INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Andrew Luck threw a 35-yard TD pass to T.Y. Hilton with 3:43 left Sunday to lead the Indianapolis Colts past the Chicago Bears 29-23.
It's the first time the Colts (2-3) defeated the Bears in Indianapolis.
After hearing a clamoring for changes all week, Indy went to the hurry-up offense and Luck made the alterations look good early and late.
When the Colts opened up the passing game and took shots down the field, they were efficient. When they didn't, they bogged down.
The result: Indy had its first halftime lead of the season, 16-13, and when they fell behind midway through the third quarter, the Colts turned up the pace again. This time, Luck needed six plays to move 82 yards — the last 35 coming on the TD pass to Hilton that gave Indy a 26-23 lead.
Luck finished 28 of 39 with 322 yards and two touchdowns. Hilton had 10 catches for 171 yards.
Brian Hoyer was solid in his third straight start and gave Chicago (1-4) a 23-19 lead by capping a 94-yard drive with a 24-yard TD pass to Jordan Howard to make it 23-19 with 7:04 to go. It was the Bears' longest drive in more than seven years.
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Hoyer was 33 of 43 for 397 yards with two touchdowns.
But after a late Bears fumble led to Adam Vinatieri's fifth field goal, Hoyer couldn't convert on fourth-and-8 from Indy's 28-yard line.