Andrew Luck rallies Colts for signature moment as rookie

• Luck took himself out of rookie of the year contention and vaulted himself right back in
• Sunday's performance further validates Jim Irsay's decision to part ways with Peyton Manning
• QB coach on Luck: 'The best thing he's done for us all season is those two-minute drives'

DETROIT -- What should we call it? The Motor City Miracle? The Miracle in Motown?

Ridiculous.

Astonishing.

Dare we say: Peyton-esque?

Colts 35, Lions 33.

Andrew Luck, who took himself out of NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year contention and vaulted himself right back in within the space of 3 minutes, has had several Peyton Manning moments already this year, but this was the signature moment that surpassed them all.

And to think, for three quarters, he was having his worst game of the season, completing less than half his passes and throwing three interceptions.

"At halftime, I wanted to trade him," quarterbacks coach Clyde Christensen said, wearing a broad smile.

Then he put down his suitcase and considered his good fortune: All those years with Manning, and now Luck.

"The best thing he's done for us all season is those two-minute drives," he said. "Even in the loss to Jacksonville, he put us in position to take a couple of shots. He just has that resolve. He gets mad because he put us in a tough situation to begin with; I mean, those were a couple of bad interceptions.

"But he has this great look in his eyes. Some guys, you look 'em in the eye and think, oh, boy, they're shaky, but Andrew gets that look in his eye and you know you've got a chance. For all those years with Peyton, we always knew we had a chance. And this guy has that same quality."

This should not count as some kind of scoop, but the Colts have something very special in Luck. As former Colts executive Bill Polian might say, this further "validates" team owner Jim Irsay's decision to part ways with Manning and start over with Luck.

For three quarters, Luck was all over the place. Throwing high. Throwing wide. Throwing to the guys in the blue jerseys. He was under severe duress, especially from the middle of the Detroit defensive line. Rookie of the Year? Laughable. Win this game? Even more laughable.

But the kid has a preternatural calm and toughness about him, the kind only the great ones possess. We used to see it from Joe Montana. We see it from Tom Brady and Manning. It has taken just one season, but Luck's teammates have learned something very valuable, something they will know in their heart for as long as Luck is around: With him at quarterback, they're never completely out of a game.

Two touchdowns.

In 2 minutes and 39 seconds.

(And let's not forget the Indy defense, which got gashed all day but stiffened late and gave the offense two chances to ultimately win the game.)

Anatomy of a miracle:

>> With 4:02 left, the Colts trailing by 12, Luck led an eight-play, 85-yard drive in 1:23. The touchdown was a lovely piece of improvisation.

"I had an outside release and I was supposed to run deep and open it up for Reggie (Wayne)," said LaVon Brazill of the 42-yard touchdown pass. "I just got behind the corner(back), he (Luck) started scrambling, I saw that and kept running. He threw a good pass and I made a good play on the ball."

>> Part Two: Trailing by 5, 1:05 left, no timeouts, 75 yards to go. At which point, Luck and his teammates made some magic, and did it with two of their starting offensive linemen, Joe Reitz and Winston Justice, out with concussions.

There were Luck scrambles. There was Luck's long pass to Reggie Wayne. There was a pass to Dwayne Allen, who smartly went out of bounds. Down the field they went, the Ford Field crowd holding its breath.

Then, after three incomplete passes from the Detroit 14, it happened. On the final play of the game, Luck stepped up, moved around, looked, waited and dumped the ball off to Donnie Avery, who ran it the rest of the way into the end zone.

Bedlam.

"Those were the longest 10 yards I've ever run," Avery said. "Like I was going in slow motion."

Again, improvisation.

"He (Avery) was the No. 5 option," interim coach Bruce Arians said. "We had basically spread everybody across the back of the end zone and ran Donnie across the field as an outlet. I was hoping he'd catch it a little closer to the goal line, but we knew they'd sink everybody back in."

Said Luck: "It's tough to just sit back there and try to throw it when they're dropping in their zones. So I figured, you know, buy a little time and run around a little, maybe it'll open up a window. You always hesitate throwing the ball not in the end zone for fear of the clock running out or a guy (stays) in bounds like it happened in the (Alabama-Georgia) game. So looking downfield, I guess I took the calculated risk that Donnie could get there. And he did."

And here's the thing that made it even sweeter, a thing you may have missed while watching on TV: On a Don Carey interception with 6:40 to play, Ndamukong Suh laid out Colts right tackle Winston Justice, who left the game with a concussion. Worse, Suh and his teammates stood over Justice and laughed and danced.

After the game, the Colts tough-minded right guard, Mike McGlynn, was still spitting mad. In fact, he didn't run into the end zone to celebrate. He was too busy jawing with Suh and some other Lions.

"Totally ignorant on their part," McGlynn said. "Just childish stuff. We're all battling out there; I don't know if the hit was legal or not, but clearly he was hurt, and they're out there dancing and pointing at him and laughing. Just blatant disrespect. They're good players but there's no room for that. It's disgusting, really.

"If that had happened to one of their players, we'd never do something like that. But that's what makes this even sweeter. That's why they lose. I hope they never win another game."

This is a team with an edge, a sense of belief, a sense of purpose. "We're going to fight the way our coach is fighting," Arians said.

A great story just keeps getting better.

Bob Kravitz writes for the Indianapolis Star, a Gannett property.