INDIANAPOLIS —The Indianapolis Colts have been a part of some of the greatest games and moments in recent NFL memory, and now you can watch many of those contests in their entirety — right here, right now, thanks to NFL Game Pass.
Here are a few of those classics to get you started, with more likely to be added in the coming days and weeks. You can always check back here for that full list of Classic Colts Games.
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2006 AFC Championship Game
For many Colts fans, it doesn't get much better than this.
Down 21-3 at one point to the New England Patriots in the 2006 AFC Championship Game at the RCA Dome, it seemed as if the Colts were once again going to see a promising season end with a loss to their hated rivals.
But Peyton Manning had other plans.
The Colts would eventually come all the way back to tie the game at 21, and it was an absolute thriller from there. Center Jeff Saturday dove on a fumbled ball in the end zone to tie the game again at 28, and Reggie Wayne had one of the most incredible — and, for a brief moment, one of the scariest — catches in franchise history to set up the eventual game-winning rushing touchdown by running back Joseph Addai.
The game was sealed on the ensuing Patriots drive, when cornerback Marlin Jackson stepped in front of a Tom Brady pass attempt for the interception, sending the home crowd into a frenzy.
The Colts were finally going to the Super Bowl (more on that next).
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Super Bowl XLI
While the dramatic victory over the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game got one monkey off the Colts' back, they still had unfinished business to take care of.
Awaiting them two weeks later in Super Bowl XLI were the NFC champion Chicago Bears, who boasted one of the better defensive units in the league.
An at-times driving rainstorm in Miami made for less-than-ideal playing conditions, but after a slow start — the Bears' Devin Hester took the game's opening kickoff to the house for a touchdown — the favored Colts would settle in, thanks in large part to 53-yard touchdown reception by Reggie Wayne midway through the first quarter.
The Bears would re-take the lead, 14-6, late in the first quarter, but a 16-0 run by the Colts would give them the lead for good the rest of the way. A 56-yard interception return by Kelvin Hayden would be the cherry on top to a 29-17 victory, clinching the franchise's first Super Bowl title in Indianapolis.
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Super Bowl XLIV
The Colts would advance to the Super Bowl for the second time in four seasons in 2009, taking on the NFC Champion New Orleans Saints and their high-flying offense in Super Bowl XLIV.
And while the big game was once again in Miami, Indy wouldn't be able to find the same result as it had 1,099 days prior.
The Colts took a 10-6 lead going into halftime, and hoped to add to that total with a strong drive to open the second half. But the Saints had other plans; their onside kick attempt to open the third quarter bounced off an Indy player and into the hands of New Orleans safety Chris Reis. Six plays later, quarterback Drew Brees found Pierre Thomas for a 16-yard touchdown pass, and the Saints had a 13-10 lead — and all the momentum.
Indianapolis certainly had its chances from there; in fact, Joseph Addai would punch in a four-yard touchdown run on the Colts' ensuing drive to steal back the lead, 17-13, but New Orleans would get a field goal and a touchdown to go up by seven, 24-17 with 5:46 left in the fourth quarter.
On the Colts' final drive, quarterback Peyton Manning would be picked off by Saints cornerback Tracy Porter, who would sprint 74 yards to the end zone to seal the game, and the title, for New Orleans.
Nevertheless, it was an exciting finish to a very successful season for the Colts.
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2014 AFC Divisional Round
Peyton Manning is the greatest player in Colts franchise history, but for a brief point in time he was one of Indy's top targets in the AFC. Case in point: the 2014 AFC Divisional Round matchup between the Colts and Manning's Denver Broncos.
The host Broncos were heavily favored in the matchup, but the young Colts, led by MVP candidate Andrew Luck, were more than ready for Denver's well-balanced attack. The Indy offensive line kept a very talented Denver defense at bay, and Luck would connect on 27-of-43 passes for 265 yards and two touchdowns, as the Colts would advance to the AFC Championship Game with a 24-13 victory.
While the Broncos jumped out to a 7-0 lead on their first drive, it was all Colts from there. Running back Daniel "Boom" Herron found the end zone from six yards out to tie the game at 7, outside linebacker Jonathan Newsome would strip Manning on Denver's ensuing drive, and Luck would find tight end Dwayne Allen seven plays later for a three-yard touchdown pass to put Indy up for good.
Other stars of the game for the Colts included linebacker D'Qwell Jackson, who had 11 tackles, and cornerback Vontae Davis, who knocked down an astounding five Manning pass attempts on the day.
