Role Players Roll
Indy wide receiver Pierre Garcon, a 2008 sixth-round draft pick, had
easily the best game of his career, catching 11 passes for 151 yards
and one touchdown. Heading into the game, the Colts knew Garcon and
Austin Collie had to play great against the Jets' second-tier
cornerbacks. While Darrelle Revis limited Reggie Wayne to three
receptions and 55 yards, Garcon and Collie (seven receptions for a
career-high 123 yards and a touchdown) abused cornerbacks Dwight Lowery
and Lito Sheppard.
Garcon got it going early, catching a pass on a quick slant, breaking
Lowery's tackle and running 27 yards for the Colts' first big play of
the game. On the next play, Garcon burnt Sheppard for a 36-yard gain,
and it helped the Colts build a 3-0 lead.
Because Revis covered Wayne exclusively, each of Garcon's and Collie's
big plays came at the expense of others. Lowery and Sheppard are no
slouches in their own rights, but they were beaten badly by Indy's
young receivers. That is the biggest reason the Colts beat the Jets and
are heading to their second Super Bowl in four years.
Hard-Nosed Rookie
I loved the toughness displayed by Jets rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez, who hung in the pocket to take some fierce blows in order to make his throws. Granted, some of those throws he made were of the bone-headed, rookie variety, but his best delivery came on a 9-yard touchdown strike to tight end Dustin Keller in the second quarter. Sanchez took a hard shot — for the second consecutive play — but remained upright long enough to hit Keller for a third-down completion that put the Jets ahead 14-6.
Change in Philosophy
Jets head coach Rex Ryan and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer maintained a pretty conservative game plan. Most notably, the Jets sat on the ball in the final minute before the half, and they also called for a Thomas Jones run on third-and-8 at their own 26-yard line midway through the first quarter. Obviously, Ryan didn't want to put Sanchez into any high-pressure situations when he could gamble and make a costly mistake.
However, Ryan called for Jay Feely to attempt a 52-yard field goal early in the third quarter, and the kicker pushed the attempt to the right for his second miss of the game. The Colts got set up at their own 43 and scored the go-ahead touchdown eight plays later. Feely obviously had the leg to convert from 52 yards away, but Ryan's gamble went against much of his low-risk philosophy from earlier in the game.
Jets Burned by Sub Packages
The Jets defense played almost the whole game in dime and quarter packages, a defensive wrinkle that caused early confusion and also helped them match up early with the Colts' offensive speed. But Ryan asked for too much out of the defensive backs who were on the bottom rung of the depth chart, and they got exposed in key situations. Cornerback Drew Coleman got beat by Collie for a 46-yard pass that set up the Colts' touchdown prior to halftime, and safety James Ihedigbo stayed too low in zone coverage on Dallas Clark's nail-in-the-coffin touchdown in the fourth quarter.
The strategy worked early, as Peyton Manning was sacked twice during the Colts' first two possessions. But Manning made the better adjustments as the game progressed while the Jets didn't change it up enough.
