2008 Indianapolis Colts season


The 2008 Indianapolis Colts season was the 56th season for the team in the National Football League and the 25th in Indianapolis. It was the first season since 2002 that the Colts did not win the AFC South title. However, after a 3–4 start on the season Peyton Manning led the Colts to a nine-game winning streak, a 12–4 record, and a wild card berth in the playoffs. The Colts' season came to an end in San Diego when they were defeated in the wild-card round against the San Diego Chargers.
The 2008 season was the Colts' inaugural season playing at Lucas Oil Stadium after playing at the RCA Dome for 24 seasons. This marks Tony Dungy's seventh and final season as head coach of the Colts, and Peyton Manning's 11th season as the starting quarterback. As a result of his play over the final two months of the regular season, Manning was awarded his third MVP award.
When the Colts won their seventh straight game in Week 15, they became the only team in the history of the NFL to have seven consecutive wins in five consecutive seasons. With their regular season record of 12–4, they became the first franchise in NFL history to have twelve wins in six consecutive seasons.

Offseason

Coaching announcement

On January 21, 2008 Tony Dungy announced he would return for at least one more season. The Colts also announced that Assistant Head Coach Jim Caldwell would be promoted to Associate head coach and would assume the position of Colts Head Coach whenever Tony Dungy decides to retire.

Off-field activity

In May, ESPN The Magazine released the findings of its annual survey of over 80,000 fans entitled the "Ultimate Standings: Fan Satisfaction Rankings". The Colts ranked as the best major league sports franchise out of 122 teams from MLB, NFL, NBA, and the NHL. In August, ESPN.com ranked Colts' fans as the 16th best in the National Football League.

Released

2008 NFL draft

Roster

Staff

Schedule

Preseason

Regular season

Standings

Game recaps

Week 1: vs. Chicago Bears

The Colts began their 2008 campaign with their first official home game at Lucas Oil Stadium. For this Sunday night interconference duel, they took on the Chicago Bears in a rematch of Super Bowl XLI. In the first quarter, Indianapolis was first out of the gate as kicker Adam Vinatieri got a 39-yard field goal. The Bears responded with RB Matt Forte getting a 50-yard TD run. In the second quarter, the Colts responded with Vinatieri nailing a 34-yard field goal. However, Chicago increased its lead with kicker Robbie Gould getting a 41-yard field goal, DE Adewale Ogunleye tackling RB Joseph Addai in his endzone for a safety, and Gould nailing a 25-yard field goal. In the third quarter, Indianapolis tried to rally as QB Peyton Manning completed a 6-yard TD pass to WR Reggie Wayne, yet the Bears replied with LB Lance Briggs returned a fumble 21 yards for a touchdown. In the fourth quarter, Chicago sealed the win with FB Jason McKie getting a 1-yard TD run.
With the loss, the Colts began their season at 0–1.
Scoring Summary
  • 1st Quarter
  • * IND – Adam Vinatieri 39 yard field goal, 5:52. Colts 3–0. Drive: 11 plays, 59 yards, 5:05.
  • * CHI – Matt Forte 50 yard run, 4:59. Bears 7–3. Drive: 3 plays, 54 yards, 0:53.
  • 2nd Quarter
  • * IND – Adam Vinatieri 34 yard field goal, 9:38. Bears 7–6. Drive: 9 plays, 66 yards, 4:04.
  • * CHI – Robbie Gould 41 yard field goal, 4:43. Bears 10–6. Drive: 10 plays, 43 yards, 4:55.
  • * CHI – Joseph Addai tackled by Adewale Ogunleye for a safety, 4:05. Bears 12–6.
  • * CHI – Robbie Gould 25 yard field goal, 0:00. Bears 15–6. Drive: 10 plays, 55 yards, 3:59.
  • 3rd Quarter
  • * IND – Reggie Wayne 6 yard pass from Peyton Manning, 9:18. Bears 15–13. Drive: 7 plays, 52 yards, 3:47.
  • * CHI – Lance Briggs 21 yard fumble return, 1:52. Bears 22–13.
  • 4th Quarter
  • * CHI – Jason McKie 1 yard run, 8:56. ''Bears 29–13. Drive: 8 plays, 48 yards, 4:46.''

    Week 2: at Minnesota Vikings

Hoping to rebound from their home loss to the Bears, the Colts flew to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome for a Week 2 interconference duel with the Minnesota Vikings. In the first half, Indianapolis trailed as Vikings kicker Ryan Longwell got a 45-yard and a 27-yard field goal in the first quarter, along with a 53-yard field goal in the second quarter. It marked the first time that the Colts got shut out in the first half since October 2006.
In the third quarter, Minnesota increased its lead with Longwell nailing a 46-yard and a 28-yard field goal. Afterwards, Indianapolis started to rally as RB Joseph Addai got a 1-yard TD run. In the fourth quarter, the Colts drew closer as QB Peyton Manning completed a 32-yard TD pass to WR Reggie Wayne, followed by a 2-point conversion run by RB Dominic Rhodes. Afterwards, near the end of game, Indianapolis completed its comeback as kicker Adam Vinatieri nailing the game-winning 47-yard field goal.
With the win, the Colts improved to 1–1.
Scoring Summary
  • 1st Quarter
  • * MIN – Ryan Longwell 45 yard field goal, 10:10. Vikings 3–0. Drive: 6 plays, 31 yards, 2:14.
  • * MIN – Ryan Longwell 27 yard field goal, 0:09. Vikings 6–0. Drive: 8 plays, 43 yards, 3:56.
  • 2nd Quarter
  • * MIN – Ryan Longwell 53 yard field goal, 0:00. Vikings 9–0. Drive: 3 plays, 45 yards, 0:21.
  • 3rd Quarter
  • * MIN – Ryan Longwell 46 yard field goal, 10:38. Vikings 12–0. Drive: 8 plays, 34 yards, 4:22.
  • * MIN – Ryan Longwell 28 yard field goal, 4:09. Vikings 15–0. Drive: 8 plays, 36 yards, 3:31.
  • * IND – Joseph Addai 1 yard run, 1:24. Vikings 15–7. Drive: 6 plays, 80 yards, 2:45.
  • 4th Quarter
  • * IND – Reggie Wayne 32 yard pass from Peyton Manning, 5:54. Tied 15–15. Drive: 3 plays, 61 yards, 1:15.
  • * IND – Adam Vinatieri 47 yard field goal, 0:03. ''Colts 18–15. Drive: 5 plays, 21 yards, 1:04.''

