During his third season in the NFL, the 25-year-old wide receiver emerged as Andrew Luck's best option on a team that was supposed to be littered with talented receiving targets. Hilton matched his career high in receptions with 82 but surpassed his previous high in yardage by nearly 300 yards.
Hilton did that despite only playing 15 games during the regular season.Furthermore, Hilton barely played in the Colts' final regular-season game, as the franchise had already wrapped up its playoff position. Therefore, it could be argued that Hilton posted 82 receptions for 1,345 yards and seven touchdowns in the best part of 14 regular-season games.
Regardless of how the numbers break down, Hilton has clearly emerged as a vital piece of Pep Hamilton's offense. He is Luck's most dangerous and versatile receiver. Part of his rise has come about because of Hakeem Nicks' struggles, Reggie Wayne's injuries and Dwayne Allen's underwhelming return from injury. Only a small part, though.Like in previous seasons, Hilton has been a consistent deep threat from different areas of the field. He has still left some plays on the field, but for the most part, he is only getting more dangerous as he continues to develop as a route-runner. Beyond that section of his skill set, Hilton is also developing into a more well-rounded receiver.
Although he stands at just 5'9" and 178 pounds, Hilton is able to get open against any kind of defensive back. He relies on his quickness as well as his speed to exploit any inch of space that can be found on the field. With Andrew Luck throwing him the ball, he also doesn't need to create a huge amount of separation.
Against the Cincinnati Bengals in the Wild Card Round of this year's playoffs, Hilton caught six passes for 103 yards—a stat line that suggests he had an impressive day.
Yet, Hilton wasn't very impressive. Against the standards that he has earned by becoming the Colts' primary receiving threat, Hilton wilted in the biggest game of the season to that point. He had 103 yards, but he cost his quarterback a significant amount more than that by failing at the catch point on a number of occasions.
Against the Bengals, this was something the Colts could overcome. Against the Denver Broncos in Denver, with Peyton Manning on the other side of the field, this kind of inconsistency from such an important player will likely cost the Colts any chance of an upset victory.His initial catch allowed him to control the football, but it wasn't completely clean. When Hilton attempted to bring the ball into his body, it was loose in his grasp and arrived in his crotch rather than his stomach or chest.
Predictably, the ball fumbled through his hands and landed on the ground before Hilton could complete the catch.
If Hilton had completed the catch, he would have had plenty of time and space to turn upfield and walk in for a simple touchdown reception. This play would have given him one catch for five yards and a touchdown if Hilton hadn't failed to secure the football.
By not making these plays, Hilton potentially cost himself four receptions for 84 yards and two touchdowns.
While it's unrealistic to expect Hilton to catch every single pass that comes his way, each of these plays was one you would expect him to make. Furthermore, even if he only made half of these plays, he could still have had a significantly bigger impact on the game.
Luck is going to be under a lot of pressure against the Broncos because of their matchup advantages in the trenches. That should limit how many opportunities the passing attack has to create big plays down the field.
Source http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2323388-ty-hilton-must-rebound-for-colts-to-upset-broncos-in-divisional-playoffs
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