Week 6 preview: Colts (1-4) @ Jets (2-3)

With their fourth away contest in the first six games, Indianapolis will travel to MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ. Awaiting them will be a young Jets team coming off a big, 34-16 win against the Denver Broncos in week 5. This Jets team, led by rookie quarterback Sam Darnold, is a bit of a mystery. After destroying the Detroit Lions in week 1 by a score of 48-17, the Jets had been on a 3 game slide before their win against Denver.

Sam Darnold has just been so-so since taking the reins in week 1. His first career game started off great. Completing 76% of his passes and throwing 2 touchdowns in his debut, he seemed to be making a smooth transition to the NFL. Now having completed just 55.7% of his passes on the season, those stellar week 1 numbers have heavily declined. Darnold ranks 33rd among eligible quarterbacks in completion percentage, 21st in passing yards (1,066), and is tied for 20th in passing touchdowns with 7.

Where the Jets are succeeding however, is on the ground. New York has two of the top twenty running backs in Isaiah Crowell and Bilal Powell. Crowell, coming off a career high 219 rushing yards (15 carries) on Sunday, finds himself ranked 3rd in the NFL in yards (390), 2nd in yards per attempt (6.8), and tied for 2nd in touchdowns with 5. Powell adds another 264 yards (18th) on 59 carries, as a right hook in the Jets 1-2 punch.

The keys to success for Indianapolis, will be as follows:

1) Make the rookie throw: Taking away the running game, and forcing the Jets to be one-dimensional will be critical for a Colts defense who has given up 534 yards on the ground. With Sam Darnold’s passing stats not especially spectacular (7:6 TD/INT ratio), forcing him to throw is the Colts best chance at stopping this Jets offense. Hopefully, after a 10 day break between games, the Colts can return several starters. A brutal barrage of injuries has set them back for the past two games. With all of those injuries, Indianapolis only managed to get one quarterback pressure on Tom Brady in their week 5 game against the New England Patriots. After a few weeks of heartbreaking 4th quarter and overtime losses, the Colts are desperately searching for some good fortune.

2) Don’t drop the ball: Watching the Colts fall behind 24-3 in the first half of last week’s game was rough. Watching wide receiver Zach Pascal drop and deflect a pass that led to an interception on a potential game tying drive, was gut wrenching. Andrew Luck can’t be expected to catch his own passes, and this injury ridden Colts receiving core is dropping a lot of passes. Conservatively counting, the Colts have dropped over a dozen passes in the last two games. A few of those being first downs, while others were dropped in the end zone. Cleaning up the drops is a necessity any week, but especially now, due to Indianapolis being at the bottom of the AFC South and quickly falling out of playoff contention.

3) Control time of possession: Colts rank 30th in time of possession with an average of 27 minutes and 12 seconds, and over the last 3 games its hovered around 25 minutes. Less time with the ball, means less opportunities to put points on the board. What I think we would all like to see is a nice methodical approach, and long lasting drives that end in touchdowns.

4) Continued pass protection: Indianapolis has only given up 10 sacks this year, despite the carousel on the offensive line. Andrew Luck will see his fifth different offensive line this season on Sunday. Rookie guards, Quenton Nelson (6th overall pick) and Braden Smith (37th overall) have performed even better than anticipated and pass protection is excellent so far this year. Luck has had a clean pocket to pass from for most of the season. Solid run blocking however, has been hard to find. Indianapolis ranks 29th in average rushing yards per game (74.4), 27th in yards per attempt (3.7), and tied for 28th in rushing touchdowns with a single Nyheim Hines score. With the return of left tackle Anthony Castonzo and running back Marlon Mack this week, the Colts will hopefully have a boost in their rushing attack.

5) Rush the ball effectively: See point number 4. The Colts can’t seem to get out of their own way when it comes to running the ball. Sometimes it seems as if they’re being stuffed on every attempt, while other times they’ll be breaking off good chunks of yardage, but fumbles or holding penalties negate the good plays. The Colts need to find away to get pressure off of Luck so he won’t have to throw 50+ passes a game, and the easiest way to do that is finding a way tote the rock.

Overall, I think this game will be a grind, but as long as the defense can contain the run, I have Indianapolis squeaking out a win late.

I’m calling this one 23-20 Indianapolis.

Photo Credit: Colts.com

Inactive list for the Colts grows to 9

Both cornerback Nate Hairston and standout rookie linebacker Darius Leonard have been listed as OUT for Thursday Night Football. This leaves Indianapolis extremely vulnerable. Already missing other stars, such as wide receiver T.Y. Hilton and tight end Jack Doyle, Indianapolis has become a shell of what they were just a few days ago. The Colts are only able to dress 44 players tonight due to the barrage of injuries (46 are allowed).

Good news however, left tackle Anthony Castonzo will make is season debut, after missing the first four weeks with a hamstring issue. The Colts will need all the help they can get, as they go into Foxboro as 10.5 point underdogs.

Colts hobble into Thursday as 7 players declared out

With fans still trying to cope with the questionable call that led to an Indianapolis loss on Sunday, another game has quickly arrived. Tomorrow evening, the Colts will face the New England Patriots. Well…most of the Colts. With a lengthy list of injuries, Indianapolis’ biggest obstacle on Thursday will be keeping their players healthy. Multiple positions have been spread thin due to injuries, not to mention the unfortunate loss of tackle Denzelle Good, who will miss an undisclosed amount of time while coping with the death of his brother.

