Indianapolis Colts fans have probably done their best to forget the fake punt/swinging gate/ridiculously ill-advised, nonsensical trick play the team attempted to run at a critical point in the third quarter of their Sunday night game against the New England Patriots this past weekend. You know, the one that reportedly has perennially upset Colts owner Jim Irsay, well, upset. The one that Colts coach Chuck Pagano actually told the officials about before the game so that they were aware it was coming and wouldn't flag the team, even though the Colts failed to set the line correctly and so were flagged anyway. Yeah, that one. Considering its ridiculousness, it's understandable that Colts fans are ready to turn the page, flip the chapter, bring the book back to the library and burn the library down. But we're going to talk about it one more time. And for good reason.
It seems, according to a report from Stephen Holder of the Indy Star, Colts backup wide receiver and special teams ace Griff Whalen - the man who snapped the ball on the infamous play in question - was not actually to blame for the play going off in the poor manner that it did.
It seems that Whalen had never actually practiced the play before, as explained by Indianapolis punter Pat McAfee while appearing on the "Bob & Tom Show" recently, via Holder. The duties Whalen took over during the Patriots game actually belong to Colts rookie safety Clayton Geathers, with whom Colt Anderson - the player who received the snap from Whalen - had discussed a "code word" to signal actions during the play during practice. Whalen, not being privy to such information and filling in for Geathers after the young defensive back injured his knee in the first half, simply snapped the ball when he felt Anderson place his hands under center and the rest, unfortunately for Colts fans, will continue to live on in NFL lore.
While it likely offers little solace to the Indianapolis faithful, it's at least somewhat encouraging to know that Whalen, who per Holder is considered one of the team's "most intelligent players," and Anderson didn't simply botch the play despite ample practice time. Instead, Whalen was forced into active duty in a pinch and did as he believed he was instructed to.
Now, whether the Colts should have made the call after Geathers' injury is certainly a question that requires an answer. Pagano and Tom McMahon, the team's special teams coordinator, should have culled the formation from their playsheets despite the week's preparation and despite the pregame comments to the refs.
No, Indy didn't lose the game because of the ill-conceived fake attempt, but it was another in a long line of bad decisions for a frustrated franchise trying to keep an owner desperate for another Super Bowl run, happy, and a possible sign that this year won't end well in Indianapolis.
