The Sports Xchange

Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton admits the offense is falling far short of expectations and he should get the bulk of the blame — not quarterback Andrew Luck.

Luck earlier this week took “100 percent” of the blame for the Colts’ 0-2 start.

Hamilton said it is his responsibility to fix the problem.

“We have not done our job,” Hamilton said Thursday. “I have not put our guys in position to be successful and to put our guys in position to produce.”

The Colts are last in the league in scoring (10.5 per game) despite skill-position talent and one of the game’s best young quarterbacks in Luck.

“I have to do a better job of, first off, doing whatever I can to keep us out of the extreme passing situations,” Hamilton said. “We’ve had more first-and-20s, second-and-20s, a lot of long-yardage situations. Those situations are tough on any offensive unit, not just the offensive line. I have to find ways to make sure we’re more efficient and more productive on first and second down.

“We’ve gone no-huddle early and often throughout our first two games. But when you have a positive play and then it’s followed up by a self-inflicted negative, you’re going to have some long-yardage situations. It slows down the offense and makes it more of a challenge to get first downs.”

Indianapolis gave the ball away a total of eight times in its first two games, including five interceptions of Luck and a fumble he lost against the New York Jets. The high-powered Colts’ offense has five more turnovers than touchdowns.

On Wednesday, Luck was asked how much the 0-2 start falls on his shoulders.

“One hundred percent,” Luck said. “I have to improve. There are no excuses. … The fumble, the interceptions, I have direct control on what happens with the ball. As a quarterback, you do; it’s in your hands. I haven’t made the best decisions and missed some throws. Shoot, you work on it. You go out in practice and you work on it and see how you can do in the game.”