Behind Enemy Lines: Indianapolis Colts
Nov 18, 2013, 10:44 PM | Updated: Nov 22, 2013, 9:35 pm
After allowing the Jacksonville Jaguars to score the first 10 minutes of Sunday’s game, the Arizona Cardinals came alive, scoring the final 20 points of the afternoon en route to a 27-14 road victory.
With the win, Arizona extended its win streak to a season-high three games and in the process surpassed its win total from all of 2012.
The Cardinals now return home to take on another AFC South foe, the Indianapolis Colts, in a showdown that could very well dictate how realistic their playoff hopes are.
While Arizona is vying for one of the NFC’s final two Wild Card spots, Indianapolis heads to Glendale in full control of its division, sporting a three-game lead over the Tennessee Titans.
Although the Colts look poised for a second straight postseason appearance, it hasn’t been a cake walk for Andrew Luck and Co. of late. After impressive wins over the Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks, the Colts have not played awe-inspiring football.
The team’s last two wins over the Houston Texans and Titans required double-digit second-half comebacks and sandwiched in the middle was a 38-8 home shellacking at the hands of the St. Louis Rams.
In addition to what Sunday’s matchup could mean in terms of playoff implications, the game will serve as a reunion of sorts for Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians and his former team.
Arians was hired as the Colts’ offensive coordinator before the 2012 season, but after head coach Chuck Pagano was diagnosed with leukemia early on in the campaign, the long-time coordinator took over the coaching duties on an interim basis.
Under Arians’ guidance, Indianapolis finished a surprising 11-5 and clinched a berth in the 2012 playoffs. For his efforts, Arians was named the NFL Coach of the Year.
Here’s what is happening in Indianapolis ahead of what should be an emotional non-conference showdown.
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