Who will deliver epic performances in this week's matchups?
Air & Ground matchup of Week 6
New England Patriots at Indianapolis Colts (Sunday, 8:30 p.m. ET, NBC) -- Patriots quarterback Tom Brady can build off one of the greatest starts to a season in NFL history, and do so against a quarterback -- Andrew Luck -- who has yet to defeat the Brady-led Patriots.
Brady is the fourth different quarterback in the Super Bowl era to record 11 or more touchdown passes without an interception in the first four games of a season. Brady's 11 touchdown passes without an interception ties him with Aaron Rodgers' start this season (11 TDs, 0 INTs through first four games). Only the Dallas Cowboys' Don Meredith (14 TDs, 0 INTs through first four games) and Denver Broncos' Peyton Manning (16 TDs, 0 INTs through first four games) had more. Rodgers had two interceptions in the Packers' fifth game, a 24-10 win over the St. Louis Rams. So, Brady needs just one touchdown pass without an interceptions against the Colts to have the most touchdown passes without an interception in the first five games of any quarterback during the Super Bowl era.
Luck and the Colts would like to avenge a humbling 45-7 loss to the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game. However, the Luck-led Colts haven't had any success against the Patriots. In four such meetings, the Patriots have won by a combined score of 189-73 and have scored at least 40 points in all four of those games (also including a 42-20 beatdown administered by the Patriots on "Sunday Night Football" last November at Lucas Oil Stadium).
One dominant back
Running back LaGarrette Blount has 20 rushing touchdowns as a member of the Patriots. However, in three career games as a Patriot against the Colts, Blount has scored seven touchdowns. In four career games (including one while as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers), Blount has averaged 115.5 yards rushing a game with eight touchdowns.
Great Moments in Air & Ground History
Baltimore Colts 14, Boston Patriots 6 (Week 3, 1970 season) -- The Colts and Patriotshave metin somanymemorablegamesin the past15 years. So, we're going all the way back to the very first time these two teams met in a league game. At ancient (even then) Harvard Stadium, the Patriots' home at the time, the Colts got out to a second-quarter lead after a touchdown pass by Earl Morrall to Eddie Hinton. Later, Pro Football Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas -- playing in relief of Morrall -- tossed a 55-yard touchdown pass to Roy Jefferson. The Colts went on to win Super Bowl V that season. Just as on that afternoon at Harvard Stadium, both Unitas and Morrall saw action at quarterback for the victorious Colts, who got some amount of satisfaction two years after being on the wrong end of the greatest upset in NFL history.
Follow Jim Reineking on Twitter @jimreineking.
