- questioning Reid's time management is overblown. Kansas City had the ball for 17:36 in the second half -- a rate that would've led the NFL in time of possession. the problem was the Colts were scoring at a ridiculous pace: three TD drives of 80 yards in two minutes or less (and another 41-yard drive in 1:28). even if Kansas City had managed to run off three more minutes, their defense was so bad it wouldn't have mattered.

- battle of the slot receivers. Hilton has gone from a one-trick pony to a legitimate game-breaker, thanks to better route-running and consistency. he was always fast, but it's the rest of his game that makes him dangerous now. KC did a great job isolating Bowe in the slot -- Colts' tried about three different combinations on him and couldn't stop him.

- that was as good as I've seen Alex Smith play. not purely because of the numbers or the accuracy, but the way he moved in the pocket (a shortcoming of his throughout his career).

- Pagano and Pep Hamilton need to ditch the "power running" theme and keep Luck in no-huddle, or at least three-wide. Hilton gets his best release off the line there and without Dwayne Allen, the heavy formations are too limited.

- running a toss sweep with Trent Richardson has to be one of the five lowest-percentage plays in the NFL. that cannot be called in a fucking playoff game ever. not even counting the fact that he threw the football on the ground untouched. Grigson needs to get over the battered spouse syndrome and keep him on the bench until next season.