Ankündigungen » INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Andrew Luck took one

peek at the New York Giants‘ defense and changed the call.Instead of trying to force the late run coach Frank Reich wanted White Eli Manning Jerseys , the Indianapolis Colts quarterback asked T.Y.Hilton to go up the field with the defenders and Chester Rogers to slide underneath into the flat. It worked brilliantly.Rogers’ 1-yard TD reception with 55 seconds left gave the Colts their first lead of the day, a 28-27 victory over the Giants and a shot to end a three-year playoff drought next week.Article continues below ...“I just can’t say how clutch Andrew was on that last drive,” Reich said. “He made a check on that last play. I called a run, he checked to a pass because he saw the pressure.”Actually, Luck faced the same alignment earlier in the game and asked his receivers if they could make the audible work with the game — and perhaps Indy’s season — potentially on the line.When they said yes, Luck swung the ball out to a wide-open Rogers, who turned up the field and scooted into the end zone untouched for Indy’s eighth win in nine games. The Colts (9-6) started 1-5, including 0-2 at home, but won their last six home games and now would make the playoffs for the first time in four years if they beat Tennessee next week. They could even win the AFC South with a win and a loss by Houston.Still, Luck, Reich and everybody else in the Colts’ locker room downplayed the playoff talk and instead tried to focus on a remarkable comeback in a game that looked lost.Luck led the Colts to touchdowns on three of their first four second-half possessions, capitalizing on just about every opportunity. He finished 31 of 47 for 357 yards with one interception and two touchdowns, including the audible.“When he called the run, I looked at Chester and T.Y. and said, ‘How about running the pass pattern on top?’ and they said, ‘Yeah, we’ll do it,'” Luck said. “Glad they picked up on it.”The Giants (5-10) had themselves to blame for their second straight loss.After leading the entire game and having a chance to make it a two-possession lead after reaching the Colts 7, New York settled for a 27-yard field goal that made it 27-21 in the fourth quarter.The unraveling began after Indy pinned the Giants back at the 4. The Giants were called for two offensive penalties and then watched Saquon Barkley lose the ball on a third-down run. Darius Leonard scooped it up and ran into the end zone, but the officials ruled Barkley’s forward progress had been stopped, forcing a punt.On the ensuing possession, linebacker Tae Davis was called for pass interference on third-and-3 and six plays later, cornerback B.W. Webb drew the same infraction in the end zone, giving Luck the ball at the 1. He found Rogers on the next play, and the Giants’ last gasp ended when Eli Manning was picked off by Malik Hooker.Manning was 25 of 33 for 309 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Barkley rushed 21 times for 43 yards and one score while catching five passes for 113 yards.“They made the plays at the end to get the ball in the end zone,” Giants coach Pat Shurmur said. “They made enough plays to win and we didn’t at the end.”INJURY REPORTGiants: Odell Beckham Jr. (quad) missed his third straight game and linebacker Alec Ogletree sat out with a concussion. … Defensive end Mario Edwards Jr. left on the first series of the game with an injured calf and did not return. … Tight end Rhett Ellison left in the third quarter with a concussion and also did not return.Colts: Center Ryan Kelly (neck) and Pro Bowl tight end Eric Ebron (concussion) left in the first half. Neither returned. … Cornerbacks Kenny Moore III and Quincy Wilson departed on successive plays in the third quarter with undisclosed injuries.STAT PACKGiants: Barkley needs two receptions to break the NFL’s single-season franchise record for most receptions by a rookie running back. Reggie Bush had 88 in 2006. … Sterling Shepard had six catches for 113 yards but only one catch for three yards in the second half. … Evan Engram caught six passes for 87 yards.Colts: Hilton had seven catches for 138 yards while Rogers caught seven for 54 yards. … Dontrelle Inman caught a 2-yard TD pass from Luck in the third quarter and Nyheim Hines and Marlon Mack each rushed for TDs. … Kicker Adam Vinatieri tied Jeff Feagles for No. 3 on the league’s career list for games played (352). … John Unitas Jr. and John Unitas III served as honorary captains as the 60th anniversary of the 1958 championship between these teams nears.UP NEXTGiants: Host NFC East champion Dallas’ regular-season finale next Sunday.Colts: Put their playoff hopes on the line next Sunday at Tennessee. I have said a number of times in recent weeks that my belief is that the current New York Giants roster has improved while the play on the field has not followed suit. That the 2-8 Giants are, while not a complete team, under-performing their talent level.Is that really the case? Has GM Dave Gettleman really upgraded the roster over the past two seasons? Let’s go position-by-position and find out. What we will do is compare the most common roster from 2017, the group Jerry Reese left the Giants with, and what they have now in 2019.Quarterback2017: Eli Manning, Geno Smith, Davis Webb2019: Daniel Jones, Eli Manning, Alex TanneyThe presence of Jones Eli Manning Jerseys 2019 , the current starter and clear quarterback of the future, makes this a no-brainer. If we were talking about the Manning of his prime, that’s a different story. But, we aren’t.EDGE: 2019Running back2017: Orleans Darkwa, Paul Perkins, Wayne Gallman, Shane Vereen, Shane Smith2019: Saquon Barkley, Wayne Gallman, Elijhaa PennyBarkley, even the limited one we have seen this season, again makes this an easy choice. Penny is also a more versatile player than