The Colts walked out of Pittsburgh with a loss that felt pretty easy to see coming, and the way it played out only sharpened the questions already hanging over this team. Coming back from London, then hitting the road to face a Steelers group coming off an embarrassing Thursday night loss, was always going to be a steep climb.
A win would have been impressive. Instead, the defeat got messy fast, especially on defense.
The biggest issue was the same one that keeps showing up: the communication isn’t getting cleaner. There was one rep that stood out as an immediate warning sign because a throw to the flat should never turn into a touchdown.
Yes, the tackling was poor and the effort to get to the football was not good enough. Mooney Ward also needs to do a better job fighting through the block.
But the breakdown started much earlier than that.
It was a basic NFL look: 2x2, no motion to shift the strength, no picks, no rubs. Warren was the hot answer into the flat, the “Fast #3.”
In zone match coverage, somebody has to account for that route. Some defenses “push” the flat to the nickel because he is in a better position to make the play.
Others have the linebacker match it. On this snap, Walley and Bryce Boettcher both played it like the other man had the assignment.
He didn’t, and Warren ended up uncovered in the hot.
Lou Anarumo said in his press conference that Bryce Boettcher had a technique issue on the play, which points to him being responsible for peeling and carrying the back into the flat.
That kind of bust is hard to shrug off. Nick Saban, Kirby Smart and Dan Lanning defenses often “push” a Fast #3 in Rip/Liz or 3 match coverage, so maybe Boettcher leaned on what he was used to doing at Oregon.
Either way, it is not acceptable, and it lands on both the coaching staff and the young players. This is the kind of look that ought to be second nature well before the season starts rolling.
The defensive problems don’t stop there, because the Colts are already backing away from their stated plan to get younger on that side of the ball. The addition of Germaine Pratt to the practice squad makes that pretty hard to ignore. Pratt has had some real bright moments for the Colts, including in the Chiefs game, but if he ends up playing meaningful snaps on Sunday, it is tough to call that anything other than a failure to stick to the offseason message.
That message was clear: “We need to get younger and faster on defense.” If the team is already moving away from that, it raises more questions than it answers.
It also adds to what has been a strange defensive construction all offseason. When the public line and the actual product start drifting apart this much, it usually means something bigger is off.
The most logical explanation is that this system is so different from what the Colts have been scouting for under Chris Ballard that the front office and the defensive staff aren’t aligned on what kind of players they want.
Not everything after the loss should be pinned on Daniel Jones, either. He got a fair amount of criticism, but the performance looked more encouraging than some made it sound.
The box score was not flattering, and nobody is pretending he was terrific. Still, he moved in the right direction.
The bigger problem was everything around him. The Colts lost up front, couldn’t run the ball, and once again dealt with the lack of receiver talent that has been an issue all season. Jones can be good enough to help win games, but asking him to drop back more than 40 times without a run game is not a recipe for success.
That is true for most quarterbacks. Unless a guy is truly elite, he needs help from the ground attack to survive.
The point is easy to see with Sam Darnold. The argument can be made that he is basically the same quarterback he was last year, but without Price and without a proper run game, the picture changes.
He is in an offensive setup that puts him under more pressure and forces tougher throws when the offense is behind the sticks.
The same applies to Jones and most quarterbacks in this league. The Colts need to do more to support him, and that means both the scheme and the talent around him.
In Other News...
Colts Suddenly Have A Tyler Warren Concern Before Week 6
The Colts entered the weekend with a familiar kind of late-week uncertainty, and it landed on one of their most important young playmakers. Tyler Warren was added to the injury report Friday after getting hurt in practice, turning what had been a normal build toward Week 6 into a sudden concern for Indianapolis as it prepares for the next step in its schedule.
Warren is listed as questionable, which leaves the Colts waiting to see how much they can count on the tight end before kickoff. For a team trying to keep momentum, any late addition to the report is worth watching, especially when it involves a player who has quickly become a central part of the offense. [Read more 🡒]
Colts' Defensive Overhaul Is Creating A Problem Fans Feared
Chris Ballard spent the offseason trying to remake the Colts defense into something younger and faster, but the first month-plus of the season has brought an uncomfortable tradeoff. Through five games, Indianapolis has not gotten the payoff it was chasing, and the run defense has been a particular problem as opponents have found more room on the ground than they did a year ago.
Some of that comes with the territory when a roster leans harder on developing players, and the Colts are still sorting out how the new pieces fit together in real games. The concern for fans is less about the concept of the overhaul and more about whether the current personnel is sturdy enough to hold up against the run while the younger players continue to grow into larger roles. [Read more 🡒]
Jonathan Taylor Faces A Frustrating Test Colts Fans Can't Ignore
Jonathan Taylors start has been quieter than Colts fans are used to, with the running back averaging 3.9 yards per carry and ranking 23rd in breakaway rate, according to PFF. The bigger concern is how that production has fit into an offense still searching for rhythm through the air, because when the passing game is sputtering, defenses can focus more attention on Taylor and make every carry feel harder than it should.
The next test comes against Tennessee, and it shapes up as a tough measuring stick for the ground game. The Titans have been stingy against the run this season, allowing just 3.5 yards per rush, and the matchup puts even more pressure on Indianapolis to find cleaner lanes and better balance if it wants Taylor to get back on track. [Read more 🡒]