ARLINGTON, Texas -- A few thoughts on the Indianapolis Colts' 42-7 loss Sunday to the Dallas Cowboys:

What it means: For the Colts, Sunday was about proving they belonged with the big boys. So much for that. By the end of the game, the only thing the Colts proved was they belong in the AFC South, where they can continue to beat up on the weak teams in their division. A sign of a bad afternoon started on the opening defensive series, when linebacker Jerrell Freeman got the stop on third down and seemingly forced the Cowboys to punt. Nope. Freeman got ahead of himself and was called for a taunting penalty, which gave Dallas a first down. The Cowboys made the Colts pay by scoring a touchdown five plays later. Then came one of those good-plays-if-completed, head-scratcher-if-you-fail moments for Indianapolis on its first offensive series. Punter Pat McAfee faked the punt and threw a pass to a wide-open Dewey McDonald. McDonald would have had the first down and more had he caught it. Unfortunately for the Colts, McDonald dropped the pass, which gave the Cowboys the ball at Indianapolis' 19-yard line. Dallas scored on the next play, and the rest of the afternoon was downhill for Indianapolis. The Colts didn't score until there was 5:24 left, when Matt Hasselbeck threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Zurlon Tipton. The 35-point deficit tied for the worst loss in the Andrew Luck-Chuck Pagano era.

Stock watch: The Colts entered the season talking about continuity on the offensive line. That's the last thing that has happened. Indianapolis used its ninth different starting lineup on the offensive line. Xavier Nixon was expected to start at right tackle for the injured Gosder Cherilus, but the surprise came with the little-used Khaled Holmes starting at center over A.Q. Shipley, who started the first four weeks of the season. Jonotthan Harrison, who replaced Shipley in Week 5, struggled in practice last week, which prompted the change.

Luck has worst game of career: Down 35-0, the Colts replaced Luck with Hasselbeck. Luck finished with the worst performance of his three-year career: 15-of-22 for 109 yards and a quarterback rating of 41.7. Luck increased his turnover total to 22 -- 16 interceptions and six fumbles lost. He forced a throw to tight end Coby Fleener in double coverage in the back in the end zone late in the first half. Luck's second interception came off a tipped pass.

Hilton sits: To no surprise, receiver T.Y. Hilton missed the game with a hamstring injury. Hilton worked out on the field before the game, but all signs pointed to him not playing when he didn't practice last week. Rookie Donte Moncrief started in Hilton's place and finished with two catches for 5 yards.

Game ball: There wasn't one Colts player who deserved praise. The NFL gets to take the game ball home for putting the Colts in the AFC South. They've dominated that division and won 12 straight games there. But as Sunday showed, the Colts aren't in the same class as other legitimate playoff teams. Indianapolis is 0-4 against Denver, Pittsburgh, New England and Dallas -- all teams headed to the playoffs.

What's next: The Colts wrap up the regular season on the road Sunday at the Tennessee Titans (2-13).