FAST FACTS
• Last meeting: Titans 27, Colts 10, on Oct. 30, 2011, LP Field, Nashville, Tenn.
• Head-to-head series: Colts lead, 20-14.

TITANS’ TRENDS
• Offense: Johnson has four 100-yard rushing games, so he’s not been AWOL all year. Hasselbeck has completed 61 percent of his passes for 2,701 yards with 15 TDs and 10 INTs. He’s taken 15 of 19 sacks allowed. The Titans have 18 TDs passing, seven rushing and four on returns. They’ve lost just five of 14 fumbles. WRs Nate Washington and Damian Williams each have five TD catches. Washington scored twice against the Colts last time. The Titans are 22nd at 22.5 points per game.
• Defense: Despite being near bottom third in several statistics, the Titans are sixth at 19.3 points allowed. And that’s the most important statistic. Tennessee has 24 sacks, led by DT Karl Klug with six. Foes have scored 19 TDs passing, six rushing and two on returns. It’s rare that a CB is tackle leader, but third-year pro Jason McCourty has 87. The Titans are plus-5 in giveaways/takeaways with 10 INTs and 10 fumble recoveries. McCourty has a team-high two INTS.

TITANS’ LAST GAME
• Saints 22, Titans 17: Rookie QB Jake Locker drove the Titans deep into Saints territory twice in the final minutes but was unable to deliver the game-winning score. The sub for injured QB Matt Hasselbeck was sacked at the Saints’ 8 on the game’s final play. Locker completed 13-of-29 passes for 282 yards and one TD. He also ran for a score. WR Nate Washington caught six passes for 130 yards, including a 40-yard TD. Titans DT Karl Klug sacked Saints QB Drew Brees twice.

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The beginning of the Indianapolis Colts season in 2011 has been so bad that it seems like it should be up for an NFL record. There are plenty of new fans that saw the Super Bowl earlier in the year and decided to become dedicated to the team this season. Little did we know that Peyton Manning(notes) single-handedly held this team together. Now, at the end of week 8, we realize that the worst moments in Indianapolis Colts’ history may be taking place right now.

The Colts have a brief history with losing

All teams have a few losing games. Previously, for many fans, the absolute worst Colt’s moment happened in 1995. Called one of the “Top 5 Hail Mary Plays” of all times, in 2010 we see a hint of what is to come in 2011 in the final play of the Steelers versus Colts game. In this loss for Indianapolis, were we watching history repeating from the 1995 AFC Championship or foreshadowing the future?

The Colts without Peyton Manning

The latest news is that Peyton Manning may still return in 2011 to his team. In the meantime, there have been plenty of pleas to the coaches from commentators about how to change the game for the better without him. For example, Pat Kirwan pleads with the Colts like a person that is begging for their life. His main objective? To explain all of the reasons that the Colts will continue to fail without Peyton Manning.

As usual, Kirwan says exactly what everything else is thinking in one of the most uplifting videos about the Colts this season. However, his early September advice fell on deaf ears. The Colts continued to lose every single game and soon included one tragic injury after another.

Eric Foster’s(notes) injury seals Colts’ fate

Before game eight, Eric Foster dislocated his ankle in a gruesome pile up on the field. Sadly, this is just one of many injuries that have had the domino effect on this team. According to the Rapid Reports for the Colts at the CBS.com website, Eric Foster’s nasty ankle accident has permanently benched him for the entire 2011 season. Recent injury reports have included 10 players and even temporarily captured Joseph Addai(notes) with a hamstring injury that took him out of the Titans game .

Week 8 and holding

When the NFL game highlights were posted for the Colts versus the Saints on October 23, they left a depressing comment next to the score. The 62-7 win for the Saints means that the Colts finished 0-7 in week 7 for the first time since 1997. Sadly, at the mid-point of a 16 week season, the eighth consecutive loss at the end of the Titans October 30 game means we can kiss hope goodbye for a 2011 Colts comeback. The only possibility we can rely on at this point is that 2012 will have us all cheering again.

