POWERS WITH ANOTHER INTERCEPTION – After recording the Colts' only takeaway in last week's loss to Atlanta, cornerback Jerraud Powers provided the lone turnover again on Sunday against Jacksonville.
With the Colts defense having its back to the wall in defending the red zone after a turnover on the club's first offensive possession, Powers intercepted rookie quarterback Blaine Gabbert at the Indianapolis five-yard line.
The Colts defense stopped running back Maurice Jones-Drew for a two-yard loss on the first play of the drive before Powers' interception. He returned the takeaway 13 yards to thwart an early scoring attempt in a game where the first touchdown came late in the third quarter.
The interception was the fifth of Powers' three-year career, and his total of two interceptions this year ties his total from last season.
Of the first eight drives of the game for the Colts defense, only one lasted more than six plays.
However, the Jaguars' eventual game-winning touchdown drive in the third quarter lasted 16 plays, chewing up 86 yards in just less than 10 minutes. A key defensive penalty happened on a third-down play when defensive end Robert Mathis had a sack. The penalty carried an automatic first down that negated a stop that would have forced a punt.
"They earned that drive. In any situation no matter when we come on the field, if we are on our own 15 or we got them backed up on their own three, our job is to keep them out of the end zone," Powers said. "Today we did a decent job. They did earn that one drive. They did a good job. The turnover late, we should have held them to three (field goal). We didn't do a good job of keeping points off the board there. At the end of the day you can say the defense played decent, but we still didn't play good enough to win."
As a unit, the defense allowed three points in the first half and 17 for the game. It marked the lowest point total surrendered by Indianapolis this season.
"I'm still waiting for that game where we put it together in all three phases because we just keep shooting ourselves in the foot," Powers said. "It is evident. We get things going, get some momentum, either defensively or offensively or something happens with special teams (and) we just hurt ourselves. We tip our hats off to the opponent because they make plays when they have to make plays, but at the end of the day it is us more so than anything else."
The Colts will go back to the drawing board the next two weeks, before returning from the bye to take on the Carolina Panthers.
"Any time you get a bye week, no matter what the situation is, it's good," Powers said. "We've been going at it for 10 straight weeks. Guys are beat up and it gives a lot of guys time to recover and get back healthy and get back on the field. You come back off that bye week rejuvenated with a little bit, more pep in your step, so to speak. The bye week should help us out a lot."
BROWN HELPS OUT RUNNING GAME –With running back Joseph Addai sidelined with a hamstring injury, Donald Brown got his first start of the season on Sunday against the Jaguars.
Brown excelled in the first half with 11 carries for 54 yards. With the Colts behind in the second half and forced to throw the football, Brown only had three carries following intermission.
Following the Jerraud Powers interception on Jacksonville's first possession, Brown tied his season-long with a 24-yard run to start the series.
The Colts added a new wrinkle to their running game on Sunday with offensive tackle Quinn Ojinnaka lining up at tight end on numerous running plays. After losing tight ends Dallas Clark and Brody Eldridge to injury last week, Qjinnaka provided another run blocker along the offensive front.
Helping out quarterback Curtis Painter in the passing game, Brown finished second on the team with four receptions. Despite having a nice day individually, Brown knows the bigger picture of getting a win is the only thing that matters.
"Yeah, but obviously not enough to help the team win," Brown said of the plays he provided. "I have to do a better job. We are going to correct our mistakes on Monday and figure out what we did wrong."
Brown is now second on the team with 62 carries and 276 rushing yards on the season. Success against the Jaguars is nothing new to Brown. Last December he ran for a career-high 129 yards against the AFC South rival.
Searching for their first win, Brown said the Colts know they still have more than a third of the schedule remaining in 2011.
"We are frustrated, but we are not discouraged," Brown said. "We have six more games to play, so that is what we are going to do."
TAMME GETS FIRST START OF 2011 – Tight end Jacob Tamme has been in this role before.
Last season, when tight end was Dallas Clark placed on injured reserve after six games, Tamme stepped into a starting role and excelled. A 16-game participant, Tamme opened eight games, six as a tight end and two at H-Back.
Tamme finished second on the team last season with 67 passes for 631 yards and four touchdowns. His best game in 2010 came on November 7 at Philadelphia when he caught 11 passes for 108 yards and a touchdown.
A week after Clark and Eldridge were injured against Atlanta, Tamme was called on again.
On Sunday, Tamme led all receivers with six receptions for 75 yards. It marked the third-highest yardage total of his career.
Late in the first quarter with the Colts facing a third-and-10 from their own 20-yard line, Tamme hauled in a 29-yard catch along the left sideline for his first catch of the game.
The fourth quarter is when Tamme caught four of his six passes. The first was a third-and-10 play from the Colts' 43-yard line, and it went for 11 yards.
When quarterback Dan Orlovsky checked in late in the four quarter, Tamme once again was a frequent target, catching the first three passes on the Colts' final drive for 13, 13 and eight yards.
The three catches by Tamme accounted for half of the 68 yards on the drive. It was the longest march of the day for the Colts.
