NFL | COLTS
Colts HC Reich issues Cardinals warning after impressive Patriots win
The Indianapolis Colts have to stay grounded after beating the New England Patriots as they seek a place in the playoffs, head coach Frank Reich said.
Frank Reich warned his Indianapolis Colts team they have to "dial it back" despite an impressive victory over the New England Patriots on Saturday.
The Colts scored a 27-17 win against the Patriots at Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday to improve to 8-6 on the season, leaving them fifth in the conference standings.
Next time out, the Colts face the high-flying Arizona Cardinals and, while delighted to add another tick in the win column, head coach Reich said there is plenty of work ahead in their playoff bid.
Reich: "We have to play the best team in the NFL next Saturday"
"We're the five seed, we got to win every one of these games," Reich said. "What we said in there was, hey, this is a great team win but this counts for one. It counts for one, that's it.
"So, we got to dial it back in and get ready to play against, obviously, the best team in the NFL next Saturday."
Jonathan Taylor was influential for the Colts, rushing for 167 yards including a 67-yard touchdown with 2:01 remaining on the clock in the fourth quarter to put the seal on the Colts' triumph.
It means Taylor has run for a score in 11 straight games, which matches the Hall of Famer Lenny Moore for the longest streak in franchise history.
"I think it just says we're a team that's going to come in and play 60 minutes, four quarters of hard football and we're not going to give up till the clock hits zero," Taylor said. "It was just all out effort."
Speaking about Taylor's sensational 67-yard TD, Reich admitted he almost called for a different play.
"I almost called a pass there because I thought we needed a first down and I talked it over with Marcus Brady and said 'no, let's call one more pass,'" Reich said of discussions with his offensive coordinator. "There's no way anybody's catching him."
For the Patriots, defeat means they drop out of the AFC top-seed spot, while their seven-game winning streak was snapped.
A host of sloppy errors left them with a 20-0 deficit from which they were never able to recover.
"I've said it like five times, I can say it another five times," head coach Bill Belichick said. "We didn't do anything well enough to win tonight."