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A week after their humiliating 62-7 loss to the New Orleans Saints, the Indianapolis Colts rebounded in Week 8, only losing 27-10 to the Tennessee Titans in a much-improved defensive effort.

I’ve grown weary of writing about the same old negative things after every game. It’s not that the same old negative things don’t stop happening—which I’d normally point out as a flaw in the coaching and team management—but how many times can we talk about how uninspiring Curtis Painter(notes) is (a passer rating of 50.6 in this one), how unreliable Pierre Garcon’s(notes) hands are (one of his stone-handed attempts at a reception resulted in an interception), or how incompetent the special teams are?

It gets old, doesn’t it?

This week, I’m focusing on something positive, and I thought the defense did a good job against the Titans. They only allowed 20 points—one touchdown was the result of a blocked punt that was recovered in the end zone—including just a single touchdown in the second half. Quite an improvement over last week’s game against the Saints.

A big difference in this one was that, despite the Colts falling to 0-8 in both the win-loss column and in time of possession, the defense was only out on the field for 31:27 against the Titans while suffering out there for 38:19 against the Saints. When you’re out there for nearly half a quarter less than in the week prior, you get a lot less tired, as evidenced by the defense allowing only 311 yards against Tennessee versus 557 yards allowed against New Orleans.

Another big area of improvement in the defense was in allowing only 96 rushing yards to the Titans after coughing up 236 rushing yards to the Saints. Not that it’s all that difficult to contain Chris Johnson anymore, but the Colts held him to 34 yards on 14 carries for a paltry 2.4 yards-per-carry average. Take away his long carry of 11 yards, and he’s down to 1.8 yards per carry. Nice job, defense!

Matt Hasselbeck(notes) only threw for 224 yards and one touchdown this week after Drew Brees(notes) unleashed 325 yards and 5 touchdowns on the Colts last week, so Indy’s pass defense was much improved, too. Ricardo Mathews(notes) sacked Hasselbeck once, and Painter even threw for more yards (250) than did Hasselbeck. You know our defense is doing a good job when the other team’s quarterback throws for fewer yards than Painter does.

The defense also forced 8 Titans punts by Brett Kern(notes) while Pat McAfee(notes) only punted 6 times. Thomas Morstead(notes) of the Saints only punted once last week.

The Colts defense limited Tennessee to 65 total plays (to our 77) and 16 first downs (to our 21). Last week, New Orleans ran 75 plays to our 46 and picked up 36 first downs to our 11.

So you see? There is a lot to be happy about following the Colts’ loss. While everyone else is complaining about the offense turning the ball over on downs twice while inside the red zone, you can gloat about Pat Angerer(notes) adding 7 tackles and 3 assists to his impressive season stats.

It’s all a matter of perspective.

The author is a resident of central Indiana and a long-time Colts fan. You can follow him on Twitter at @EricIvie or on Facebook.

Also by this author:

Chris Johnson flops against Indianapolis Colts

Colts lose Kerry Collins; all hope is gone

Peyton Manning is useless to the Indianapolis Colts

Indianapolis Colts humiliate themselves on Sunday Night Football

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The Indianapolis Colts are now 0-7 on the season. After a lopsided 62-7 loss to the New Orleans Saints, the Colts are at a new low. In previous losses the Colts fought hard and were competitive into the fourth quarter before eventually losing the game. Against the Saints the Colts were defeated badly in every aspect of the game.

The Colts biggest problem continues to be the play of the defense. The defense is not doing a good job stopping or even slowing down anyone. The 62 points allowed is a new franchise record for the Colts and an embarrassment for all the players. The Colts had no pass rush, could not defend the pass and could not stop the run. Drew Brees(notes) looked and played about as good as a quarterback can play. Brees finished the game compelting 31 out of 35 passes for 325 yards and five touchdowns. Brees made everything look very easy against the Colts. The Saints also ran for 236 yards against the Colts.

