Perhaps the most telling part of Andrew Luck's night came after he got sacked. The Indianapolis Colts rookie quarterback had just thrown an interception that was returned for a score, and now, deep in his own territory and trailing 14-0, Luck faced second-and-15 in the shadow of his own goal posts.
He hit Reggie Wayne over the middle for 9 yards, then picked up the first down to Dwayne Allenon a quick-hitter. Then Wayne for 14. Then Coby Fleener for 24. Eventually Donald Brown would score on a dive, but the narrative was set: The kid can bounce back.
Yes, it's preseason and largely meaningless. But Luck showed his ability to fight with his back against the wall, and when he gets rolling, he's tough to stop.
Indianapolis, however, would fall to the Pittsburgh Steelers 26-24.
Here are other notes from Sunday night's game:
Too many injuries: There is growing concern surrounding wide receiver Austin Collie, who left the game in the first quarter with an apparent concussion. Collie had two concussions in 2010 that ended his season. He underwent tests in the locker room, but there has been no word yet on a diagnosis.
In addition to Collie, a couple others went down, as well, and they also could be damaging. Defensive end Cory Redding -- who missed the opener with an elbow injury -- will have an MRI on his knee and ankle, though, according to the Indianapolis Star, head coach Chuck Pagano doesn't believe the injuries to be serious. Also, OLB Robert Mathis left the game with a shoulder strain.
Pass-catching: After only being targeted once in the preseason opener against the Rams, 12th-year wide receiver Reggie Wayne had six catches for 74 yards. On the other side of the fence, undrafted rookie Griff Whalen had four catches for 54 yards and a score. Whalen and Luck played together last season at Stanford.
Defense shows up: Jerrell Freeman, replacement of the injured Pat Angerer, had three tackles and a forced fumble, while OLB Jerry Hughes followed up his solid game against the Rams with another good one, getting six tackles (two for a loss) and a sack.
Safety Antoine Bethea intercepted a Ben Roethlisberger pass. Though it's nice to see the Indianapolis secondary make a play against Roethlisberger and the Steelers' starters, it was a terrible read and a terrible pass.
Running hard: Rookie RB Vick Ballard is a long shot to supplant starting RB Donald Brown, but Ballard looked solid between the tackles Sunday night. He finished with 10 carries for 34 yards, and he and Brown will split time in the backfield.
Oh yeah, and also: The Colts ran the option. It worked. Luck scored on the 1-yard run. This is worth mentioning because the Colts ran the option. With Andrew Luck.
Still got it: Perhaps lost in Luck's furious field-goal drive at the end of the first half was kicker Adam Vinatieri making a 53-yard field goal. He's still got a leg.
For more up-to-the-minute news and analysis from Colts blogger Evan Hilbert, follow @CBSSportsNFLIND.
