With Indy going no-huddle, Luck started throwing at will. Three plays later, Smith made it 38-10.īut Luck had plenty of time to make the jaw-dropping rally. Things appeared bleak with Indy trailing 31-10 at halftime, and they got worse when Luck's first pass of the second half was picked off and returned to the Indy 18. "Anytime you're leading like that and then have them battle back and then take it, and you end up losing by a point, it's tough, a tough pill to swallow," Smith said. Instead, he tried to rally the Chiefs after Hilton's score and wound up throwing to Dwayne Bowe - who caught the ball but was out of bounds - on fourth-and-11 with 1:55 to play from the Indy 43. Just about everyone other than the Colts figured Smith sealed the win with a 10-yard TD pass to Davis less than two minutes into the third quarter. That put even more pressure on Alex Smith, who was 30 of 46 for 378 yards with four TDs and no interceptions but lost a fumble that led to a touchdown for Indy. Receiver Donnie Avery and cornerback Brandon Flowers were knocked out with second-half concussions, and linebacker Justin Houston was out with a knee injury when Hilton caught the winning pass. Knile Davis, Charles' backup, left in the fourth quarter with what appeared to be a left knee injury. Starting running back Jamaal Charles left with a concussion on the opening possession. The eight consecutive losses broke a tie with the Detroit Lions for the longest playoff skid. The Chiefs (11-6) finished their remarkable turnaround season with three straight losses and an eighth straight postseason defeat - none more shocking than this one. That dropped to 0.9 percent when the Chiefs took a 38-10 lead with 13:39 left in the third quarter.įor Kansas City, it was another brief, miserable postseason appearance. "When I took a knee, and you feel the buzz and the energy of the crowd and see your teammates' faces, that makes it special."Īccording to ESPN Stats & Information, the Colts had just a 3.6 percent chance of winning the game when they trailed 31-10 at halftime. "I don't know if it ever crossed my mind on how it would be remembered," Luck said after winning his first playoff game four seasons quicker than it took his predecessor, Peyton Manning. Luck played angry and frantic, turning a steady stream of halftime boos into a chorus of cheers. Hilton broke franchise playoff records with 13 catches and 224 yards, and also caught two TDs.īut it was the way Indy won that made it stunning. He also matched his career high with three interceptions. Luck was an incredible mix of good and bad, finishing 29 of 45 for 443 yards, the second-highest yardage total in franchise history for a playoff game. The Colts, winners of four straight, travel to either Denver or New England next weekend for the divisional round. Buffalo rallied from 32 points to beat Houston 41-38 in January 1993, though that one required overtime. Indianapolis (12-5) became only the second playoff team to rally from that big a deficit. I guess 21 wasn't large enough at half, so we thought we'd give them another seven, you know, just to make it interesting."Īctually, rallying from 28 down made the latest of Luck's amazing comebacks one to remember. "I think somebody said that it was the second-largest comeback or whatever in the history of whatever. "One for the ages," said Pagano, Indianapolis' coach. Hilton on a 64-yard TD pass to give the Colts an improbable 45-44 wild-card victory Saturday. He threw three of his four touchdowns in the second half, scored on a fumble return and connected with a wide-open T.Y. On a day Luck appeared to be pressing and, at times, as bad as he ever has played while putting Indianapolis in a 28-point deficit, the Colts quarterback somehow turned things around. Colts fans couldn't believe the scoreboard, and the Kansas City Chiefs couldn't believe their incredibly bad luck. INDIANAPOLIS - Chuck Pagano couldn't believe his eyes. NFL, Indianapolis Colts, Kansas City Chiefs Andrew Luck, Colts shock Chiefs with 2nd-largest playoff comeback
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