Anthony Richardson threw for 272 yards and accounted for three touchdowns Sunday, including the game-winning 4-yard touchdown run with 46 seconds left, as the visiting Indianapolis Colts rallied for a 28-27 win over the New York Jets.
Richardson led a 70-yard drive after Anders Carlson hit a 35-yard field goal with 2:41 remaining that gave New York a 27-22 edge. Richardson took a direct snap on third-and-goal and ran around left end, using good blocking to easily make the end zone.
Richardson completed 20 of 30 passes with a score in his return to the starting lineup after being benched for two weeks in favor of Joe Flacco. The Colts (5-6) finished with 332 total yards and controlled the ball for more than 34 minutes.
Aaron Rodgers hit 22 of 29 passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns for the Jets, finding Kenny Yeboah with an 11-yard strike less than two minutes into the fourth quarter for a 24-16 advantage. But Rodgers couldn’t do anything on New York’s last drive, taking two sacks to end it.
The Jets fell to 3-8 with their seventh loss in eight games despite 121 total yards from scrimmage by Breece Hall, who scored two touchdowns.
Needing a win to make up ground on AFC South leader Houston, which plays Monday night at Dallas, Indianapolis controlled the first half as its defense stifled New York while Richardson made some plays.
Matt Gay initiated scoring at the 9:07 mark of the first quarter with a 41-yard field goal on the Colts’ first drive. Richardson made it 10-0 just 49 seconds into the second quarter on a 2-yard run as he faked a handoff and plowed over a defender at the goal line.
Gay’s 47-yard field goal with 6:08 remaining upped the margin to 13. The Jets didn’t even manage a first down until the first play after the two-minute warning of the half, then zipped 76 yards to score with 40 seconds on the clock on Rodgers’ 29-yard pass to Hall. That made it 13-7 at intermission.
Hall gave the Jets their first lead with an 18-yard run less than two minutes into the third, then the teams traded field goals, setting the stage for the fourth-quarter dramatics.
