Colts run game surprises Eagles

After forcing the Colts into three and out on their first drive Monday night, the Eagles defense allowed a nine-play, 72-yard touchdown-scoring drive on the next series.

Bill Davis' unit was not sound, and the Colts ran the ball down the Eagles' throats. Indianapolis isn't known for its ground attack, but Trent Richardson and Ahmad Bradshaw combined for five carries for 53 yards on the drive.

The Colts handed off on third and 1, and Bradshaw took it outside, where the Eagles had no containment, and gained 29 yards. Safety Nate Allen was neutralized with a block. Two plays later, Richardson picked up 15 yards when the Eagles line wasn't set and he ran through a giant hole on the left. On fourth down at the 1-yard line, the Eagles played run and Andrew Luck floated a pass to an unaccounted-for Bradshaw in the flat for an easy touchdown.

The Eagles offense was on fire on its first two drives, but some shaky blocking and a Cody Parkey miss doused the flames and the Eagles netted only three points despite driving into the Colts' red zone on both possessions.

Nick Foles was sharp, unlike the way he played early against Jacksonville last week. He tossed to Jeremy Maclin on a screen that picked up 15 yards. He hit Zach Ertz for 27 yards off a play-action fake. He went back to the second-year tight end for 14 yards.

But on the next set of downs on the first drive, right tackle Andrew Gardner couldn't handle Colts end Cory Redding and Foles hurried a throw to Maclin that was behind his receiver.

A series later, Foles stood in the pocket despite a heavy rush and found Darren Sproles alone over the middle. The running back scooted all told for 57 yards. But Riley Cooper dropped a corner fade in the end zone, Foles couldn't hook up with Jordan Matthews when he was flushed out of the pocket, and Parkey hooked a 38-yard field goal try wide left.

Missed tackles came back to haunt the Eagles defense in the first half. The Eagles had become one of the more sure tackling teams in the NFL by the end of last season. But there were missed stops all over the field before the break as the Colts tossed a curveball and favored a ground game.

Safety Nate Allen missed two tackles. Defensive end Cedric Thornton couldn't wrap up a ballcarrier. Safety Malcolm Jenkins and cornerback Cary Williams tried to arm-tackle a Colt on the same play and were unsuccessful.

The defense still swarmed to the ball and the effort was never lacking, but the Eagles gave the Colts unnecessary yards in a first half that wasn't what many had expected.

It was a weird first 30 minutes.

Take the quarterbacks' numbers, for instance: Nick Foles completed 13 of 21 passes for 187 yards, but he failed to throw a touchdown and had an interception before the half, and the Eagles scored only six points.

Andrew Luck, on the other hand, was 10 of 17 for just 58 yards, but he threw two touchdowns on short passes and the Colts piled up 17 points by the break.

Foles was, for the most part, on point and threw downfield when necessary. Luck was relegated to being a "Checkdown Charlie" as the Eagles secondary held its own against receivers T.Y. Hilton and Reggie Wayne. But the Colts took it, played ball possession, and beat the Eagles' run defense up front. No one saw it coming, least of all the Eagles.

Cody Parkey had been perfect in an Eagles uniform - until Monday. Parkey hooked the 38-yard field-goal attempt wide left in the first quarter. He had connected on a 31-yarder to begin the game, which made him 3 for 3 in the regular season. The missed field goal halted a prime scoring opportunity.

There were two quick passes intended for Jeremy Maclin in the first half. Coach Chip Kelly said Friday that the Eagles are trying to get Maclin involved in some shorter routes that would highlight his run-after-the-catch ability. One went for 15 yards. The other was a poor pass by Nick Foles that fell short of Maclin.

Foles tried connecting with Maclin on a deep pass at the end of the first half, but Colts cornerback Greg Toler leaped over Maclin to swipe the interception. Maclin had a step on Toler, so a deeper-thrown pass might have resulted in a touchdown.

The interception was not a major blemish for Foles as much as it was an impressive interception by Toler, who made a play on the ball in the air. Foles had two interceptions all of last season. The second-quarter interception was his second in two games.

The Colts had second and 5 from the Eagles' 12-yard line in the third quarter when Andrew Luck misfired on a pass to Reggie Wayne. The ball went to cornerback Bradley Fletcher and fell right through his hands. Fletcher could have recorded a game-changing interception. Instead, the Colts connected on a field goal two plays later to take a 14-point lead.