The Colts took care of the Redskins 49-27 on Sunday in a game marked by one big play after another. Andrew Luck had another stellar performance, this time setting a career-high with five touchdown passes, including two that went for 70+ yards.
Three early turnovers by the Colts kept the Redskins in it for a while, but constant breakdowns in the secondary were too much to overcome for Washington.
It wasn't all negative for the Redskins, however; new starter Colt McCoy performed admirably despite being under pressure for much of the game. He finished with a career-high 392 yards passing and three touchdowns on 31-of-47 passing.
Washington Redskins – Performances of Note
Colt McCoy, QB: -1.8 passing
Breakdown: With the sun apparently setting on RGIII's career in DC, the Redskins are hoping to get some positive performances out of Colt McCoy the rest of the year, and Sunday's effort against the Colts was a decent start. Despite getting sacked six times and pressured a total of 20, he still managed to keep his composure as the hits started piling up. He definitely improved as the game went on, although he needs work moving in the pocket and avoiding sacks. He was surprisingly good against the blitz, completing 15-of-19 for 278 yards and three touchdowns.
Signature Play: Q2, 11:34 remaining. In one of the better scrambling efforts you'll see this year, McCoy managed to break three separate tackles from Colts defenders before finding tight end Logan Paulsen for a touchdown.
Jordan Reed, TE: +3.0
Breakdown: Reed had his best output of the season, catching nine balls on 11 targets for 123 yards, including 70 yards-after-the-catch, good enough for a 113.3 QB Rating when throwing his way. He also forced two missed tackles on the day. If he can stay healthy, he can obviously be a huge contributor in the passing game.
Signature Play: Q4, 13:41 remaining. Here the Colts make the mistake of trying to cover Reed with a linebacker as he shows his explosiveness on a seam route, hooking up with McCoy for a 30-yard gain.
David Amerson, CB: -5.0
Breakdown: This was a Keystone Cops-type performance from the Redskins' secondary in general, as they had several completely blown coverages. If they weren't letting receivers run wide open, they were taking bad angles to the ball carriers. Even so, Amerson was notable for his poor performance, completely losing his man on more than one occasion. In all, he allowed six receptions on seven targets for 183 yards and four touchdowns, after allowing only two touchdowns in the first 11 games.
Signature Stat: Quarterbacks have a QB Rating of 135.2 when throwing at Amerson, the highest among 70 ranked cornerbacks
Indianapolis Colts – Performances of Note
Andrew Luck, QB: +3.5
Breakdown: Luck put up another monster performance Sunday, even by his standards. He finished 19-of-27 for 370 yards and five touchdowns. He was especially deadly with the deep ball, as on passes 20+ yards downfield he was five of eight with four touchdowns. When blitzed he was 9-of-11 for 246 and two touchdowns, good enough for a perfect passer rating of 158.3.
Signature Play: Q3, 10:46 remaining. Luck hit Donte Moncrief in stride as another mix-up in coverage by Washington allows for his fifth touchdown pass of the game.
Gosder Cherilus, RT: -2.1
Breakdown: Cherilus remains the weak link on the Colts' offensive line, especially in pass protection. He struggled with the speed rushes of Ryan Kerrigan all afternoon, allowing one sack and four more hurries on Luck, bringing his season tally to 38 total pressures surrendered.
Signature Play: Q1, 14:55 remaining. On the Colts' first play from scrimmage, Ryan Kerrigan is able to go right around him for a strip sack on Luck, setting up the Redskins in great field position.
Jerrell Freeman, ILB: +2.3
Breakdown: Freeman put together his highest-graded performance of the year against Washington, with five tackles and five more assists. He led the team with four defensive stops, including a sack. He was strongest in pass coverage, as he showed at 6:48 of the second quarter, sniffing out the screen pass to Pierre Garcon and tackling him for no gain.
Signature Stat: He has a Tackling Efficiency on 15.5 in the passing game, with just two missed tackles in 31 tackling attempts.
PFF Game Ball
Andrew Luck takes our Game Ball with his record-setting five-touchdown performance against the Redskins.
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