THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, October 28, 1996 TAG: 9610280135
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JIM DUCIBELLA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: 104 lines
Another game, another endorsement.
This time it was the Indianapolis Colts, supposed AFC Super Bowl contenders, who cried uncle after being steamrolled 31-16 by the Washington Redskins at RFK Stadium Sunday. The rest of the football intelligensia may be having trouble accepting the fact that the Redskins are 7-1 halfway through what was supposed to be another season of rebuilding. But the Colts joined the rising number of Redskins' victims who see the Redskins as a legitimate force.
``I've got to compliment them,'' Colts' coach Lindy Infante said. ``They're a good football team. They deserve a ton of credit. Last week, we gave one away. This week, we got beat by a really good team.''
``They don't make mistakes,'' added running back Marshall Faulk, held to 53 yards, though he carried just 13 times.
There was no one star on offense for the Redskins. Terry Allen churned out 124 yards and three touchdowns - his second trifecta in as many weeks. Quarterback Gus Frerotte had puppeteer-like control of his 25 passes, completing 18 for 178 yards and a clothesline 7-yard scoring slant to Leslie Shepherd.
Henry Ellard grabbed three passes for 55 yards - 48 of them coming on a 73-yard drive that gave the Redskins a 17-3 second-quarter edge. And Brian Mitchell put the ``special'' back into the Redskins special teams. Silent most of the season, he opened the game with a 43-yard kickoff return that started the Redskins on a drive to a field goal and lead they never lost.
When the Redskins needed a third-quarter spark, Mitchell provided it with an electrifying 71-yard punt return to the shadow of the Colts' end zone.
``The play that typifies where this team is at was Brian Mitchell's,'' Redskins coach Norv Turner asserted. ``On kickoff and punt returns, we haven't been at the level we were a year ago. We have a lot of young players and we've been working as hard as we can in practice to get better. A couple of weeks ago, we were two players (getting blocks) away from breaking one. Last week, we were one player away.
``We just kept getting at it and saying, `This play is going to win a game down the road.' ''
And it did.
Watching films last week, Mitchell noticed that the left side of the Colts' punt-coverage team was ``soft.''
``There was a hole there that no one took advantage of,'' he said. ``I couldn't believe it. We're not the kind of team that's going to let you get away with a weakness without challenging it. We ran every return to our right.''
Mitchell fielded Chris Gardocki's punt at his 27, faked a dash up the middle, then veered right. He got one block from Stanley Richard that opened a hole, then Tom Carter got enough of Gardocki to give Mitchell the sideline. The only thing that kept him from scoring was a flagrant penalty against Ray McElroy, who dragged Mitchell down by his facemask.
Allen scored his second TD of the game two snaps later to give the Redskins a 24-13 advantage.
Cary Blanchard's 51-yard field goal on the last play of the third quarter cut the Colts' deficit to 24-16, and Indianapolis got the ball back when safety Jason Belser slammed into Henry Ellard the same instant as Frerotte's pass arrived. The ball bounced into the air and was intercepted by linebacker Steve Morrison at the Indy 45 with 12:45 to go.
But on third-and-10, linebacker Ken Harvey swept around end and hit quarterback Jim Harbaugh's arm, separating him from the ball. It shot forward, past several Colts who thought it was an incomplete pass. Redskins safety Darryl Morrison scooped up the ball and returned it to the Colts' 45.
``I was just trying to grab him high, then go low - just like the coaches tell us,'' Harvey said. ``There was no move. Just speed. We'd been coming inside the whole game. This time, we went outside. Maybe that set him up, I don't know.''
It took the Redskins just three plays to score, all to the right side behind tackle Ed Simmons. Allen's first run gained five. His second earned eight.
Frerotte pitched him the ball again. Tight end James Jenkins got a block on linebacker Stephen Grant at the line of scrimmage. Allen did the rest, forcing safety Derrick Frazier to miss, then scooting the rest of the 32 yards untouched.
`We tried to run the ball up the middle, but they made it tough,'' Allen said. ``We started just trying to stretch the defense and we finally found a play (the right-side sweep) where we could get an edge and create a seam.''
Colts cornerback Ray Buchanan said his unit knew what was coming, but could do little to stop it once Washington got rolling.
Frerotte hit 12 of his first 15 passes - and four of four third-down conversions - in guiding the Redskins to a 17-3 lead. He was sacked just once and his 72 percent completion rate was his career-best.
``We played well,'' said Harbaugh, who eluded Redskins rushers all afternoon in completing 17 of 33 passes for 198 yards. ``But they are the best team that we've played this season, by far.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]
MIKE HEFFNER
The Virginian-Pilot
With Indianapolis linebacker Stephen Grant able to do little more
than look on helplessly, the Redskins' Terry Allen leaps into the
end zone for the first of his three touchdowns Sunday during
Washington's 31-16 victory over the Colts at RFK Stadium.
MIKE HEFFNER
The Virginian-Pilot
Colts receiver Marvin Harrison can't quite reach a second-quarter
pass as Washington's Tom Carter defends.
Washington's Rod Stephens wraps up the Colts' Marshall Faulk, who
was held to 53 yards on 13 carries Sunday at RFK Stadium. by CNB