Tale of the tape

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Week 6: Indianapolis Colts At New York Jets

Colts

Jets

The Colts made the hard decision of letting Peyton Manning go during the offseason, but the move appears to be paying off as rookie quarterback Andrew Luck has flashed his superstar talent. He led the Colts to a dramatic upset victory over the Packers by completing 31-of-55 passes for 362 yards with two TDs and one interception.	Quarterback	Mark Sanchez continues to sink on the NFL’s quarterback ladder. The Jets fell to 2-3 with the loss to the Texans and it seems it’s just a matter of time before his desperate coaching staff turns the quarterback position over to Tim Tebow. Jets owner Woody Johnson wants to see this happen and head coach Rex Ryan may decide to go along with it if he feels he has nothing to lose.
The illness of head coach Chuck Pagano touched a nerve with all of his players, but none more so than wide receiver Reggie Wayne. He produced an inspired 13-catch, 212-yard effort that included the game-winning touchdown. Running back Donald Brown runs with power and purpose even if he lacks speed.	Offense	The Jets could take the pressure off of Sanchez if they had a running game, but Shonn Greene seems to have lost his edge. He rushed for 26 yards in the Monday night loss to the Texans. Jeremy Kerley is the Jets’ most dependable pass catcher. While he is decent, he’s not close to a No. 1 receiver.
The Colts have a lot of holes on defense, but the unit rose up and played a big second half against the Packers. Indianapolis limited Green Bay to 6 points in the second half. The Colts got a lift from linebacker Moise Fokou, who had six tackles and onw sack against the Packers.	Defense	The Jets rebounded from getting run over by the San Francisco 49ers and fought hard against the Texans. While they lost the game and had a difficult time stopping Arian Foster in the running game, the Jets gave up only two field goals in the second half and they are likely to play a solid game vs. the Colts. Linebacker David Harris had nine tackles against the Texans and is not going to let anyone slip through his grasp.
The Colts still think Adam Vinatieri is one of the most dependable kickers in the NFL when the game is on the line. However, he has had his troubles early in the year, missing 3-of-10 field goal attempts.	Special Teams	The Jets have been working trick plays out of punt formation with Tebow in the lineup. They are going to need to find something in special teams because the offense is so limited. Joe McKnight broke off a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Houston.

We'll just call it a tie

Little appears to be going right for the Jets at this point, but the Colts are a young team that will have plenty of ups and downs. Luck will learn that going on the road and playing in front of a hostile crowd and an angry team is a difficult assignment. The Jets don’t have much, but they will put together a winning effort here.

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