Unbeaten Colts lead Jags 21-17 at half
December 18, 2009
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP)—Peyton Manning(notes) was perfect, Chad Simpson(notes) returned akickoff 93 yards for a touchdown and the undefeated Indianapolis Colts built a21-17 lead over the Jacksonville Jaguars at halftime Thursday night.
In a performance similar to his last trip to Jacksonville Municipal Stadium,Manning was 12 of 12 for 116 yards and two touchdowns as the Colts tried toreach 14-0 for the first time in franchise history.
A year ago, Manning completed his first 17 passes in an Indianapolisvictory.
The Jaguars answered with the solid running and quick thinking of MauriceJones-Drew(notes), who smartly broke away from a pack to catch a 9-yard TD pass fromDavid Garrard(notes) and later scored on a short run to set the team record with his15th rushing touchdown of the year.
Indianapolis, which has won 22 consecutive regular-season games, already hasclinched homefield advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. Coach Jim Caldwell hadsaid only healthy players would start, and Dwight Freeney(notes) and Robert Mathis(notes)—both on the injury report as questionable—played sparingly until the end ofthe half.
The Jaguars (7-6), who have lost seven of their last nine games against theColts, still control the final wild-card spot in the AFC, although a loss wouldseverely damage their postseason hopes.
After an opening quarter that featured 25 plays, no turnovers, no penaltiesand a 3-0 lead for Jacksonville on Josh Scobee’s(notes) 50-yard field goal, both teamsput up points quickly on a cool night along the St. Johns River.
The Colts capped off their long, methodical opening drive of the game whenManning found a sliding Dallas Clark(notes) in the back of the end zone for a 9-yardtouchdown pass early in the second quarter. Manning threw the ball behind Clark,who bobbled it off his right hip and his shoulder pad before hanging on for a7-3 Colts lead.
Garrard brought the Jaguars right back down the field behind Jones, who had73 yards on 14 carries. On 2nd-and-goal from the 9, Garrard rolled left, tookoff running to the right and appeared to have no one open until Jones-Drew brokefree from a pack and got behind linebacker Clint Session(notes) to pull in Garrard’stouchdown pass.
Jones-Drew later scored on a 3-yard run, breaking the team record held byFred Taylor(notes), who had 14 rushing TDs in 1998.
But the Jaguars couldn’t keep Indianapolis from scoring quickly.
With the Colts trailing 10-7, Simpson took the kickoff in the middle of thefield at the 7, made one move through a huge seam on the left side and ranuntouched down the left side into the end zone and through the tunnel.
After the Jaguars regained the lead on Jones-Drew’s short TD run, Manningneeded just over two minutes to take the Colts 68 yards, completing a 22-yardpass to Reggie Wayne(notes) and capping off the scoring drive with a 23-yard TD pass toAustin Collie(notes) over the middle.
Scobee didn’t come close on a 57-yard field goal attempt to end the half.
The first half was so cleanly played that it took just over an hour, andthere were no punts. The only drive that didn’t end in a touchdown was theJaguars’ first series, when Eric Foster(notes) stripped Garrard from his blind side on3rd-and-1 from the 22. The Jaguars recovered, setting up Scobee’s long fieldgoal.
Jacksonville is playing its final home game of the year, and it was thefirst time all year the game wasn’t blacked out locally.
There was a moment of silence before the game to honor Chris Henry, theCincinnati Bengals wide receiver who died Thursday from injuries after he fellout of the back of a moving pickup truck driven by his fiancee.
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