Smith, making that an upgrade as well.EDGE: 2019Tight end2017: Evan Engram, Rhett Ellison, Jerell Adams2019: Evan Engram, Rhett Ellison, Kaden SmithWe could get into the nuance of whether Engram is a better player in 2019 than 2017 (he is), but I’m not going to split hairs here. It’s the same group, and until we learn more about Smith there isn’t a judgment to make.EDGE: EvenWide receiver 2017: Odell Beckham Jr., Sterling Shepard, Brandon Marshall, Roger Lewis Jr., Dwayne Harris, Tavarres King2019: Golden Tate, Sterling Shepard, Darius Slayton, Cody Latimer, Bennie Fowler, Cody CoreAs you will recall, the 2017 group was decimated by injuries that cost Beckham, Marshall and Harris more than half the season. To be fair, let’s assess the group Reese intended to have and not what the Giants ended up with by season’s end. Marshall was a bad signing by Reese, but his injury was still problematic. Shepard played only 11 games that year, and is going to play far less than that this season. I do believe the Giants did the right thing under the circumstances by moving on from Beckham, but when we’re purely assessing the talent on the roster his presence on the 2017 team makes this one a no-brainer. EDGE: 2017Offensive line2017: Ereck Flowers (LT) White Odell Beckham Jerseys , Justin Pugh (LG), Weston Richburg (C), John Jerry (RG), Bobby Hart (RT); Other players of note: D.J. Fluker, Brett Jones, John Greco2019: Nate Solder (LT), Will Hernandez (LG), Jon Halapio (C), Kevin Zeitler (RG), Mike Remmers (RT); Other players of note: Spencer Pulley, Nick GatesThe 2017 group was a mess. Recall that Hart began the year as the starter, quickly played his way to the bench and was then the first casualty of the Gettleman rebuild — jettisoned before the season finale. Pugh ended up at right tackle, Fluker started a half-dozen games before landing on IR, and Jones ended up starting 13 games at center.The 2019 group was together for all but one snap prior to Sunday’s debacle. As disappointing as Sunday was, and with the admission that the 2019 group isn’t great and has probably not met expectations, in my view it’s better at every position except center. EDGE: 2019Defensive line 2017: Jay Bromley, Damon Harrison, Avery Moss, Romeo Okwara, Jason Pierre-Paul, Robert Thomas, Olivier Vernon, Dalvin Tomlinson, Kerry Wynn2019: Dexter Lawrence, Dalvin Tomlinson, B.J. Hill, Leonard Williams, Markus Golden, R.J. McIntoshThis is tricky because the Giants have transitioned from the base 4-3 to more of a 3-4 or hybrid front.Vernon, Harrison and Pierre-Paul were a more accomplished, bigger name group than what the Giants have now. Tomlinson was the fourth starter. Wynn was always a good depth player. Though neither had great seasons, Vernon and JPP combined for 15 sacks. Harrison had his typical excellent run-stuffing season for which he got nothing in terms of post-season honors.The current group of Lawrence, Tomlinson, Hill and Williams has terrific potential and the Giants have played the run pretty well most of the season, and while Lawrence looks like a terrific player we haven’t seen what was hoped for from the group as a whole. I included Golden as a defensive lineman because he seems to spend more time as a defensive end than as a stand-up outside linebacker. He’s having an excellent season.EDGE: Evengoing to side with the 2019 group simply because it has some potential and seems like a bit more than a collection of bodies thrown together to fill the position.EDGE: 2019Cornerback2017: Eli Apple Odell Beckham Jerseys 2019 , Janoris Jenkins, Ross Cockrell, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie2019: Janoris Jenkins, DeAndre Baker, Corey Ballentine, Grant Haley, Sam BealOh, man. How to judge this position?Jackrabbit is Jackrabbit. He didn’t play incredibly well in 2017, and he isn’t playing incredibly well this year. He made business decisions in both seasons. At least this year he has shown up every day and not gotten suspended. Of course, we are in the bye week so all bets are off. Baker and Apple? At least Baker is giving effort and not going to the media to complain about his coach and his circumstances. Cockrell and DRC were veterans who had decent years, but DRC also served a suspension that year. I’m giving the edge to the 2019 roster for the simple reason that there is real potential for future growth.EDGE: 2019Safety 2017: Landon Collins, Darian Thompson, Andrew Adams2019: Jabrill Peppers, Antoine Bethea, Michael Thomas, Julian Love2017 was a Pro Bowl season for Collins, his second straight. He has never matched his All-Pro 2016 season, but he was really good. Peppers is good, but he isn’t playing at 2016-17 Collins level.Thompson and Bethea? Please. Someday the Giants will find a quality free safety.I’ll take Thomas over Adams. He’s a good player, though not a guy you want playing every down, terrific special teams player, and a locker room leader.EDGE: EvenSpecial teams2017: Zak DeOssie (LS), Aldrick Rosas (PK), Brad Wing (P), Dwayne Harris/Shane Vereen/Kalif Raymond (kick and punt returns)2019: DeOssie (LS), Rosas (PK), Riley Dixon (P), Tate/Ballentine/Latimer (kick and punt returns)Rosas was a mess in 2017 and Wing punted his way out of the league. Even the struggling 2019 Rosas is better than the 2017 version, and Dixon is having a terrific year. With excellent gunners like Antonio Hamilton and Cody Core, along with a quality special teamer like Thomas, the coverage units are excellent on the current team.Neither team could solve its return issues, though Harris was always a good returner and both Latimer and Ballentine have had moments returning kickoffs this season.EDGE: 2019So, what’s the total?with. There is a quarterback of the future if the Giants develop Jones properly, and a young core to go forward with. Neither of those things were present when he walked in the door.