National Football League

Colts maintain control of playoff destiny, dominate Steelers after slow start

Published Dec. 16, 2023 8:18 p.m. ET

Adversity has taken various forms for the Colts.

What’s been so impressive is their success despite it.

Rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson was lost for the season in Week 5 after sustaining a shoulder injury. Star running back Jonathan Taylor has been in and out of the lineup — first sidelined on the PUP list with his surgically-repaired ankle (first four games of the season), and currently with a thumb injury (three straight games and counting). Right tackle Braden Smith has missed six games and counting. Defensive tackle Grover Stewart, one of the league’s best run-stuffers, just finished serving a six-game suspension. Then there are the season-long cornerback issues Indianapolis has had, too.

Despite personnel issues, the Colts have been right in the thick of a tight AFC playoff race with first-year coach Shane Steichen.

On Sunday, the football gods threw more adversity in their face.

They responded the way they have all season.

The Colts’ resiliency was once again on full display in their 30-13 victory Saturday over the Steelers (7-7) at Lucas Oil Stadium. It kept Indianapolis (8-6) in position for the seventh and final AFC playoff spot with three weeks left in the regular season.

The Colts trailed 13-0 early in the second quarter, punctuated by Rigoberto Sanchez having a punt blocked and recovered by the Steelers inside the 1-yard line. It continued struggles from the previous week, when Indianapolis fell 34-14 in Cincinnati, its worst loss of the season.

And already without Taylor (thumb) and Smith (knee), the Colts lost leading wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. and leading rusher Zack Moss — Taylor’s top backup — to injuries by the midway point of the second quarter. Pittman exited with a concussion after an illegal hit by Damontae Kazee, who was ejected. Moss got hurt on a horse-collar tackle en route to the end zone.

The mounting challenges didn’t matter for Indianapolis.

The Colts scored 30 unanswered points to win.

This is about a Steelers team that’s had everything go wrong in what’s now a three-game losing streak, but also about a Colts team that has continued to find a way. Quarterback Gardner Minshew had one of his best games of the season, throwing for 215 yards and a season-high three touchdown passes. But Saturday was really about the backups who stepped up.

Running backs Trey Sermon and Tyler Goodson, the latter of whom was elevated from the practice squad for the game, combined for 157 rushing yards on more than 5.6 yards per carry. They overwhelmed a Steelers defensive front led by superstar T.J. Watt. On their 15-play field-goal drive in the fourth quarter, the Colts ran the ball 13 straight times.

Colts wide receiver D.J. Montgomery, signed to the active roster on Thursday, also had a touchdown reception in the second quarter after dropping one on 4th-and-goal on the previous drive. He had two receptions for 48 yards, leading all Indianapolis pass catchers not named Pittman, who had four catches for 78 yards before leaving the game. Montgomery had just three career receptions entering the game, all of which came in 2021 with the Jets.

Defensively, the Colts had three takeaways — including two interceptions thrown by Mitch Trubisky, who was benched late in the game. Entering the week third in the league with 42 sacks despite not getting any last week against the Bengals, Indianapolis added four more on Saturday.

The Colts are imperfect. They’re flawed in many ways, which can be exacerbated by all the injuries and personnel issues. But they never quit. We’ve seen their resilient spirit time and time again. Like on Saturday, when they embarrassed a fellow AFC playoff contender.

It kept them in control of their playoff destiny.

Ben Arthur is the AFC South reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network, where he was the Titans beat writer for a year and a half. He covered the Seattle Seahawks for SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) prior to moving to Tennessee. You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benyarthur.