Indianapolis Colts vs Denver Broncos Match Player Stats On Jan 11, 2015

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Jan 11, 2015

Colts 24, Broncos 13: Andrew Luck overcame a pair of interceptions by throwing for 265 yards and two touchdowns as visiting Indianapolis knocked off second-seeded Denver to advance to the AFC Championship Game.

Luck connected on scoring passes to tight end Dwayne Allen and Hakeem Nicks and the fourth-seeded Colts (13-5) harassed Peyton Manning into a dismal performance in avenging a season-opening loss to the Broncos. Luck finished 27-of-43 to outduel the quarterback he succeeded in Indianapolis.

Daniel "Boom" Herron rushed for 63 yards and a touchdown and caught eight passes for 32 yards as the Colts secured a date at top-seeded New England next Sunday. The Patriots rolled to a 42-20 victory at Indianapolis on Nov. 16.

Manning misfired throughout the game after leading Denver to a touchdown on its opening drive and completed 26-of-46 for 211 yards with a fumble to fall to 11-13 in the postseason with his record ninth one-and-done defeat. C.J. Anderson rushed for 91 yards and Demaryius Thomas had five catches for 59 yards and a score for the Broncos, who suffered their first home loss this season.

Luck extended the lead to 21-10 with a 15-yard dart to Hakeem Nicks in the end zone with 8:21 left in the third but Connor Barth booted a 41-yard field goal to cut the deficit to eight points with 13:50 to play. The Colts got that back at the end of a clock-eating drive, chewing up over eight minutes before Adam Vinatieri's 30-yard field goal made it 24-13 with 4:06 remaining.

Denver went 68 yards in seven plays on its opening possession before Manning found Thomas from 1 yard out, but Herron scored on a 6-yard run and a strip-sack of Manning to led Luck's 3-yard scoring pass to Allen for a 14-7 lead midway through the second quarter. Rookie Bradley Roby picked off Luck and Barth connected from 45 yards out with two seconds left in the half to make it 14-10.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Indianapolis limited the Broncos to 289 total yards and held them under 200 until the final four minutes. ... Manning has thrown a TD pass in 13 straight playoff games, tying Dan Marino for the longest streak in history. ... Luck's two interceptions boosted his postseason total to 10, more than any QB except Pat Haden (12) in his first three seasons. ... Thomas has a TD reception in five straight postseason games, the longest string since Arizona's Larry Fitzgerald had five in a row in 2008-09.