INDIANAPOLIS —
A flashing road sign near the Indiana Convention Center continuously repeated the same two messages late Sunday afternoon.
“Merry Christmas”
“Colts win!”
Indeed, the team’s 27-13 victory against Tennessee after 13 consecutive losses to start the season felt to many fans like an early holiday gift.
And, if so, they have a pair of their favorite whipping posts to thank.
In this season of discontent, few players have taken more grief from fans, media and coaches than Jacob Lacey and Donald Brown.
Lacey was benched earlier this season because of inconsistent play, and a season-ending injury to teammate Jerraud Powers was his primary ticket back onto the playing field.
Brown, a 2009 first-round pick out of the University of Connecticut, often has been held up as an example of what’s gone wrong with the Colts’ recent drafts.
As folks looked to assign blame for a miserable year, many fingers seemed to be pointed in both players’ directions.
And, yet, there they both were Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium, standing front and center during Indianapolis’ brightest moment in months.
Lacey’s fifth career interception, and subsequent 32-yard touchdown return, gave the Colts a 17-6 cushion midway through the third quarter.
The much maligned cornerback finished the day with 12 tackles and two passes defensed. He seemingly was everywhere, flying around the field and making big plays.
“I was extremely busy,” he said with a broad smile in the postgame locker room. “You know, if that’s what it takes to get a ‘W,’ than I’m for that every week. But we came out and we set the tone early. I felt like we scrambled around them in their running game by coming out and hitting and setting the tone. And we just went from there.”
The defense undoubtedly keyed this victory. But the offense sealed it.
Specifically Brown, whose 80-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter tied a club record and provided the final margin of victory.
Joseph Addai was re-signed during the offseason, and Delone Carter was drafted in April, in part because the Colts still weren’t sure what they had in Brown.
But head coach Jim Caldwell steadfastly has stood behind the third-year running back. He’s been telling the media for weeks that Brown works as hard as anyone in practice, and that one day that hard work would pay off on the field.
Sunday was that day.
Brown rushed for 161 yards on 16 carries, compiling the finest individual performance since Addai ran for 171 against Philadelphia in 2006.
It was part of a 205-yard rushing day for the team, its best total since 2007.
“It is great to finally leave here with a smile on your face,” Brown said of the win. “It was just an all-out team effort offensively, defensively, special teams. We put our defense in so many bad situations today and they just overcame all those obstacles, creating key turnovers and special teams, they did the same thing.”
There will be those who worry about what Sunday’s win means for the team’s chances to earn the No. 1 pick in April’s draft.
Others will scratch their heads in wonder and ask where this effort has been all season long.
None of that is important today.
Like Lacey and Brown, the Colts have taken their lumps this year. But they kept working, kept moving forward and finally got that first win.
For now, that’s enough.
Contact George Bremer: 640-4831, george.bremer@heraldbulletin.com
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Contact George Bremer: george.bremer@heraldbulletin.com
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