Jones-Drew, Jags run all over Indy

Dec 10, 2006, 21:35 GMT

Jacksonville, FL - Maurice Jones-Drew rushed for 166 yards on 15 carries and scored three touchdowns, as the Jacksonville Jaguars crushed the Indianapolis Colts, 44-17 at Alltel Stadium.

Fred Taylor finished with 131 yards on nine carries and one score, while Reggie Williams had three receptions for the Jaguars (8-5), who have won three of their last four games.

David Garrard was 8-of-14 for 79 yards for no scores and one pick, and Alvin Pearman gained 71 yards on 13 rushes with one touchdown.

Peyton Manning completed 25-of-50 passes for 313 yards, no touchdowns and one interception. Reggie Wayne led the receiving corps with 110 yards on eight catches, and Marvin Harrison caught six balls for 101 yards for the Colts (10-3), losers in three of their last four.

The blowout loss denied Indianapolis the chance to clinch the AFC South division title.

'Very gratifying to prepare in the business-like fashion we did and perform at such a high level,' said Jaguars head coach Jack Del Rio. 'Special teams were very good, Jones-Drew with the kickoff return touchdown, Jorge Cordova with the punt block, Derrick Wimbush with good returns, solid effort. We prepared hard and took nothing for granted. Fred's first rush set the tone for the game.'

The Jags got on the scoreboard first, on their opening possession. After Hunter Smith's punt set Jacksonville up at their own six, all it took was a 76-yard run by Taylor on the first play from scrimmage, followed by Jones-Drew's 18-yard dash to the end zone, and the Jags held a 7-0 lead.

Indy responded with a seven-play, 41 yard march, ending with an Adam Vinatieri hit from 41 yards out for a 7-3 result.

On Jacksonville's following drive, Josh Scobee pushed his 48-yard attempt to the right, and Manning took control at his own 38. However, that drive imploded when Joseph Addai was dropped for a big loss on 3rd-and-1, and Smith's punt was blocked by Cordova and returned by Ken Pettway to the Colts' 21.

After Garrard was picked off in the end zone by Matt Giordano to end that opportunity, the Colts finally got in sync, going 80 yards in 12 plays and eating up 5:54 of the clock to take a 10-7 lead. On the drive, Manning connected with Wayne for a 31-yard strike to the Jags' 15, and Dominic Rhodes finished things off with a one-yard plunge.

Jacksonville responded in kind with an 81-yard, five-play march where Jones- Drew gained 34 yards and Taylor gained 40, including a 21-yard run that gave the Jags a 14-10 edge.

It was 21-10 with 1:17 to go in the half, when Jones-Drew broke two tackles at the line, then raced between two Colt defenders down the right side for a 48- yard touchdown.

Scobee then hit from 48 yards out at the end of the half, and the Jags went into the locker room with a 24-10 advantage.

Jones-Drew continued his highlight-reel afternoon on a 93-yard kickoff return to start the second half, extending the advantage to 31-10.

Indianapolis looked completely distracted on their subsequent offensive possession, going three-and-out. The Jags returned to pounding the ball on the ground, using Jones-Drew four more times to set up Scobee's make from 34 yards, and the lead was 34-10 with just under four minutes played in the third.

Scobee added his third of the day, this time from 46 yards with 22 seconds left in the quarter, upping the led to 37-10.

Indy got their only points of the second half with 11:13 to play, as Manning followed blockers into the end zone one a one-yard sneak, capping a 12-play, 80-yard drive which brought the Colts within 37-17.

'We just wanted to see if we could get something going and start playing better,' said Colts head coach Tony Dungy on why he kept his starters in the game. 'We weren't able to do that but that's what we were trying to do at that point.'

Pearman completed the rout with 3:59 remaining, on a six-yard touchdown run, his first of the season.

Game Notes

Indy holds a 9-3 advantage in the all-time series. Dungy is 7-4 against the Jags, while Del Rio improves to 3-5 against the Colts.

Manning's second- quarter interception was his first in his last 104 pass attempts against Jacksonville.

The Jags outgained the Colts on the ground 375-34 for the game.

Harrison's 4th quarter catch gave him 1,000 for his career, joining Jerry Rice, Tim Brown and Chris Carter in that feat.

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