The Colts offense could do nothing to move the ball and was only able to put up a meager seven points against a previously struggling Saints defense. They had only one drive that went anywhere and luckily put up one touchdown drive so that the team was not shut out. If there is any hope for Colts fans to take away from this game it may be the success of rookie running back Delone Carter(notes). Carter ran 10 times for 89 yards and a touchdown and showed a few great runs. Donald Brown(notes) even looked decent on a few carries. Brown had nine carries for 47 yards. The passing game was just awful though and were never able to get anything going at all. When the Colts run for 152 yards and average 6.6 yards per carry that is typically a good sign for the Colts offense.

As a Colts fan it’s discouraging to see the team get beaten so badly and put forth such a poor effort. The Colts are continuously out-coached on a weekly basis and are just not a good enough team without Peyton Manning(notes) to make up for deficiencies elsewhere.

Colts fans have to begin questioning if and when the team will win a game this season. At 0-7 the Colts are one game away from the halfway point in the season and face a challenging game against a conference opponent traveling to Tennessee next week.

Kyle Rapoza is a Featured Contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network and has been a lifelong fan of the Indianapolis Colts. He attended Super Bowl XLIV in Miami and follows the team closely. Follow him on Twitter @kyler11.

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The 0-6 Indianapolis Colts have struggled greatly in the first part of the season but may be getting one of their key offensive players back for their week seven matchup against the New Orleans Saints. The Colts have suffered several key injuries since the start of the season. Aside from Peyton Manning(notes) none may have a bigger effect on the team as the hamstring injury of veteran running back Joseph Addai(notes).

Several factors indicate that Addai is likely to play in the Colts week seven game in New Orleans after missing most of the last two games. This would be a big boost for a struggling Colts offense.

After Addai practiced fully on Friday the Colts local newspaper predicted that he would be available to play. Several other factors should lead fans to believe that Addai will be ready to go for Sunday night football.

On Saturday the Colts signed OT Mike Tepper to active roster and waived running back Darren Evans . This likely signals that Addai will play because the Colts would not go with just rookie Delone Carter(notes) and Donald Brown(notes) at running back. The Colts have had some injuries along the offensive line but fans should see this as a move because of Addai’s availability.

Wide Receiver Pierre Garcon also tweeted a picture of the team headed to New Orleans on the team plane and Joseph Addai is visible in the picture. Injured players often do not travel to away games with the team and this signals that there is a very good chance Addai will be available to play against the Saints.

Fans should be encouraged that Addai is likely to play but it does little to improve the Colts chances of winning the game. Colts fans all understand Addai’s importance to the offense and should be excited that they will appear to have one of their key players back and ready to play. The Colts are desperate for a win and are still outmatched against a good Saints team. Hopefully Addai can help the Colts offense stay competitive against the Saints and keep them in the game.

Kyle Rapoza is a Featured Contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network and has been a lifelong fan of the Indianapolis Colts. He attended Super Bowl XLIV in Miami and follows the team closely. Follow him on Twitter @kyler11.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

That’s all for today.

Saints and Colts

Needless to say, the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts have played a couple of big games in recent history. Their most memorable contest came on the grandest of stages, the Super Bowl. However, this is not the only big game that the Saints and Colts have played. Take a look back at the top five games played between the Saints and Colts.

5. 9/6/2007: Colts def. Saints 41-10

As a Saints fan, I will always remember this as the “Jason David game.” GM Mickey Loomis has rarely gotten it wrong in New Orleans. But his biggest gaffe was signing CB Jason David(notes) away from the Colts. Coming off their Super Bowl win, Colts QB Peyton Manning(notes) exposed David in man coverage and the NFC South champion Saints were doomed to wander the Purgatory of mediocrity over the next two years.

4. 12/17/1967: Colts def. Saints 30-10

In my opinion, the 1967 Baltimore Colts are the greatest NFL team that did not make the playoffs. That year, the Colts finished with a record of 11-1-2 and all they got for Christmas was an early end to the season. At that time, the NFL had not yet instituted the wildcard and the Los Angeles Rams, who also went 11-1-2, won out over the Colts in the tiebreaker. The Colts final win of the season came against the Saints in New Orleans’ inaugural season.

