12. That is the number of times the Indianapolis Colts have fallen into a 14-0 deficit in the past three seasons. Since Andrew Luck was drafted first overall in 2012, the Colts have been notorious for their slow starts to games and seasons. For the second time in as many years, the Colts trailed 24-0 in their first game. Yesterday, against one of the league's best defenses, the Colts came out flat for three full quarters, getting shut out for the first 44 minutes of their season opener, and eventually losing 27-14 on the road to the Buffalo Bills.
The Colts are now 1-5 in their last six season openers, the only win coming at home two years ago - Terelle Pryor and the Oakland Raiders.
For most of the afternoon, the Colts looked completely overmatched by the Buffalo defense. New head coach Rex Ryan successfully blitzed for most of the game, and the Bills secondary completely locked down Luck and the Colts' high flying passing attack.
Bills cornerback Stephon Gilmore had four pass breakups, Ronald Darby out hustled T.Y. Hilton for an interception and nearly two, and Andrew Luck had one of his worst games as a Colt. Meanwhile, Tyrod Taylor shined in his first start for Buffalo, finishing 14-for-19 for 153 yards and a beautiful 51-yard touchdown pass to Percy Harvin.
Luck finished 26-for-49 for 253 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, however, his advanced statistics are even worse. According to Pro Football Focus, Luck had an accuracy percentage of just 56.5 percent, which is worse than any quarterback who played on Sunday. When under pressure, Luck completed just 25 percent of his passes, and was only at a 33 percent accuracy rate.
For a quarterback of Luck's caliber, that simply is not going to get the job done. So while many pundits will be quick to criticize the run defense (which was actually pretty solid for most of the afternoon), or the coaching, the majority of the blame for this loss has to go on Andrew Luck and his receivers.
Andre Johnson and Frank Gore, two veterans brought in during the offseason to help improve the offense, had very minimal impact. Gore's role was very limited because of how quickly the Colts fell behind, as he finished with eight carries for just 31 yards. Andre Johnson looked old and slow after a very good preseason, limited to just four catches for 24 yards, including a wide open drop on a two-point conversion in the fourth quarter. Rookie wide receiver Phillip Dorsett had two muffed punts, losing one of them late in the fourth quarter that ended the slim chance of a Colts comeback.
Surprisingly, the offensive line held up better in pass protection than many were anticipating. Despite the Bills bringing a lot of blitzes, Luck was pressured on just 20.3 percent of his drop backs, a relatively low number compared to previous years with Luck at quarterback. While it may just be one game against a defense that was playing inspired football in their home opener with a new coach, one has to wonder if maybe the Colts are showing yet again why they struggle against the more physical defenses.