Colts 45, Eagles 21

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Indianapolis Colts running back Joseph Addai (29) runs 15 yards for a touchdown during the second quarter ...

Colts 45, Eagles 21

By MICHAEL MAROT, AP Sports Writer

ument.write(getElapsed("20061127T045439Z"));UPDATED 53 MINUTES AGO INDIANAPOLIS - The Indianapolis Colts' unstoppable force on offense overpowered the Philadelphia Eagles.

As for Peyton Manning? He was mostly along for the ride.

Rookie running back Joseph Addai rushed for 171 yards and tied a franchise record with four touchdowns, and the Colts' defense never let Philadelphia get close as Indianapolis routed the Eagles 45-21 on Sunday night.

The Colts (10-1) rebounded from their first loss of the season last week, and can clinch their fourth straight AFC South title with a win at Tennessee next week.

``We had a good week of practice,'' Manning said. ``Guys were disappointed after last week. You always want to get a win and get that taste out of your mouth.''

Philadelphia (5-6) played its first game without Donovan McNabb, who will miss the rest of the season with a torn knee ligament. But the Eagles couldn't blame this one on McNabb's absence.

Jeff Garcia, McNabb's replacement, was 19-of-23 for 140 yards and two TDs. Brian Westbrook ran 20 times for 124 yards and one touchdown, becoming the first Eagles player since Wilbert Montgomery in 1981 to produce three straight 100-yard games.

But the Eagles made mistakes all night, and the Colts took advantage.

Addai's four touchdowns tied an NFL rookie record for scoring in one game; he shares that mark with eight other players. He also broke a franchise record for points scored by a rookie in a game - the previous high was 18, reached in 1956, 1994 and 1996.

Lenny Moore, Lydell Mitchell and Eric Dickerson are the only other Colts players with four TDs in one game. Addai also produced the fourth-highest rushing total by a rookie in franchise history.

Addai still didn't think it was good enough.

``A lot of running backs come in and do good the first year and after that they go into the tank,'' he said. ``I've got to become more consistent.''

Manning wasted little time in putting the game away early in the second half. He threw a 15-yard TD pass to Reggie Wayne to make it 31-7.

Manning's first complete pass, a 17-yarder to Wayne on the opening series, made him the fastest player in league history to reach 3,000. The two-time MVP reached the mark in 139 games, breaking a record previously shared by Dan Marino and Drew Bledsoe of 146, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

He finished 14-of-20 for 183 yards, giving him 3,013 career completions but was more content with the win.

But it was Addai who stole the show. His slashing runs produced huge chunks of yardage and when he wasn't cutting to open spots, he was overpowering defenders. Addai, who entered this week as the NFL's leading rookie runner, carried 24 times and caught two passes for 37 yards.

``Joseph ran well, Dom ran well,'' Manning said. ``The offensive line did a great job creating some holes. There were some real big holes out there.''

In contrast, the Eagles did little right.

From a poor early decision to challenge Wayne's one-handed, 38-yard catch to Hank Baskett's botched pass that was picked off by Nick Harper to David Akers' missed 36-yard field goal, the game was filled with errors - none of which were attributed to the absence of McNabb.

The first time Philadelphia did score, on L.J. Smith's 1-yard TD catch with 1:19 left in the half, it gave Manning too much time. He closed out the half by setting up Adam Vinatieri's 44-yard field goal.

Manning led Indy on a 79-yard opening drive, capped by Addai's 15-yard run to make it 7-0. Addai followed that with a 10-yard run on the first play of the second quarter to give Indy a 14-0 lead, then extended the margin to 21-0 when he made two terrific cuts on another 15-yard TD run.

The second half wasn't much better for Philly. Indianapolis forced a quick punt and Manning led the Colts on an 89-yard drive, capped by a 15-yard TD pass to Wayne for a 31-7 lead.

Philadelphia got closer when Garcia threw a 3-yard TD pass to Reggie Brown late in the third quarter, and when Westbrook scored on a 6-yard run with 10:13 left, the Eagles were within 31-21.

But they never seriously threatened the Colts, who used a time-consuming drive to seal the victory.

Notes: Indianapolis lost tight end Dallas Clark with a sprained right knee late in the first half, but the team gave no additional details on his injury. ... Garcia sat out the final series with a right forearm strain. Garcia said he could have played, but decided against risking further any injury.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press.