3. 10/12/1986: Saints def. Colts 17-14

Neither New Orleans nor Indianapolis was very good in 1986. However, the Saints began to show signs that the winds of change were coming to New Orleans. Under new owner Tom Benson, New Orleans brought in GM Jim Finks and head coach Jim Mora and it didn’t take long for the Saints to become winners for the first time. Against the Colts in 1986, the New Orleans defense forced four turnovers to keep Indianapolis winless through week 6.

2. 9/27/1998: Saints def. Colts 19-13 (OT)

Speaking of the winds of change, they were gusting through Indianapolis in 1998 as rookie QB Peyton Manning experienced growing pains in his rookie season. Many fans may not remember this, but the Saints thrilling victory over the Colts put New Orleans at 3-0 under head coach Mike Ditka that year. New Orleans defeated the Colts when QB Danny Wuerffel hit TE Cam Cleeland with a 33 yard TD pass in OT.

1. 2/7/2010: Saints def. Colts 31-17

The greatest game ever played between the Saints and Colts is an obvious choice. In the 2009 regular season, both the Saints and Colts carried undefeated records well into December. So Super Bowl XLIV was a rare matchup of the top seeds in the AFC and NFC. After a close game most of the way, New Orleans CB Tracy Porter(notes) picked off Manning and ran it back for a TD. This was the biggest win in Saints history and fans like me will never forget this game.

Patrick Michael was born and raised in New Orleans and currently resides in the Big Easy. As such, he is a lifelong, diehard New Orleans Saints fan. His highlight as a Saints fan was experiencing the magical Super Bowl season of 2009.

Sources

“Boxscore finder: New Orleans Saints vs. Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts,” pro-football-reference.com

More from this contributor

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Top 5 players who belong in the New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame

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The top 5 NFL players who are in the Hall of Fame, but should not be

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New Orleans Saints (4-2) vs. Indianapolis Colts (0-6)

Sunday, 7:20 p.m., NBC

Opening line: New Orleans by 14

Record vs. spread: Colts 2-4; Saints 3-3

Series record: Tied 5-5

Last meeting: Colts beat Saints 41-10, Sept. 6, 2007

Last week: Colts lost to Bengals 27-17; Saints lost to Buccaneers 26-20

Colts offense: Overall (31), rush (28), pass (28)

Colts defense: Overall (27), rush (30), pass (18)

Saints offense: Overall (2), rush (18), pass (2)

Saints defense: Overall (17), rush (14), pass (19)

Streaks, stats and notes: 

• Game is rematch of 2010 Super Bowl in Miami, which New Orleans won 31-17. 
• Colts have beaten Saints in two straight regular season meetings, both with Peyton Manning, who is now injured, at quarterback. 
• RB Donald Brown, who scored his first touchdown rushing of season last week, is averaging 5.6 yards per carry in past two games. 
• New Orleans native and WR Reggie Wayne had seven catches for 115 yards receiving with two TDs in last regular-season game against Saints. WR Pierre Garcon tied career-high with eight receptions last week. In his past four games, Garcon has 21 catches for 405 yards and four TDs. 
• DE Dwight Freeney needs 1½ sacks to become 26th player with 100 in career since stat became official in 1982. 
• Saints QB Drew Brees has passed for 350-plus yards in four straight games, longest such streak in NFL. Brees also has set NFL record with 20-plus completions in 26 straight. 
• TE Jimmy Graham is second TE in NFL history with 100-plus yards receiving in four straight games in same season, first being Tony Gonzalez in 2000. Graham leads NFL TEs with 39 catches and 620 yards receiving.

Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

Indianapolis Colts Coach Jim Caldwell had a teleconference with New Orleans media Wednesday morning. Posted below is a transcript of the call.

Any team is going to have trouble dealing with a losing streak. Most of the guys in your locker room certainly haven’t. How is the morale and is this tough to deal with?

“Yes, we have a lot of guys with a lot of pride and we’ve had great tradition here. Obviously, this is not a comfortable situation and it should not be. The guys are hanging in there, focused and we just have to keep getting better.”

What are your thoughts on the job Curtis Painter has done?

