If Week 5 between the Indianapolis Colts and the Pittsburgh Steelers turns into a slopfest, the weather will be doing a lot of the damage.
Acrisure Stadium is set up for a heavy dose of rain, with the remnants of Hurricane Isaias still pushing plenty of precipitation toward Pittsburgh. What started as a Category 3 storm in the Gulf of Mexico is now a basic weather system, but it’s still packing enough rain to matter, especially with kickoff set for 1 pm ET.
The timing is the problem. The Weather Channel is calling for nearly a 90 percent chance of rain from 6 am ET to 12 pm ET, which means the worst of it is expected right before the game begins. Even if the heaviest stuff moves through before kickoff, the field should still be extremely wet, and there’s also a chance of more precipitation while the game is being played.
Wind, at least, doesn’t look like the main issue. Forecasts call for no more than 10 mph, so the bigger concern is a slick football and a soaked surface rather than conditions that would blow passes off target.
That matters because Colts quarterback Daniel Jones has been battling turnover problems for a while now. Over his last nine games, dating back to last season, he has turned it over 15 times.
This year alone, he already has seven turnovers in four games, including three fumbles. That’s been a recurring issue for Jones, both early in his career and again recently.
Pittsburgh is built to take advantage of that kind of mistake. The Steelers are second in the league in turnovers forced with eight, and four of those have come via fumbles. TJ Watt, in particular, is exactly the kind of edge rusher who can make life miserable for a quarterback holding the ball in bad weather.
On paper, the Colts have the better roster overall, while Pittsburgh is the more modest team. But if Jones coughs it up in a wet, messy game - especially deep in his own end of the field - the Steelers could drag this into a low-scoring upset-type battle.
That’s why the early rain matters so much. If the precipitation lets up in time and the field holds up, the Colts’ talent edge becomes more relevant. If not, this one could get ugly in a hurry.
In Other News...
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There is a little history here for Colts fans to keep in mind, too. Gardner has already shown he can disrupt Metcalf when their paths cross, even if his season so far has not matched his best work, which makes this one of those matchups worth watching closely for Indianapolis. When a receiver sounds this unconcerned and a corner has something to prove, the first few snaps can tell you a lot about where the day is headed. [Read more 🡒]
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Aaron Rodgers threw three touchdown passes to keep Pittsburgh on schedule, and the decisive plays came from Jaylen Warren, who repeatedly turned routine opportunities into damaging gains. Indianapolis will be left sorting through another one of those games it had a real chance to win, with the late breakdowns overshadowing the positives and leaving the Colts with more frustration than answers. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Suddenly Have A Big Defensive Void Before Steelers Game
The Colts are heading into Sundays matchup with Pittsburgh already having to patch together their depth chart on both sides of the ball. Arden Keys absence leaves a noticeable hole on the edge, while Darius Slayton was downgraded to out and Indianapolis brought Nick Westbrook-Ikhine up from the practice squad to help at receiver. It is the kind of late-week shuffle that can quietly change how a game is approached, especially for a team still trying to manage other injuries.
Jaylon Carlies and Ashton Dulin are also out, and Keenan Allen along with Charvarius Ward Sr. are both listed as questionable, so the Colts will have to navigate the game with several moving parts. Pittsburgh has its own injury concerns as well, which may make availability as important as matchup plans when the teams kick off. [Read more 🡒]