Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports
Some people around Indianapolis may freak out a bit after the Indianapolis Colts lost 44-20 to the Buffalo Bills in both teams’ first preseason game on Sunday afternoon. After blowing out the St. Louis Rams 38-3 in Andrew Luck‘s NFL debut in the opening game of the preseason in 2012, most had lofty goals for this season.
Almost every expert had the Colts making the playoffs, with some saying this is a Super Bowl contending team. With the blowout in Lucas Oil Stadium this afternoon however, a few may think they took a few steps back.
Don’t panic.
The Colts are still going to be the team with the lofty expectations in 2013. Yes, they did get blown out, but the starters only played two possessions and the second-string only lasted until midway through the second quarter. When the first two strings in the game played, the Colts actually led 13-6. After an Adam Vinatieri field goal with 7:42 left in the second quarter, it was the third string and players further down the depth chart’s turn.
The main guys that will make the active roster looked pretty good early on and really just looked like they were dusting off the rust. When it came down to the top lineups playing against each other, the Colts had the better team and was ahead.
Buffalo did get some solid play in the return game and by rookie quarterback E.J. Manuel, but it will still be a rebuilding year for them. Indianapolis will improve upon the beatdown and get more healthy by Week 1. A lot of the regulars were also injured and didn’t play today as Ahmad Bradshaw, Dwayne Allen and others were held out of today’s contest.
Don’t be so rough on the team just yet. It was one meaningless game.
Eric Smith is the Colts Beat Writer for Rant Sports and is recognized by the Colts as an accredited member of the media. Follow him on Twitter @ericsportsguru
