan Wells to move the ball. Carr was an effective runner when necessary. Colts Special Teams: PK Mike Vanderjagt - 3 of 4 FGs, with 2 XPs. Vanderjagt's KOs kept the Texans in terrible field position all game, the Texan's average starting position was from their own 17. P Hunter Smith - 3 Punts of an 43 yard average, with 2 of the 3 pinning the Texans inside their own 20. High booming unreturnable punts. Put the Texans in terrible field position all game, the Texan's average starting position was from their own 17. KR Troy Walters - 2 KR for 54 yards, and 4 PR for 64 Yards. /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/** Houston Texans QB: David Carr - 12 of 22 for 99 Yards. Did not score. Carr was sacked 4 times, and threw 1 Interception. Worked from terrible field position all game. After 15 sacks in the 1st two games, the play calling for David Carr has changed dramatically. Gone are the 7 step drop passes, replaced with quick 3 and 5 step passes, and Shotgun formations in their place. This worked very well for most of the game, with the first of Carr's sacks coming in the second half, and only 4 on the day as compared to 7 last week. Of those 4 sacks, 2 came as the Texan's had to go primarily to the air to get back in the game, with Carr waiting too long in the pocket looking for open WRs. Another Sack came as Texan's LT Chester Pitts (in for the injured Tony Boselli) stepped back onto Carr's ankle, causing his shoe to come off. On the day, the Texan's Offensive line really only gave up 1 legitimate sack after giving up 15 in the previous two weeks. Carr was able to stay on his feet much better this week. LT Tony Boselli, out with double shoulder surgery, is still sorely missed in Carr's protection. The INT by Carr was not his fault. Carr's only Interception on the day was an easily catchable ball that was popped up by TE Rod Rutledge right into the hands of FS Idrees Bashir. Carr went down field to Avion Black in the End Zone for what could have been a 37 yard TD. The ball was popped up by Black, and almost picked off for a second INT. On 3rd and 6 from the Texan 30, Carr almost had another Interception that would have been returned for a TD. OLB Mike Peterson had both hands on the ball but dropped the easy INT from Carr. Peterson was looking up at what would have been an easy TD instead of securing the ball properly. On 3rd and 4, Carr threw to Corey Bradford, who tipped the ball up in the air, and almost resulted in another INT. Carr is not afraid to take off and run with the ball and was effective picking up a couple of 3rd down conversions while running. RB: James Allen - Starting RB. 11 carries for 27 yards, 3 Receptions for 25 yards. Did not Score. Looked good to start the game on a couple of off tackle runs. Shut down and stopped with basically every carry up the middle. Came up just short on 3rd and 12 with a reception over the middle for a gain of 11. Jonathan Wells - 14 carries for 93 yards, and 2 receptions for 14 yards. Did not Score. Had a long rush of 37 yards. Coming in for an ineffective Allen, Wells ran with power, aggressively hitting his holes. Keep a very close eye on this one as we've been expecting Wells to take over. Jerrod Baxter - Rookie Full Back. Did not carry the ball, although he had a 9 yard pass reception called back on a Holding penalty. WR: JaJuan Dawson - 3 Receptions for 32 yards. Dawson was the target of a poorly thrown ball on 3rd and 9. Dawson's long of the day, 12 yards, came on a key 3rd and 22 yard play where he came up 10 yards short. Another of his receptions was also on a key 3rd and 8 where he gained 9 for the 1st down. Avion Black - 1 Catch for 14 yards. Also used as a KOR, and PR. Threw a huge down field block on a play where Carr took off out of the pocket when his receivers were all covered, allowing Carr to pick up the 1st down. Although Black only had one reception, Carr went to him down field in the End Zone on what would have been a 37 yard TD. The ball was popped up by Black, and almost picked off for a second INT. Jabar Gaffney - 2 Receptions for 8 yards. Another easily catchable Carr pass was in and out of Gaffney's hands on a Key 3rd down play that killed the drive. Corey Bradford - 1 Reception for 6 Yards. Ran a reverse for a loss of 11 yards for his only carry. On 3rd and 4, Carr threw to Bradford, who tipped the ball up in the air, and almost resulted in another INT. Jermaine Lewis - No receptions on the day. Also used as a KOR, and PR. TE: Rod Rutledge - Did not Catch a Ball. Carr's only INT on the day was an easily catchable ball that was popped up by Rutledge right into the hands of FS Idrees Bashir. Rutledge was the intended receiver on another pass over the middle that resulted in an incomplete pass. Texan's Pass Defense: CB Marcus Coleman recovered Fumble. DE Gary Walker Forced then recovered a fumble and advanced it 1 yard. LB Jamie Sharper had 1 sack. LB Jeff Posey had 2 sacks. Harrison was able to take advantage of CB Aaron Glenn often during the course of the game. Glenn played him very physical, employing a bump and run tactics for most of the game, but Harrison was able to overcome the defense. The TD to Reggie Wayne was a 43 yard Reception where the Manning pass went straight to CB Marcus Robinson for the easy INT, but he couldn't get a handle on it, and popped it straight up into the air. Wayne was in the perfect position to grab it out of the air, and scamper in for the score. This was a lucky play and score for the Colts. Texan's Rush Defense: The Colts (Especially James) were unable to move the ball in the Red Zone against the Texan's Defense. Although James was able to amass 88 yards rushing on the day, they were primarily gained around midfield. Texan's Special Teams: PK Kris Brown was 1 of 2 FGs, hitting on a 24 yard attempt. The missed FG was a 54 yard attempt that hit the right upright, and bounced back onto the field. It had the distance, and would have been good from 65 yards had it been accurate. P Chad Stanley had 7 punts, but due to the poor field position left to him by the Texan's offense, not one of them pinned the Colts deep (Within the Colt's own 20) KOR/PR Avion Black - 4 KORs averaging 25 yards, with a long return of 49 yards. 1 PR for 12 yards. KOR/PR Jermaine Lewis - 2 KORs of 11 and -1 yards. 1 PR for 4 yards.