INDIANAPOLIS -- Observed and heard in the Indianapolis Colts’ locker room after their 17-10 victory over the Houston Texans at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Three-for-three: Colts quarterback Andrew Luck entered the interview room with a wide smile on his face and an AFC South championship hat on his head. Luck is headed back to the playoffs for the third time in three years, and he’s won division titles in two of those years. That’s not a bad start to his NFL career. “You understand you don’t take it for granted, but you’ve got to do something with it,” Luck said. “We realize we’ve got two games to go until we need to start thinking about that, though.” Luck isn’t the only Colts player who is heading to the playoffs in his first three seasons. Receiver T.Y. Hilton and tight ends Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen were also part of the 2012 draft class for Indianapolis.
13 straight: The city of Indianapolis hasn't been good to Houston. The Texans have lost 13 straight games to the Colts in Indianapolis. Sunday's loss severely hurt Houston's chances of making the playoffs. "It was a playoff game for them," Colts coach Chuck Pagano said. "We knew coming in that just after their last game; we all saw the speech in the locker room. That was a great win, but they started talking about this game. We know the importance, how important it was for them. They're trying to get in the playoffs. They're trying to win the division. They're trying to take what we have."
Hilton injured: Hilton left the game in the fourth quarter with a hamstring injury. He was scheduled to be evaluated Sunday evening. Hilton finished with four catches for 50 yards.
Bradshaw appears: Running back Ahmad Bradshaw, out for the season with a fractured fibula, was in the locker room with left leg in a cast, moving around on a scooter to help out while also wearing an AFC South championship hat.