“He’s making progress. Every week he does some things a little better. He’s getting a good sense of the system. He’s been able to make some plays for us. I anticipate that as for one of the few times in his career here, he’s been able to take all the reps to prepare for a ballgame. I think you’ll see that learning curve continue to climb.”

Does it help to have guys like Reggie Wayne and Pierre Garcon who have experience and aptitude for catching the ball?

“There’s no question about that. One thing is that a best friend for you (young quarterback) is a running game and the second best is obviously some receivers who can take short passes and turn them into long gains, guys that have been in the system and understand like Reggie, obviously Pierre and Dallas Clark, so many guys that have been around here a while. It certainly helps them a lot.”

How has Joseph Addai done?

“Yes, Joseph has been making progress. He was out last week. He’s making progress and we’re hopeful. He’s coming along and we’ll see how he goes. He won’t practice today. We’ll see what happens tomorrow.”

How have things changed in this being the first rematch from the Super Bowl?

“There are a lot of guys on this team that weren’t here, so obviously every season is a little bit different. That was a little ways back. We have a lot of competitors here. There are a bunch of competitors down there. It’s obviously going to be a great game. It’s a night, nationally televised. I think there are a lot of things we’re looking forward to. I don’t think anyone’s expressing anything about a rematch. It’s a new year, new season. There’s a lot of water under the bridge. In terms of the challenge they represent, they’re a great team. Drew Brees is having a great year throwing the ball. Obviously, they have some weapons to get it to. (Jimmy) Graham’s doing a great job, (Darren) Sproles is doing a nice job. The rest of their cast are doing a great job. The offensive line and defense give you all kinds of problems and the special teams unit is very good. You have your hands full.”

Does matching wits with the coaching staff enter into your mind at all since there hasn’t been much change on either side since the Super Bowl?

“What’s in my mind is getting our team ready to play against a very talented team. Coach Payton does a great job of getting his team ready. Obviously, we’re going to do likewise.”

Did Tampa do anything significantly different against the Saints last week from your vantage point?

“No, I just think that Tampa’s a good team. Obviously, we struggled with them, but they can do some things very, very well. They rush the passer well, put pressure on you, they obviously run the ball well and they have a good, solid kicking game. Overall they don’t make a lot of mistakes and they capitalize on the mistakes that you make. I just saw two teams battle. That’s the way it is in this league. It’s anybody’s game. That’s how we’ve been for the last five weeks in the thick of it and not able to make a play down the stretch what it usually comes down to, you have the ball and you’re driving down the field to try to get a score to tie it or win it and the opposition has the ball and obviously trying to basically do the same thing or sustain a lead. Those games are always tight. I didn’t see anything any differently in the Saints and Buccaneers game over the weekend.”

Will you stand on a different place on the field after watching Sean Payton go down over the weekend?

“I’ll do what I normally do. You have to certainly be aware down on that sideline. I worked for Joe Paterno at Penn State for a number of years, for eight years and have seen what’s happened to him on the sideline. It’s not something that’s unheard of. There are a lot of guys flying around on that field, a lot of bodies flying. You’re just fortunate by the grace of god that I haven’t sustained a significant injury. I’ve been run over before though on the sideline.”

Running low on time today, i’ll be back tomorrow hopefully with some more news.

It’s been nearly two years since a soaking-wet Sean Payton was carried off
the field following his New Orleans Saints’ Super Bowl victory over Peyton
Manning(notes) and the Indianapolis Colts.

After a collision last week injured his knee and left leg, Payton won’t be
on the sidelines for Sunday night’s rematch, while Manning won’t be on the field
once again for the winless Colts.

Payton was hurt during New Orleans’ 26-20 loss at Tampa Bay when tight end
Jimmy Graham(notes) was tackled into him. The coach had surgery Monday to repair a torn
meniscus and a broken tibia.

Payton will likely be confined to the press box during his recovery, which
is expected to take three to six months, meaning the Saints (4-2) will have to
adjust quickly.

“He’s just got a kind of presence and moxie that when you’re on the sideline
you look for,” guard Carl Nicks(notes) said. “He’s yelling and he’s calling the plays.
He’s getting everybody situated. You can take it for granted. He’s our leader,
you know? So it’s kind of weird.”

