The Indianapolis Colts (0-0-1) technically snapped their Week 1 losing streak Sunday when they concluded the game against the Houston Texans (0-0-1) with a 20-20 tie.
For the majority of the game, the Colts were being dominated. They were making costly mistakes and failed to find a rhythm offensively against a defense that has several question marks.
Though technically not a loss, the feeling around the game is similar. The Colts entered the matchup as heavy favorites and trailed for the majority of the contest. Against better teams, they probably wouldn’t be so lucky.
Here’s what head coach Frank Reich and QB Matt Ryan had to say after the Week 1 tie:
Disappointed in the outcome
HC Frank Reich: “Obviously, very disappointed with the results of the game. We really came here to be 1-0. That’s our whole mantra. That’s what we do. We did not attain that goal today. I saw a lot of good things, though. There’s obviously a lot to clean up. We couldn’t finish drives, had mistakes in all three phases. At times just had too many penalties. I think we were not a disciplined team today. We can do better there. We can coach better and play better there. In the second half, really through three quarters, defense held us in there some, and then offensively we got it going in the fourth quarter, did a lot of good things, and I am proud of that. I am proud of the way we fought back. Talking to the guys on the sideline, I felt it from the defense, felt the defense talking to me, just felt good about that.
“Offensively felt good talking to the guys. Felt good about what we could do. We got ourselves back in it, gave ourselves a chance at the end, and we didn’t convert. It’s not any one play. There was obviously a lot of plays in the game, so we’re not pointing to the missed field goal in overtime. There were plenty of mistakes throughout that game where we could have sealed it and we didn’t. But I am proud of how the defense stepped up there at the end and got the stop at least when we needed it to at least walk away with a tie.”
The inability to finish drives
HC Frank Reich: “I have to look at the film, but it felt to me on offense like we moved the ball up and down the field. That didn’t feel sloppy to me. What felt sloppy was not being able to finish drives. I agree with you there. We’ve got to be able to finish drives. We had 200 yards of offense in the first half. I mean, that’s doing something right. But that’s not what wins games. But if I’m evaluating, it’s not characterized in my mind by sloppiness throughout. It’s a mistake here, a mistake there, which is sloppy, so I’m not backing away from that comment. That’s a fair comment. But there was a lot of good, but we’ve got to finish drives. We’ve got to finish drives and be better.”
Untimely mistakes
HC Frank Reich: “There were I wouldn’t say a ton of mistakes. There were mistakes that stopped drives. There were mistakes that stopped drives that aren’t good enough. Ultimately that’s a reflection on me and I take ownership of that. I’m not backing down from the comment. Obviously, we had three points through three quarters. There’s nothing to be happy about that offensively. But also, it’s the first game, and I know the guys we’ve got, and I’m not backing down from who we have. We’ll get that cleaned up. It’s a 60-minute game. We got it back. We did a lot of good things. It wasn’t good enough to go 1-0. That’s ultimately all that matters.”
Hot Rod on the Hot Seat?
HC Frank Reich: “You know, I can’t even begin to think. In my mind, he’s our kicker. In my mind he’s our kicker. We go back and everybody gets evaluated. Coaches, players, we all get evaluated. If I’ve learned one thing over the years it’s don’t rush into those kind of decisions. Those are decisions Chris (Ballard) and I get a chance to talk about and everybody gets evaluated. Rod has done a lot of good things for us.”
Matt Ryan's first tie
QB Matt Ryan: “Yeah, it’s the first time for a tie in the NFL, so it’s strange. It was a weird game. Obviously a lot of mistakes in the first half, really the first three quarters. Then we got rolling in the fourth. You’re disappointed to not come out of here with a win. At the same time, we didn’t lose, and we’ve got to find a way to tighten things up. But the effort across the board to me is encouraging. I think if we play with that kind of intensity, clean up some of these mistakes, and just execute a little bit better, there’s a lot of things we can build on.”
Attention to detail
QB Matt Ryan: “It’s always tough to put your finger on right after the game. We’ve got to take a look at the tape tomorrow and check, but like everywhere else in the game, it comes down to the little things, those details. We’ll take a look at it tomorrow, figure out what we need to do better, but we’ve got to find a way. As a team, we’ve got to be opportunistic when we’re down there and come away with points.”
Working with JT, MPJ
QB Matt Ryan: “They’re awesome. They are incredible competitors. There’s no flinch. No matter what the situation is, those guys are going to keep competing, keep going. They’ve got incredibly strong beliefs in themselves and the guys around them, and that’s huge for us as a team. We have got to have leaders like that, that other players see their confidence and their belief, and it’s infectious. I thought those guys did a really nice job for us today.”
Fumbling snaps
QB Matt Ryan: “It’s just on me. We’ve got to get that cleaned up, so we will. There’s no doubt about that. It’s just on me.”
Moving forward
QB Matt Ryan: “Definitely. I think if we can clean things up, tighten things up a little bit, we’re going to be just fine. But we need to tighten them up. There has to be a sense of urgency to get that done. This is a good example for us of it needs to be right. It needs to be right from the start. Coming back at the end, giving ourselves a chance, that’s great, but all of the plays matter. We’ve got to be sharp from the start.”
