The Indianapolis Colts have kept their playoff hopes on course in the AFC South by staging a comeback to defeat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-12 at Lucas Oil Stadium.
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Both teams exchanged field goals in the opening quarter of the match as Adam Vinatieri and Connor Barth had no problem sending their kicks through the posts.
The duo were accurate again in the second quarter as nothing could separate the teams with Vinatieri converting from 27 yards and Barth from 30 to bring the Buccaneers level.
However, Tampa Bay took the lead when Doug Martin powered through the line and drove his side into the redzone where Jameis Winston then drilled the ball to Cameron Brate for a 16-yard touchdown.
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In the second half, Vinatieri notched his third field goal of the match by sending his kick through the posts from 26 yards after Matt Hasselbeck was sacked by the Buccaneers' defense.
However, Hasselbeck guided his team into the lead when he looped the ball into the corner of the endzone for TY Hilton to snag for a 19-yard strike to put the Colts ahead.
Vinatieri continued to be reliable for Chuck Pagano's men by putting his fourth kick over, and the Colts made a large stride towards victory when they capitalised on a penalty with Hasselbeck firing to Hilton for the second time to put them 13 points ahead.
Winston attempted to rally the Buccaneers late in the game, but the Colts' defense made a stand in the redzone to secure the victory for the home side.
The Colts move to 6-5 in their season and remain in first place in the AFC South, while the Buccaneers drop to 5-6 in the NFC South.
Simon Sinclair
