The Indianapolis Colts finally gave their defense a reason to breathe on Sunday.
After two weeks of getting carved up, the unit that looked lost against the Ravens and Chiefs showed up against the Texans and played like a different group. That matters because the early numbers had been ugly. The Colts opened 0-2, and a lot of that mess landed on a defense that was, by the source’s own description, “last in the league in almost every category atrocious.”
The turnaround was impossible to miss. Indianapolis had to switch green dot duties after the first game, which tells you how shaky things were to start the season.
Then came the back-to-back beatings: 503 yards allowed against the Ravens and 523 against the Chiefs. Baltimore hung 41 points on them, Kansas City put up 33, and even with that Chiefs game going to overtime, the Colts were still spending way too much time trying to survive instead of defend.
Against Houston, though, the picture changed fast. The Texans came in with some offensive production already on the résumé - 381 yards and 31 points against the Bills in Week 1, then 378 yards even in a 6-point loss to the Bengals - and Indianapolis held them to 223 yards. DeForest Buckner was in beast-mode, and the rest of the defense fed off it.
It wasn’t perfect. The Colts got shaky late and gave up a touchdown that flipped the lead.
But compared with what had come before, this was a huge step forward. The question now is whether this was a one-game spike or the real version of the defense.
The answer probably sits somewhere in the middle, though the source sees it as closer to what showed up against Houston than what got exposed in Week 1. The Chiefs game was better than the opener, but in regulation Indianapolis still gave up 27 points and nearly 400 yards. That’s not a clean performance, but against Kansas City, it was at least moving in the right direction.
For the Colts to have any kind of season, this is the defense they need - not the version that spent the first two weeks getting run over.
In Other News...
Spencer Shrader Fought Through More Than Colts Fans Realized
Spencer Shrader gave Colts fans a performance worth remembering, drilling four field goals from 39, 58, 37, and 53 yards in a single game while carrying an injury he picked up during warmups. It was the kind of quiet, steady day that can change the shape of a game, and it also offered a reminder that kickers often spend just as much time managing pain and pressure as they do putting points on the board.
Shrader spoke about the mental side of kicking and the path that brought him here, including growing up near the Colts and working his way to the NFL. For Indianapolis, that background adds another layer to what looked like a clean outing on the scoreboard, because it turns out the success came with more behind-the-scenes grit than many in the stadium realized. [Read more 🡒]
Colts May Be Running Out Of Anthony Richardson Options
The quarterback market got a little more complicated with Minnesota sending J.J. McCarthy to the Giants for a 2027 fifth-round pick, a move that ripples beyond those two teams and into Indianapolis. For the Colts, it is another reminder that the value of young passers can shift quickly, even when the player in question is no longer in line to start. Anthony Richardson remains in a backup role, but his name still sits in the trade conversation because of his age, draft pedigree and the uncertainty around his long-term fit.
For Indianapolis, though, the bigger issue may be whether there is enough real interest to make a deal worthwhile. Richardson has been discussed as a potential trade candidate, but the pool of teams willing to make a meaningful offer could be thinning rather than growing. If that is the case, the Colts may end up doing what once seemed unlikely and simply holding onto him, even as the league keeps searching for the next quarterback bargain. [Read more 🡒]
Colts May Have Found A Defensive Answer At The Perfect Time
Adetomiwa Adebawore gave the Colts a timely jolt in Week 3, flashing the kind of interior pass-rush burst that can change a game in a hurry. In just 15 snaps against the Texans, he piled up four pressures and 1.5 sacks, a strong reminder that his growth as a disruptive force up front is no longer just a projection. For a defense looking for answers early in the season, that kind of production stands out.
The Colts are 1-2, and the schedule ahead figures to keep testing them in different ways, from offenses built on the pass to groups that lean on a more varied attack. Adebawores development, and the likelihood that his role keeps growing, gives Indianapolis a useful piece at exactly the right moment. If he keeps affecting quarterbacks the way he did last week, the Colts may have found a defensive spark they can lean on. [Read more 🡒]