The Colts got what looked like a gift in Week 4 and, after some early sloppiness, they cashed it in.
Indianapolis beat the Commanders 30-13 in London to move to 2-2, but the final score did not tell a perfectly clean story. The Colts had to work through early turnovers, then leaned on defense, physical running and a much steadier approach than Washington’s. In the end, they were simply the more fundamental team.
That showed up everywhere. The Colts finished with just one penalty for 5 yards, while the Commanders were flagged 10 times for 84 yards. Some of those Washington penalties came in critical spots, and that kind of edge mattered in a game that took a while to tilt fully in Indianapolis’ favor.
The run game helped settle things down once the Colts found their footing. Jonathan Taylor posted 95 rushing yards on 20 carries and scored two touchdowns, his best day on the ground since the Colts played in Germany last November.
Rookie Seth McGowan also made his mark with six carries for 31 yards, even if the box score doesn’t fully capture how important his second effort was on a fourth-and-1 in the first half. Spencer Shrader’s leg did its part, too.
The defense made sure the opportunity didn’t slip away. DeForest Buckner kept playing like himself, and Adetomiwa Adebawore continued to flash as an interior rusher, including a key sack on an early third-and-goal that forced a field goal try.
Jerry Tillery also came through by blowing up a fourth-and-1 in the first half. That interior pressure has mattered because the edge rush hasn’t delivered much playmaking.
The Colts also finally got a turnover after six halves without one. Early in the third quarter, on a third-and-12 to open the half, Jaylon Carlies made a strong athletic play for an interception. Indianapolis turned that into seven points and pushed the lead to 17-6, which felt like a major turn given Washington’s quarterback situation.
The quarterback play on the Colts’ side was still a problem. Daniel Jones entered Sunday with the third-most turnovers of any quarterback in the league and added two more giveaways in the first half.
He finished 19-of-34 for 143 yards and one interception. He spent too much time throwing off his back foot, and the offense didn’t create enough outside of the mistakes.
The questions around Jones remain, and the early-season turnover issue is the biggest one. The Colts are 2-2, but their starter has not played well.
That makes the result feel a little complicated. Indianapolis is now two straight wins after dropping nine in a row, and the record looks better.
But this was also a game the Colts could not afford to lose, especially with Washington so banged up. The Commanders’ injury situation was severe enough that the comparison made the Colts’ own absences look absurd on paper.
Even so, the win does not suddenly make Indianapolis look like a polished playoff team.
Sauce Gardner’s afternoon was another concern. He was beaten deep twice for huge gains, including a third-quarter touchdown, and later drew a third-down holding penalty while covering Burks.
That came against a Washington passing attack missing most of its key pieces, which makes the performance even harder to ignore. For a player the Colts invested so heavily in, this was nowhere near good enough.
The Colts leave London at 2-2 and head to Pittsburgh next week, but the bigger takeaway is that the team still has a lot to clean up. The defense has some playoff-caliber pieces, especially up front.
The rest of it? Not there yet.
The biggest pressure point remains quarterback play, and until that improves, the Colts will keep living with more questions than a 30-13 win should normally create.
In Other News...
Colts Fans Got Dragged Into The Jason Kelce Backlash Too
Jason Kelces growing presence around the NFL has started to follow the Colts into their own broadcast footprint. During the teams game against Washington in London, Kelce debuted as a color commentator for NFL Networks International Games, adding another high-profile platform to a list that already includes a widely aired YouTube TV commercial and a weekly podcast with his brother Travis.
The reaction from viewers was not especially warm, and some Colts fans took to social media to vent about the extra airtime and a player-name mistake on the broadcast. For a fan base watching its team overseas, the chatter around Kelce became part of the backdrop, turning a normal international showcase into another reminder of how quickly a familiar media face can become a lightning rod. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Suddenly Have A Marvin Harrison Jr. Scenario Worth Watching
A rookie wide receiver of Marvin Harrison Jr.s pedigree is already drawing attention around the league, and not just because of his draft status. Through his first three games with the Cardinals, the No. 4 overall pick has had limited production, enough to spark trade rumors and push ESPNs Adam Schefter to report that teams are doing due diligence ahead of the November deadline.
For the Colts, that creates a scenario worth monitoring even if nothing appears imminent. Any conversation about Harrison will quickly turn into a search for the right fit, the right fit in the wrong place, and the kind of roster math that can make a big-name move feel possible before the deadline arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Jonathan Owens And The Colts Just Got A Huge London Spotlight
Simone Biles has become one of the most visible supporters in the Colts orbit this season, showing up at games to back husband Jonathan Owens as he settles in with Indianapolis after stops with the Texans, Packers and Bears. Her latest appearance drew plenty of attention overseas, where she was spotted in London wearing a trench coat featuring Owens No. 38, a fittingly bold nod to a player whose NFL journey has already taken him across several teams.
For the Colts, any extra spotlight in London only adds to the intrigue around Owens new home. He has been in the league long enough to know how quickly a fresh setting can change the conversation, and Biles presence has only amplified the attention around his latest chapter. The bigger picture now is how much more of that international stage the Colts and Owens can keep turning into their own. [Read more 🡒]