If any team knows the uneasiness of losing a leader, it’s the Colts (0-6).
They haven’t been the same since losing Manning indefinitely following his third
neck surgery in 19 months.

After being confined to the press box earlier this season, he was on the
sidelines for yet another close loss for his team last Sunday, a 27-17 defeat in
Cincinnati.

Curtis Painter’s(notes) 1-yard touchdown pass to Dallas Clark(notes) cut Indianapolis’
deficit to three points in the fourth quarter, but the Bengals blocked Adam
Vinatieri’s(notes) 52-yard field goal attempt and returned a late fumble 35 yards for a
score, one of three turnovers for the Colts.

“We’re hurting ourselves,” center Jeff Saturday(notes) said. “We’re doing things
that, we talk about week in and week out, we can’t do. Lose the turnover battle.
Make mistakes at critical times in the game. It’s little things here and there.”

Indianapolis has dropped each of its past five games by 10 points or fewer
and is off its worst start since beginning the 1997 season 0-10. The Colts’
streak of nine seasons with 10 or more wins could officially end this week.

“We’ve been to the mountaintop,” defensive end Robert Mathis(notes) said. “We’re in
the valley low right now. Got to keep fighting.”

The Saints, meanwhile, will try to bounce back from their first loss in five
games. Drew Brees(notes) set an NFL record by topping 350 yards passing for the fourth
consecutive contest last Sunday, but he also threw three interceptions -
including one in the end zone with 3:16 remaining.

Pierre Thomas’(notes) fumble in the first quarter was converted into a field goal,
and New Orleans was held to a season-low 70 yards on the ground.

“They took the ball away four times, which if you do that you’re going to win
a lot of games,” Brees said. “We gave it away four times. The fact of the matter
is that will get you beat.”

The Saints forced the only turnover in their Super Bowl victory with Tracy
Porter’s(notes) 74-yard interception return for a touchdown that all but put the game
away. Payton also made the bold decision to call for an onside kick to begin the
second half, which New Orleans recovered.

That led to one of Brees’ two touchdown passes during his Super Bowl MVP
performance, but he was intercepted twice during his last regular-season matchup
with the Colts, a 41-10 Indianapolis rout Sept. 6, 2007.

Manning had 288 yards passing and three TDs in that game, and Joseph Addai(notes)
rushed for 118 yards and a score. Addai, however, missed last week’s game
because of an injured right hamstring, and his status for Sunday is unclear.

Rookie left tackle Anthony Castonzo(notes), the team’s first-round draft pick, is
dealing with a sprained ankle ahead of Indianapolis’ first visit to the
Superdome since 2003.

The Colts claimed a 55-21 victory that year as Manning had a career-high six
touchdown passes, a mark he tied the next season.

The teams have split their 10 regular-season meetings.

That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow.

By Travis Miller

– Associate Editor

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Oct 18, 2011 – The Indianapolis Colts were not expecting to be near the bottom of the NFL Power Rankings six weeks into the 2011 NFL season. Despite an 0-6 record the Colts have show some promise at times, holding fourth quarter leads against the Steelers, Chiefs, and Bucs. it has yet to pay off in a victory, however, and the Colts are still buried deep in SB Nation’s power rankings by Joel Thorman:

31. Indianapolis Colts (0-6, LW: 31): The Colts have been more competitive than the Dolphins so they avoid No. 32. They just don’t do anything really well.

Things will not get any easier for the Colts in Week seven as they travel to New Orleans for a rematch with the Saints and Super Bowl XLVI. Purdue Boilermakers fans will at least be excited as alums Curtis Painter and Drew Brees will face off against each other in the first matchup of Purdue quarterbacks since a Saints-Bears meeting in 2008.

Read More: Drew Brees (QB – NOS), Curtis Painter (QB – IND), Miami Dolphins, Pittsburgh Steelers, New Orleans Saints, Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts, Kansas City Chiefs, San Francisco 49ers, Purdue Boilermakers

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SEATTLE (AP)—The two top teams of last season, the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts, were both bundled out of the NFL playoffs in dramatic style on the first day of the postseason Saturday.

