When the game ended, several players hugged Pagano on the sideline. Pagano then jogged to the tunnel, pointing to the crowd and tapping his chest several times.
Zach Mettenberger, who is 0-10 as a starter, ran for one touchdown but was 5 of 13 for 38 yards with an interception before leaving with a hand injury. Backup Alex Tanney, who spent most of the season on Indy's practice squad, finished the game and threw a late TD pass.
Pagano, who is 41-23 and has made three playoff appearances, is expected to meet with team owner Jim Irsay on Monday.

"Hell yeah we want (Chuck) back," safety Mike Adams said. "Given the circumstances, and how we fought,MLB Jerseys From China, the way we came out, (Chuck) should be back."
"I tried to do everything I could. I felt we got a lot accomplished," said Mularkey, who was 2-7 in the interim job. "Obviously,Wholesale NHL Jerseys, I'd like to have an opportunity to sit down and talk about it. I think we're very close here, and I'd like to help make that happen."
Tennessee (3-13) lost its last four to secure the top draft pick.
"I thought the first five minutes of the second half is what broke us. We made a game of it at the end, but that didn't help,Wholesale Jerseys US," Titans interim coach Mike Mularkey said. "Today was a good description of the year."
Together, they made it work.
One fan held a sign that read "Chuckstrong," a phrase that was used during Pagano's battle with leukemia in 2012. Another fan used blue face paint to write the words "Chuck Stay" on his forehead.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Tennessee came to Indianapolis looking for anything that would provide some offseason momentum.
Freeman was 15 of 28 with 149 yards,Cheap NFL Jerseys, one TD and one interception. Lindley was 6 of 10 with 58 yards and threw an 18-yard TD pass with the 13 seconds left in the first half to give the Colts a 20-14 lead.
So the coaching staff split the workload. They asked Freeman, a former first-round pick, to learn the regular offense and Lindley to figure out the two-minute drill.
But that didn't matter to a team that has lost nine straight in this series and now must await a decision on whether Mularkey will be back.
NOTES: Indy's Adam Vinatieri made three field goals and finished the season with 107 points, extending his NFL record of 100-point seasons to 18. ... Colts running back Frank Gore ran 19 times for 76 yards and became the 15th player in league history with 12,000 yards rushing. ... Walker finished the season with 94 catches and 1,088 yards. ... Safety Damion Stafford left the game with a broken arm.
Indy could have made the playoffs with a Houston loss — and if seven other games fell exactly the right way.
Instead, the Texans' 30-6 victory over Jacksonville ended that hope and perhaps coach Chuck Pagano's tenure in Indy.
But with Pagano's contract set to expire, this not just another game.
The consolation prize was getting the No,NFL Jerseys China. 1 overall draft pick.
Just plain tough.
The Colts avoided their first losing season since 2011 but didn't get enough help to make the playoffs. Now they, like the Titans, are waiting to learn the fate of their coach.
They didn't look close against Indy's backups.
"To sit there and go 5-3 with Matt Hasselbeck at quarterback and then to pull off, I don't know if this has ever happened before in the history of the National Football League, where you bring in two guys off the street and basically get three days to prepare these guys and go win a football game," Pagano said.
Indy (8-8) needed two wins to stay in the playoff hunt and managed to get both despite using four different quarterbacks including two, Freeman and Lindley, who were signed Tuesday after spending the whole season out of the NFL.
The past two weeks might be the most creative coaching Pagano has done in his four-year tenure.
Two recently-signed Colts quarterbacks each threw a touchdown pass in the first half and Jerrell Freeman opened the second half by returning an interception 23 yards for a score to give Indianapolis a 30-24 victory in the season finale.
Delanie Walker caught nine passes for 94 yards to become the first Titans' tight end with a 1,000-yard season and only the ninth tight end in league history with 90 or more catches in a season. He finished with 94 catches and 1,088 yards.