The Buffalo Bills handed the Houston Texans a Week 1 lesson that Indianapolis Colts coach Shane Steichen should have circled immediately.
Josh Allen and Joe Brady found a way to pick apart a defense that came into the season with a big reputation, and they did it in a way the Colts can study before their own divisional matchup. The Texans were supposed to be the group that carried Houston early, but the Bills flipped that script and made DeMeco Ryans’ defense look vulnerable.
One of the biggest clues was personnel. Buffalo kept multiple tight ends on the field and used that to keep the Texans’ spies from getting loose on Allen.
That mattered because Allen, much like Daniel Jones, can hurt a defense as a runner as well as a passer. He showed that again with a 20-yard scramble for a touchdown.
The Bills also made life miserable for Danielle Hunter, who finished with zero tackles and no sacks. Allen then kept the pressure on through the air, throwing for 334 yards and creating multiple explosive plays as Buffalo carved up the Texans.
Houston did have a chance to change the ending. Kamari Lassiter dropped a potential game-sealing interception before Allen connected with Joshua Palmer for the winning score. Plays like that do not happen every week, but the larger point still stood: the Texans did not look untouchable.
That is why this matters for Indianapolis. The Colts have the kind of roster that can try to replicate parts of Buffalo’s plan, even with a primetime meeting against the Kansas City Chiefs coming first. Their offensive line was uneven in Week 1, but it is usually a sturdy unit, and the Colts have enough pieces to make Houston work for every stop.
The bigger picture is simple enough. Week 1 can lie, and the Texans were a perfect example of that.
They were expected to be shaky on offense and dominant on defense, but the opener went the other way. For the Colts, that creates an opening - and a divisional road map.
It also raises the stakes in a hurry. Indianapolis cannot afford to stumble out of the gate against Kansas City and then stare at an 0-2 start with Houston waiting. A loss like that would put Steichen under heavy pressure, and it would only make the Texans game loom larger.
Still, the Bills’ performance offered more than just a one-week surprise. It suggested the league may have figured out how to attack Houston’s defense, and if that is the case, Ryans will need to start mixing in more disguised looks. Otherwise, he risks leaning on the same old-school approach and paying for it.
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Colts Have 3 Big Problems Chiefs Could Expose Right Away
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Now comes a Kansas City matchup that can make those concerns feel even larger if Indianapolis does not clean things up fast. The offense did not do enough to offset the defensive leaks, with Tyler Warren drawing multiple targets but making only a limited impact, and the special teams unit added to the frustration with a missed extra point and a kickoff return touchdown allowed. Against the Chiefs, the Colts will need far cleaner execution in all three phases just to keep the game from getting away early. [Read more 🡒]