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INDIANAPOLIS –T.Y. Hilton caught six passes for 100 yards at Detroit and LaVon Brazill snared a 42-yard touchdown pass, but not everything in the Colts' 35-33 win met the standard of Interim Head Coach Bruce Arians.
Arians on Monday mentioned that play from some younger players had to be efficient across the board for the team to keep winning.
"They did hit the wall a little bit in this game. We had more mental errors by those guys in our receiving corps and tight end corps than we've had in a number of weeks," said Arians. "They were able to settle down and get re-focused and make plays coming down the stretch. We had a number of alignment and route errors that we had not had. We'll address it."
Players were off on Monday following the win, a practice commonly done later in the year when rest is needed and after a victory had been earned.
Separate mistakes by Hilton and Brazill accounted for two of the three interceptions incurred by Andrew Luck against Detroit. The team righted itself, but Wednesday was a day of reckoning.
"Very loud," said Arians Wednesday at lunch of how the meeting went for some players. "There were some critical mistakes made that go against everything we do in reception areas and route depths. It was the first time it has really crept in in about a month or so.
"I try not to talk to (players) through the press, but I sure did try to talk to them this time through the press. We got it corrected. Their attention to detail is greater this afternoon than it was this morning. I hope they got the message."
Indianapolis has been playing with a number of rookie players. Luck, Hilton, Dwayne Allen and Vick Ballard have been the most prominent ones on the field. Coby Fleener returned last Sunday, and Brazill has been seeing increased action, too.
Brazill knew what to expect when he entered Wednesday's meeting room.
"I expected him to chew me out. I made a big error that caused an interception. I came back and made a good play at the end. It kind of erased his memory of the mistake I made," said Brazill.
Brazill and Hilton are occupying positions Arians has seen play critical roles in late-season success.
"Thanksgiving-to-Christmas is when you want your young wide receivers to step in and have a major role," said Arians. "In Pittsburgh, we'd never have gotten to the Super Bowl (in 2010) without Emmanuel Sanders and Antonio Brown developing after Thanksgiving and making huge plays in the playoffs. Those two rookies were players between Thanksgiving and the playoffs."
Arians wants the same from his young players as the Colts hope to capitalize on an 8-4 start with a playoff berth. Indianapolis is in the fifth seed with four games to go, but Cincinnati and Pittsburgh trail by one game and there are three AFC teams at 5-7.
Brazill can take the blunt approach because he expects results from himself, too.
"He's fair, and he's about the business," said Brazill of Arians. "He wants you to be professional and don't hit the rookie wall. He preaches heavy on that. He just wants me to stay focused and do what I can do.
"I expect to play well, too. I made a silly mistake. I had a brain (fade) out there. It got me chewed out, but I got it corrected the next time."
