<p>Adam Vinatieri has won a lot more games for the Indianapolis Colts than he’s lost. Come to think of it, before Sunday’s 30-24 overtime road loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, I’m not sure he’s been forced to shoulder blame.</p>
<p>That said, the NFL’s all-time leading scorer gets a pass. Not that Vinatieri wants one, but the 46-year-old has earned many even after starting his 24th season looking like he was wearing flip-flops while attempting some of his field goal and point-after kicks.</p>
<p>The same people who booed Andrew Luck are probably crying for the franchise to finally cut ties with Vinatieri, but this is a future first-ballot Hall of Famer we’re talking about. A guy whose name will be part of the team’s Ring of Honor inside Lucas Oil Stadium mere months after he decides to retire.</p>
<p>A little compassion, please.</p>
<p>It’s one game. One-sixteenth of the regular-season schedule. Vinatieri hasn’t forgotten how to kick and the Colts haven’t forgotten how to win.</p>
<p>I’ll admit, Indianapolis looked directionless offensively in the first half playing in the Chargers’ teeny-weeny stadium. Sort of as if Indy’s franchise quarterback unexpectedly retired 15 days before the start of the season and those left behind were in search of an identity.</p>
<p>The Colts appeared to find it in the second half. They are built to grind out yardage behind a young, powerful offensive line. Three-, four- and five-yarding your way downfield might not be new wave. It might look like the 1970s, a game Curt Gowdy would call with a portion of the plays run on the dirt of baseball basepaths.</p>
<p>But if it burns clock, keeps the opponent’s offense off the field and wins games, oh well.</p>
<p>I have the utmost confidence in the play-calling of Indianapolis coach Frank Reich, whether it’s Andrew Luck, Jacoby Brissett or Mike Pagel doing the quarterbacking. Reich makes no excuses after a loss, focusing on the next challenge rather than dwelling on disappointment.</p>
<p>It will be interesting to see if the Colts bounce back at Tennessee, but I expect they will. The Titans could experience a letdown after shellacking Cleveland, a team that received an incredible amount of preseason hype only to completely no-show at home in Week 1.</p>
<p>Please excuse the overused cliché, but NFL seasons are marathons. The first weeks are dedicated to teams jockeying for position, followed by the best ones eventually creating separation in their respective divisions and maintaining the momentum into the playoffs.</p>
<p>The Colts started last season 1-5 and still made it to the AFC Divisional Playoffs before losing at Kansas City.</p>
<p>Now is not the time to panic.</p>
<p><em>Mike Beas is a sportswriter for the Daily Journal. He can be reached at <a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a>.</em></p>
