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NASHVILLE – Reggie Wayne was tired of not getting on a winning airplane after road games.
The Colts' road losing streak had stretched to 10 games heading into Sunday afternoon and just two days earlier, Wayne broke character in addressing the team on what it would take to end that streak.
Flash-forward to halftime on Sunday and there was Wayne heading into the Colts' locker room with his team down 10-3 after the offense had three drives of at least eight plays result in just a field goal.
With nearly half of the Colts players having never experienced a road win in the NFL, Wayne once again felt it necessary to be vocal with 30 minutes left.
"Sometimes you have to do more than just lead by example," Wayne said. "I felt like we left some plays out there offensively, defensively. We just had a field goal blocked that could have been big for us."
"I had to speak up and let everybody know that we have to be there for each other. No more talking. It's time to play football. Go out in the second half and let it rip."
On Friday, Wayne admitted that he does not usually like to speak out in front of a group of people, but he was not about to let another opportunity slip away, even if it meant having to take his tone up a notch or two.
"I was (ticked) off. I was (ticked) off. There was no false enthusiasm on this one. I was upset just because I know what we were capable of," Wayne said.
"We should've had a lead, in my opinion at halftime, and we didn't have that lead. We were behind. It really (ticked) me off that we didn't play the way we should have, the first half. I felt like we needed a little fire, so hopefully it helped us."
The struggles the Colts offense endured in the first half seemed to carry over for the early part of the second half.
Things finally clicked for Indianapolis following a Rob Bironas field goal to make the score 13-6 in the Titans' favor.
With 10:26 left and knowing possessions were hard to come by all afternoon, Wayne began the Colts' game-tying drive with a 10-yard reception. The drive would continue to move down the field over the course of 14 plays, finished off by a Delone Carter one-yard plunge.
"Before we came out at halftime, Reggie talked to us and we wanted to be able to look every man in the eye and tell them that you gave it your all," Carter said. "We all went out there and did that."
The Colts' offense would get the first crack in overtime, and it wanted to make sure that would be the only possession of the extra frame.
Donald Brown started off the overtime period with six straight carries moving into Titans territory. However, as Brown began to tire the Colts would encounter a third-and-eight from the Titans' 36-yard line.
Like he has done so many times throughout the first half of the NFL season, Wayne knew his number was going to be called.
Quarterback Andrew Luck found Wayne over the middle for a 20-yard gain, setting up the game-winning touchdown two plays later.
Following the game, Wayne sat at his locker joking with rookie receivers LaVon Brazill and T.Y. Hilton about the crookedness of their tie knots.
Wayne has admitted that the youthfulness of his receiving corps has made him feel younger and at times, he is joined by a handful of rookies at the Colts skill position players.
It was a far cry from the message and attitude Wayne was trying deliver a few hours earlier to his young teammates.
The laughs and smiles were aplenty as Wayne could finally show players like Brazill and Hilton what it was like to go into a hostile environment and earn a jovial trip home.
"I made a speech earlier in the week to this team telling them how we hadn't experienced a road win yet and how good of a feeling it is to get on that plane, go home victorious," Wayne said.
"I'm just glad that we were able to keep fighting, keep fighting, didn't give up and get a win on the road against a good opponent, a divisional opponent at that. Hopefully, this taste will be great for us and we can keep pushing from there."
