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Cheers & Jeers: Colts-Raiders

An unbelievable, one-handed interception for the ages on Sunday provided one of the loudest cheers in this Indianapolis Colts season. And the Colts added more positives in a 17-point victory at Las Vegas.

The game was important, but a lot of the national buzz about the Indianapolis Colts’ 44-27 win at Las Vegas on Sunday centered around one play.

When Colts cornerback Kenny Moore II elevated with his 5-foot-9 frame to snag a Derek Carr pass with just his outstretched right hand for a second-quarter interception, the play stunned both sidelines. Carr thought he had 6-foot-6 tight end Darren Waller in the back of the end zone for a touchdown. Instead, the Colts got a touchback and added a field goal on the ensuing drive for a 20-14 lead at halftime.

An offensive game turned at that moment. The Colts kept scoring. The Raiders didn’t. Moore had another hand in that, too, with a fourth-quarter forced fumble that the Colts recovered.

In keeping with a season trend when the Colts prevail, the defense stiffened in the second half as the Raiders managed just a pair of field goals in the third quarter. The Colts offense added 24 second-half points, riding the legs of rookie rusher Jonathan Taylor’s 150 yards including a 62-yard scoring run, then finishing this one off with a Khari Willis TD interception return.

The Colts (9-4) improved to the AFC’s sixth playoff seed with three games remaining. They’ve won four of five and are tied with the Tennessee Titans atop the AFC South Division, although they need some help to win at title because the Titans have the division-record tiebreaker.

Here’s to more cheers than jeers after a good time in Las Vegas.

Cheers

— Moore’s 10th career interception wasn’t just the best play of his four-year career, it’s likely the one he will always be remembered for when looking back on his NFL days. It was that good.

Indianapolis Colts cornerback Kenny Moore II leaps to make a one-handed interception in Sunday's road win at Las Vegas.

Kenny Moore leaps to snag a one-handed interception.

— Moore knocked the ball loose from Raiders wide receiver Hunter Renfrow for a fourth-quarter fumble that the Colts’ Taylor Stallworth recovered.

— Taylor finally had the kind of breakout game that many envisioned when he was drafted in the second round in April. His 62-yard TD rush, 38 yards farther than his previous long, personified the rookie’s ability to display breakaway speed as he ran away from three Raiders defenders. For much of his career-best 150 yards rushing and two TDs, Taylor also showcased his power in running through tackles and improved field vision in making decisive cuts to open space.

Indianapolis Colts offensive guard Quenton Nelson (56) gives running back Jonathan Taylor (28) a celebratory lift after the rookie rusher ran 62 yards for a touchdown in Sunday's win at Las Vegas.

Quenton Nelson gives Jonathan Taylor a lift after a 62-yard TD rush.

— The Colts ran for a season-high 212 rushing yards. They were the last NFL team with a 25-yard rush, and did it twice this day as Taylor ripped off his impressive 62-yarder and Nyheim Hines had a 31-yard rush.

— Wide receiver T.Y. Hilton is “The Ghost” again. He set the tone in the first half with a pair of touchdown receptions, including a 41-yard catch. Hilton has four TDs in the past three games. He caught five passes for 86 yards.

— Hilton passed Hall of Famer Lenny Moore (48) for the fifth-most receiving TDs in franchise history.

— Taylor’s 150 rushing yards are the most for a Colts rookie running back since Joseph Addai had 171 in 2006.

— When Taylor reached 120 total yards out of his 165, he became just the fourth player to reach 1,000 scrimmage yards in their first 12 games in franchise history. The other three were Edgerrin James, Marshall Faulk, and Addai.

— Taylor is the first Colts rookie to have multiple TD rushes since quarterback Andrew Luck in 2012. He’s the first Colts rookie running back to do so since Javarris James in 2010.

— The Colts’ 44 points were the most scored since 2014.

— Quarterback Philip Rivers hasn’t let a turf toe injury impact his effectiveness as the kind of efficient game manager the team needed. The Colts haven’t had a turnover in six games, all wins, and Rivers has avoided costly mistakes enough to solidify this team as a legitimate playoff qualifier. He completed 19-of-28 passes for 244 yards with the two TDs to Hilton.

— Perhaps equally impressive considering the team’s struggles on third down, the Colts converted 8-of-11 (72.7%), their best percentage since 2010.

— A Colts offensive line that briefly turned to two-time All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson to fill in at left tackle when Anthony Castonzo was sidelined didn’t allow a sack. Nelson looked good, too. Rivers took only one hit.

— The Colts have won four consecutive road games.

— Safety Khari Willis was in the right place at the right time when Raiders running back Jalen Richard let a pass in the flat bounce off his hands and deflect outside to the defender, who enjoyed an untouched, 50-yard sprint for a fourth-quarter touchdown.

— It’s the Colts’ fourth pick-six of the season, which leads the NFL and is tied for the most in a season in franchise history.

— Linebacker Darius Leonard had a team-high 11 total tackles, including one for loss. It was the fifth double-digit tackle game this season and 19th of his three-year career.

— Kicker Rodrigo Blankenship scored 14 points with three field goals and two extra points to pass Raul Allegre (112) for the most points by a rookie in franchise history. He also tied Mike Vanderjagt (27) for the second-most field goals by a rookie in team history.

— Safety George Odum had a special-teams tackle to boost his league-leading total to 17.

Jeers

— The loudest boo from Colts fans should have been when Hilton was grabbed on a second-quarter bomb just before the pass arrived. A flag was thrown for what seemed like an obvious pass-interference penalty on Raiders cornerback Trayvon Muller, but inexplicably, it was picked up.

— The Colts defense didn’t have a sack and managed just two quarterback hits.

— Moore got off to a frustrating start as he was beaten on a 47-yard TD pass for the Raiders’ first score and was flagged for a horse-collar tackle on a Waller 29-yard reception.

— The Colts’ defensive streak of not allowing a second-half touchdown ended at four games when Carr scrambled for a TD in the final minute.

— The Raiders converted 8-of-12 third downs (67 percent).

— Carr completed 31-of-45 passes for 316 yards and two TDs.

— The Colts were caught out of position on a trick play as wide receiver Zay Jones caught a backward pass and completed a 29-yard pass to wide receiver Nelson Agholor in the third quarter.

— Agholor had five receptions for 100 yards with a 21-yard TD catch that split the Colts safeties down the middle.

— The Raiders had 26 first downs to the Colts’ 25.

— The Colts were just two-of-five (40%) in the red zone.

— The Raiders led time of possession, 31:25-28:35.