The Seattle Seahawks, written off by everyone but the most ardent fan, pulled off one of the bigger upsets of NFL playoff history by beating the defending champion Saints 41-36.

Then a field goal as time expired gave the New York Jets a 17-16 win over the Colts.

Seahawks 41, Colts 36

Coach Pete Carroll, quarterback Matt Hasselbeck(notes) and a Seattle team that no one believed deserved to be in the postseason pulled off a win that proved they belonged in the playoffs.

Hasselbeck threw four touchdown passes and Marshawn Lynch(notes) scored on an electrifying 67-yard run with 3:22 left.

The Seahawks (8-9) held a 34-20 early in the fourth quarter but quarterback Drew Brees(notes) looked ready to lead the Saints (11-6) on one of their patented comebacks. However Lynch broke several tackles for his TD to finish off the Saints.

The Seahawks, the first division winner with a losing record, will play next weekend, either at top-seeded Atlanta or No. 2 Chicago.

Hasselbeck, cleared to play just two days ago because of a hip injury, threw for 272 yards and his four TD passes set a playoff career high. The veteran quarterback threw two touchdown passes to tight end John Carlson(notes) in the first half and started the second half with a 38-yard pass to Mike Williams to give Seattle a 31-20 lead.

The game wasn’t clinched until Lynch provided a run that’ll be replayed in the Pacific Northwest for years. He took a second-down carry with less than four minutes to go and then the highlights began. He broke six tackles on the 67-yard run, tossing in a stiff arm that sent cornerback Tracy Porter(notes) to the turf and completed the longest scoring run of his career.

Lynch finished with 131 yards on 19 carries, the first Seattle back to top 100 yards all season.

Hasselbeck, Lynch and a strong performance by Seattle’s offense extended the Saints franchise misery to 0-4 in road playoff games.

The Saints were considered the second-best team in the division behind the NFC South-winning Falcons. Even though they lost to Tampa Bay in the season finale a week ago and were without running backs Pierre Thomas(notes) and Chris Ivory, safety Malcolm Jenkins(notes) and linebacker Danny Clark(notes), the Saints were favored by 10 points to advance.

Brees and the Saints just couldn’t keep up with Hasselbeck and the Seahawks offense. Brees led one final drive, hitting Devery Henderson(notes) on a 6-yard touchdown with 1:30 left to get within 41-36.

Brees finished 39 of 60 for 404 yards and two touchdowns. But DeShawn Wynn(notes) was stopped on the 2-point conversion, Garrett Hartley’s(notes) onside kick was recovered by Carlson and the Seahawks were home.

Carroll, in his first year as coach, gathered his team at midfield after the game, jumping up and down on the Seahawks logo with most of his team joining in.

Hasselbeck left the field to a rousing ovation and his youngest son propped up on his shoulders.

Jets 17, Colts 16

In Indianapolis, coach Rex Ryan and New York finally got the made-for-TV ending they wanted.

The bombastic Ryan got his victory over Manning when Nick Folk(notes) made a 32-yard field goal as time expired.

All week, Ryan turned this into a coach vs. quarterback matchup, referring to his 1-5 record against Manning as Jets coach and Ravens defensive coordinator. Instead, it came down to Folk becoming a hero.

With his main tormentor out of the way, Ryan and the Jets next head to New England seeking to avenge the Patriots’ 45-3 demolition job at Foxborough earlier this season.

The Colts beat the Jets for the AFC title a year ago and thought they had done so again Saturday when Adam Vinatieri(notes) made a 50-yard field goal with 53 seconds to go.

But Antonio Cromartie(notes) returned the ensuing kickoff 47 yards and Mark Sanchez(notes) needed five plays to get the Jets into position for the winner.

Manning was 18 of 26 for 225 yards and one TD, and got Vinatieri, considered the best clutch kicker in league history, in position with an eight-play, 48-yard drive in the final 2 1/2 minutes.

