Colts Roll with Hasselbeck

The Colts are pushing for a division title and Hasselbeck has them humming along just fine.

When your offensive coordinator has to constantly call plays to make your rookie quarterback roll out in order to throw the ball, you have a problem.

Frank Gore rushed 19 times for 26 yards in Sunday’s 25-12 victory over Tampa Bay, a game in which Indianapolis averaged a paltry 1.04 yards per carry.

On the other hand, Hasselbeck is a major reason why the Colts are now on top of AFC South, sharing the lead with Houston.

Hasselbeck accomplished 26 of 42 passes for 315 yards and the 2 TDs. He had just three carries for seven yards the rest of the game.

“Not to be cliche or anything but I don’t know how many more opportunities any of us are going to have”.

Key play: Half of the Colts six scoring drives on Sunday lasted at least 11 plays. Langford was especially outspoken in regard to the defense’s play in the first half and challenged each one of his defensive teammates to focus on their task.

“Just validates that we’re making progress”, Smith said. He has completed 58.3 percent of his passes for 2,405 yards with 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Vinatieri knocked in his fourth field of the day, and 16th straight on the season, to extend Indy’s lead to 19-12.

The score: It looked like the Colts were going to have to settle for a field goal, but a penalty on Bucs safety Chris Conte sent the offense back onto the field. The dynamic duo dominated a vulnerable Buccaneers secondary, and while the run game stalled, the Colts rightfully ran the offense through Hilton and Moncrief.

Donte Moncrief had a great game, obviously since I gave him the MVP honors.

“He takes care of himself, he understands football, he understands what we’re doing, he works extremely hard Monday through Sunday preparing himself, watching himself, correcting himself, getting the plan down”, Pagano said.

Though he didn’t play badly in his first career game, rookie right tackle Denzelle Good did commit four penalties: a personal foul, a hold and two false starts.

“These guys are finding a way. We had to be, because (Tampa Bay) was hell bent on stopping the run”. The Colts were able to able to rack up five sacks in the second half.

“Just trying to be productive on the offensive side”, coach Lovie Smith said when asked if there was a specific move away from Martin in the second half.

Twelve penalties for 95 yards.

The 40-year-old Hasselbeck improved to 4-0 this season by producing his first 300-yard game in four years and outplaying the youngest starting quarterback in the NFL. Conner Barth’s extra-point attempt was wide left.

A 25-12 loss to the Indianapolis Colts dropped the Bucs (5-6) below. Tampa Bay is on track to get back into contention in the near future and Winston is going to be the player that decides how far they go.

But then Matt Hasselbeck lumbers onto the field from the recliner in the den, dusts off his helmet, and starts turning in great performance after great performance.

The anatomy of the drive: 3 plays for 46 yards, in 1:05. The left tackle sprained an MCL on Sunday, and his streak of 66 consecutive regular-season starts will end.

Hasselbeck finished the first half 12 of 22 for 140 yards.