    Week 3: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

Coming off their last-second road win over the Vikings, the Colts went home for a Week 3 AFC South duel with the Jacksonville Jaguars. In the first quarter, Indy was first out of the gates as QB Peyton Manning completed a 4-yard TD pass to WR Marvin Harrison. In the second quarter, the Jaguars took the lead with kicker Josh Scobee getting a 26-yard field goal, along with CB Rashean Mathis returning an interception 61 yards for a touchdown. The Colts reclaimed the lead before halftime as RB Joseph Addai got a 3-yard TD run.
In the third quarter, Jacksonville regained the lead with RB Maurice Jones-Drew getting a 6-yard TD run. In the fourth quarter, the Jaguars increased their lead with Scobee kicking a 21-yard field goal. Afterwards, Indianapolis responded with Addai's 2-yard TD run. However, the Jaguars got the last laugh as Scobee nailed the game-winning 51-yard field goal.
With the loss, the Colts entered their bye week at 1–2.
Scoring Summary
  • 1st Quarter
  • * IND – Marvin Harrison 4 yard pass from Peyton Manning, 11:03. Colts 7–0. Drive: 7 plays, 80 yards, 3:57.
  • 2nd Quarter
  • * JAC – Josh Scobee 27 yard field goal, 12:33. Colts 7–3. Drive: 13 plays, 75 yards, 7:09.
  • * JAC – Rashean Mathis 61 yard interception return, 5:10. Jaguars 10–7.
  • * IND – Joseph Addai 3 yard run, 1:28. Colts 14–10. Drive: 11 plays, 74 yards, 3:42.
  • 3rd Quarter
  • * JAC – Maurice Jones-Drew 6 yard run, 1:17. Jaguars 17–14. Drive: 7 plays, 71 yards, 3:59.
  • 4th Quarter
  • * JAC – Josh Scobee 21 yard field goal, 2:33. Jaguars 20–14. Drive: 18 plays, 82 yards, 12:18.
  • * IND – Joseph Addai 2 yard run, 1:07. Colts 21–20. Drive: 11 plays, 77 yards, 1:26.
  • * JAC – Josh Scobee 51 yard field goal, 0:04. ''Jaguars 23–21. Drive: 7 plays, 47 yards, 1:03.''

    Week 5: at Houston Texans

Coming off their bye week, the Colts flew to Reliant Stadium for a Week 5 AFC South duel with the Houston Texans. In the first quarter, Indianapolis drew first blood as kicker Adam Vinatieri got a 46-yard field goal, along with RB Joseph Addai getting a 1-yard TD run. In the second quarter, the Texans responded with RB Steve Slaton getting a 1-yard TD run, kicker Kris Brown getting a 37-yard field goal, and QB Sage Rosenfels completing a 5-yard TD pass to WR Andre Johnson.
In the third quarter, Houston increased its lead with Brown nailing a 43-yard field goal. In the fourth quarter, the Texans continued its run as Slaton got a 1-yard TD run. The Colts rallied with QB Peyton Manning completing a 7-yard TD pass to rookie TE Tom Santi, LB Gary Brackett returning a fumble 68 yards for a touchdown, and Manning completing a 5-yard TD pass to WR Reggie Wayne.
With the win, Indianapolis improved to 2–2.
Scoring Summary
  • 1st Quarter
  • * IND – Adam Vinatieri 46 yard field goal, 9:42. Colts 3–0. Drive: 9 plays, 45 yards, 5:18.
  • * IND – Joseph Addai 1 yard run, 2:16. Colts 10–0. Drive: 10 plays, 64 yards, 5:22.
  • 2nd Quarter
  • * HOU – Steve Slaton 1 yard run, 12:06. Colts 10–7. Drive: 9 plays, 71 yards, 5:10.
  • * HOU – Kris Brown 37 yard field goal, 7:09. Tied 10–10. Drive: 7 plays, 50 yards, 3:21.
  • * HOU – Andre Johnson 5 yard pass from Sage Rosenfels, 0:27. Texans 17–10. Drive: 9 plays, 61 yards, 2:51.
  • 3rd Quarter
  • * HOU – Kris Brown 43 yard field goal, 0:21. Texans 20–10. Drive: 15 plays, 67 yards, 8:47.
  • 4th Quarter
  • * HOU – Steve Slaton 1 yard run, 8:18. Texans 27–10. Drive: 7 plays, 80 yards, 3:59.
  • * IND – Tom Santi 7 yard pass from Peyton Manning, 4:04. Texans 27–17. Drive: 11 plays, 81 yards, 4:14.
  • * IND – Gary Brackett 68 yard fumble return, 3:36. Texans 27–24.
  • * IND – Reggie Wayne 5 yard pass from Peyton Manning, 1:54. ''Colts 31–27. Drive: 2 plays, 20 yards, 0:42.''