But he left 53 seconds on the clock for New York. After Braylon Edwards(notes) made a leaping 18-yard catch to take New York to the Colts 14, Folk’s kick went right down the middle.

“Any time you lose on a last-second field goal, it certainly stings,” Manning said.

Jets tailback LaDainian Tomlinson(notes), considered washed-up by some before the season, carried 16 times for 82 yards and scored on two 1-yard runs.

“It’s emotional, exciting and all those things at once,” Tomlinson said. “We knew it was going to be a dogfight against a great team.”

The Colts actually helped the Jets’ winning drive by calling timeout with 29 seconds remaining and with the ball at the Indianapolis 32. Sanchez passed to Edwards on the next play, a high pass to the right sideline. Folk trotted on and won it.

“We’ve got to tip our hat to our offense. It was unbelievable,” said Ryan, whose bravado made him a summer sensation in HBO’s “Hard Knocks” series. “We totally dominated the second half offensively. On defense, we had to hold serve. Against Peyton, you’re not going to stop him completely, but our guys played well enough to get it done and keep him out of the end zone.”

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MIAMI (Reuters) – The Indianapolis Colts, Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks secured places in the playoffs on Sunday in an exciting climax to the NFL’s regular season.

The Packers beat the Chicago Bears 10-3 and will visit the Philadelphia Eagles in the wildcard round next week. With Green Bay’s victory they denied the New York Giants a place in the playoffs even though they beat the Washington Redskins 17-14.

A one-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Aaron Rodgers to tight end Donald Lee put the Packers ahead in the fourth quarter and their defense held firm.

But trailing by three at half-time, and with other results meaning they had to win, Rodgers said there had been some jitters in the locker-room.

“There was definitely some nerves at halftime. I think just frustration was the biggest thing and knowing that we needed to win and knowing that we were struggling on offense,” he added.

“There wasn’t a whole lot said as far as rah-rah or anything. It was just ‘Hey, let’s play better. Let’s execute better.”

The Colts won the AFC South title and booked a record-tying ninth successive trip to the playoffs with an Adam Vinatieri field goal from 43-yards as time expired to beat the Tennessee Titans 23-20.

Quarterback Peyton Manning said Indianapolis, beaten in last year’s Super Bowl, had made it through despite a series of injuries that hampered their season.

“When you think about the 2010 regular season you’ll have a little smile knowing we were able to win this division despite some football adversity and that’s a credit to a lot of people,” said Manning.

The Colts will host the New York Jets in their wildcard game Saturday while the other games next weekend feature the Baltimore Ravens against the Kansas City Chiefs.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

The Seahawks became the first team with a losing regular season record to win a division and qualify for the playoffs after they beat the St Louis Rams 16-6 to end the campaign with a 7-9 record.

Thanks to a solid display from stand-in quarterback Charlie Whitehurst, Seattle will now play the New Orleans Saints in Saturday’s wildcard game and could have first-choice Matt Hasselbeck fully recovered from the hip injury that ruled him out against the Rams.

The Saints, the defending Super Bowl champions, lost 23-13 at home to Tampa Bay but had already assured themselves of a wildcard spot.

Earlier, the Atlanta Falcons and Pittsburgh Steelers secured divisional titles with convincing victories.

The Falcons (13-3) wrapped up the NFC South and home-field advantage ahead of the Saints with an impressive 31-10 home win over the Carolina Panthers (2-14).

The Steelers (12-4) won the AFC North and a bye week by hammering the Cleveland Browns 41-9 on the road. Ben Roethlisberger threw two touchdowns while Rashard Mendenhall ran over twice in the rout over the division-rival Browns (5-11).

“Mission accomplished,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin told reporters. “We came to Cleveland to claim the AFC North title and we got it done.

“Not a lot needed to be said about the stakes. It’s one less game we have to play to get to where we want to go,” he said.

The New England Patriots (14-2), already assured of a bye and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs, crushed a ragged Miami Dolphins (7-9) team 38-7.

(Reporting by Simon Evans in Miami; Editing by Frank Pingue and Peter Rutherford)

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