Banged-up Colts shrug off injuries, beat Cardinals 22-16

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — The Indianapolis Colts person beaten immoderate teams with Jonathan Taylor’s legs, immoderate with Carson Wentz’s limb and a fewer with stellar defense. They added different look for a triumph Saturday night: sheer grit.

“We’ve got a ton of ways to bushed you,” receiver T.Y. Hilton said. “You conscionable prime the mode you privation to get beat.”

Wentz threw 2 touchdown passes, Taylor ran for 108 yards and the banged-up Colts continued their late-season surge with a hard-earned 22-16 triumph implicit the fading Arizona Cardinals connected Saturday night.

The Colts (9-6) person won 3 consecutive and six of seven. They got the roadworthy triumph contempt missing 2020 All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard — who was enactment connected the reserve/COVID-19 database earlier Saturday — and 4 starting violative linemen.

“This is 1 of the champion squad wins I’ve ever been a portion of, considering everything,” Colts manager Frank Reich said. “I’m definite determination are immoderate different bully ones, but this is up there.”

Wentz made the game’s biggest play midway done the 4th quarter, erstwhile helium bounced astir successful the pouch for a fewer seconds earlier hitting Dezmon Patmon for a 14-yard touchdown connected a perfectly placed shot successful the backmost of the extremity zone. That gave the Colts a 22-13 lead.

The Cardinals (10-5) failed to clinch a playoff spot for a 3rd consecutive week and are 3-5 since starting the play 7-0. Kyler Murray threw for 245 yards and a touchdown portion besides moving for 74 yards.

Arizona’s Matt Prater missed 2 tract goals, including a imaginable go-ahead effort aboriginal successful the 4th quarter, and an other point.

“We proceed to find ways to lose, captious situations, penalties, things of that nature,” Cardinals manager Kliff Kingsbury said. “We’ve got to get it turned astir somewhere.”

The Cardinals grabbed a 13-12 pb aboriginal successful the 3rd 4th erstwhile Murray deed Antoine Wesley for a 24-yard touchdown, which was the archetypal of Wesley’s NFL career.

Suddenly, the onus was connected the Colts’ patchwork discourtesy to produce. That wasn’t casual for a portion that came into the crippled missing 3 starting violative lineman. By the extremity of the archetypal half, near tackle Eric Fisher and choky extremity Jack Doyle were besides connected the sideline with injuries.

The Colts managed to cobble unneurotic a thrust precocious successful the 3rd 4th capped by a 37-yard tract extremity for a 15-13 lead. Indianapolis caught a interruption a fewer minutes aboriginal successful the 4th fourth erstwhile Prater’s 41-yard tract extremity bounced disconnected the close upright.

That acceptable up a seven-play, 69-yard Indianapolis thrust that ended with Wentz — who completed 18 of 28 passes for 225 yards — connecting with Patmon.

“I saw him astatine the past second, screaming astatine the backmost of the extremity zone,” Wentz said. “I gave him a accidental and helium made a large play.”

The Colts got disconnected to a large commencement erstwhile Taylor broke escaped for a 43-yard tally connected the team’s archetypal violative play. The 226-pound backmost sliced done the mediate of the enactment earlier bouncing to the extracurricular and rumbling down the close sideline. Five plays later, Wentz had plentifulness of clip to find T.Y. Hilton for a 1-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead.

Taylor came into the crippled arsenic the NFL’s starring rusher by a wide borderline with 1,518 yards connected the ground. That’s much than 400 yards up of Cincinnati’s Joe Mixon, who sits astatine No. 2.

The Cardinals bounced backmost rapidly aft the Colts scored. Murray faked a handoff to Jonathan Ward, made a bully chopped and ran 57 yards earlier being knocked down astatine the Indy 2. Two plays later, Chase Edmonds burst done the enactment for a 2-yard touchdown. Prater missed the other constituent and the Colts kept a 7-6 lead.

The Colts added a information precocious successful the 2nd 4th erstwhile Murray couldn’t grip a debased snap. The backmost picked up the shot and flung it retired of the extremity portion and was called for intentional grounding successful the extremity zone, which is an automatic safety.

SLOPPY CARDINALS

It was not a crisp show for the Cardinals, particularly successful the archetypal half. Prater missed the 51-yard tract extremity and besides botched an other point, the discourtesy had a turnover connected downs and gave up a safety. Arizona players were called for 7 penalties earlier the break.

INJURIES

Colts: Fisher near with a genu wounded successful the 2nd quarter. Doyle went down with a genu and ankle wounded successful the archetypal quarter. Guard Chris Reed had a backmost wounded and near successful the 2nd quarter. Center Ryan Kelly (personal) was retired for the 3rd consecutive week.

Cardinals: Running backmost James Conner and rookie receiver Rondale Moore were among the team’s inactives. Conner (heel) was selected to the Pro Bowl earlier this week aft moving for 700 yards and 14 touchdowns. Moore (ankle) has caught 54 passes this season. CB Marco Wilson (shoulder) was wounded adjacent the extremity of the archetypal fractional and didn’t return.

COVID PROBLEMS

Leonard, receiver Zach Pascal and information Khari Willis were enactment connected the COVID-19 database earlier Saturday. Indianapolis had 7 full players connected the list.

The Cardinals were missing three-time Pro Bowl halfway Rodney Hudson, on with punter Andy Lee.

UP NEXT

Colts: big the Raiders connected Jan. 2.

Cardinals: question to the Cowboys connected Jan. 2.