Those missing time with injury are as follows:

T.Y. Hilton (chest/hamstring)- Hilton is Indianapolis’ leading receiver with 294 yards. Normally a picture of health, this will be only the third game Hilton has missed in his 7 year career. Wide receivers Ryan Grant and Chester Rogers are expected to split Hilton’s would be snaps. Running back Nyhiem Hines may find more time in the slot, to give more receiving options to Andrew Luck. He’ll look to build on Sunday’s team leading 9 reception, 2 touchdown performance.

Marlon Mack (hamstring)-Mack has only played in one game this season, but it was a good one. Playing in the Colts’ lone victory against the Redskins, Mack tallied 10 carries for 34 yards and a single reception for 2 yards. While the numbers aren’t impressive, his big play ability from last year has been, and will be missed.

Jack Doyle (hip)- Indianapolis’ leader in receptions from a year ago has had a rough start to 2018. After fumbling away the ball on a potential game winning drive in week one, Doyle had a very average outing against Washington where his injury occurred. Putting up just 9 receptions for 80 yards this year, Doyle’s production has been severely missed.

Quincy Wilson (concussion)-The injury bug has plagued this young cornerback his whole career. In just his second season, nagging injuries have limited Wilson to just 9 games (out of a possible 21). In two games played this season, he has tallied just one tackle.

Kenny Moore II (concussion)-Moore has logged an interception, 1 pass deflection and 14 tackles this season. Starting all 4 games for the Colts this year, Moore will be missed in a group of inexperienced group of corners that will try to slow down the likes of Patriots receivers Josh Gordon and Julian Edelman (who makes his return from a four week suspension this week).

Hassan Ridgeway (calf)-A preseason stud who hasn’t stayed healthy, Ridgeway just hasn’t been lucky so far this season. After tallying 4 sacks in the first two weeks of the preseason, Ridgeway’s only regular season action came during substitution work in a week 2 win over the Washington Redskins. Ridgeway hasn’t logged anything on the stat sheet yet this season, but when healthy, he can be a valuable rotational player on the defensive line (3 sacks in 2017).

Colts sit at 1-3 as they prepare to face Patriots on Thursday night

This past Sunday, head coach Frank Reich may have made the best, bad decision in the history of Colts football. Facing a 4th and 4 on their own 43 yard line in OT, Frank Reich chose to gamble. He chose to put the game in his best player’s hands, but unfortunately Luck (and Chester Rogers) couldn’t deliver. Three plays later, the Houston Texans would take the victory on a Ka’imi Fairbairn 37 yard field goal.

Sometimes though, it’s what you learn in losses that make you a better, more resilient team. By taking that shot, and putting his confidence in the offense to go make a play, Frank Reich now has everyone on the same page. This head coach doesn’t want to dwell on the what if’s, he wants it black and white. Win or lose, no grey areas. He wants his team to be aggressive. He wants his team to have, “an obsession to finish”.

With the Colts now at 1-3, it’s left many fans disgruntled. Critical turnovers, some key injuries, and costly penalties have shown that missing a couple of the little things are what can turn a spotless record into one that’s sub par. In week one, it was a Jack Doyle fumble, in week 3 it was penalties and poor execution in the red zone, and week 4 it was 14 points given up off of turnovers.

Now the Colts will go to Foxboro, and kick off week 5 action Thursday against the New England Patriots. This will be their toughest test so far. It won’t be tough for the obvious reasons of New England playing at home, or because Tom Brady is under center for the Pats. The game will be tough because there’s an urgency to win, and a stigma that says the Colts can’t/won’t win this game. The media says they won’t, the fans say they won’t, the casinos say they won’t, and history says they won’t. The Colts haven’t beaten the Patriots this decade, as New England has gone 7-0 in their matchups since 2010. Andrew Luck, who entered the league in 2012, is 0-5 in those matchups.

Maybe it’s time for a Colts win. At 2-2, New England isn’t exactly playing their best football. They still have Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, but something seems a bit off. Aside from their week 4 win over the Miami Dolphins, they look out of sync. Taking losses to Detroit and Jacksonville, they’ve shown that they have weaknesses, and that they aren’t the super heroes they have been in the past.

If Indianapolis can play its best game of the season, they just might have a shot at taking out the Patriots and beginning a string of victories. After Thursday, they’ll have two games against rookie quarterbacks (Sam Darnold-Jets and Josh Allen-Bills), and then head to Oakland to play a Raiders team that seems to lack an identity since trading away Khalil Mack. Those 3 teams only have 3 wins collectively (3-9 overall). This could put Indianapolis in a more reasonable spot when they hit the bye in week 9.

Before the “easy” games though, the Colts have an opportunity to stick it to Josh McDaniels who left them at the alter during the off-season coaching search. Who better to help them, than the former Eagles offensive coordinator, Frank Reich, who beat them in the Super Bowl in February? They also have the opportunity to make this a rivalry again, because let’s be honest…there has been nothing resembling competitiveness in this series for almost a decade.

This week, I’m predicting more of the same in this series. Indianapolis came out of the Texans game really banged up. On Monday, they had 8 players who didn’t practice, and several more on a limited practice. That may seem natural for a Monday any other week, but knowing that they play Thursday night is cause for concern. It’s not rotational players getting injured either, it’s the starters. Notable injuries on the Did Not Practice list are as follows:

Wide Receiver-T.Y. Hilton (chest/hamstring)

Tight End-Jack Doyle (hip)

Linebacker-Darius Leonard (ankle)

Center-Ryan Kelly (hand)

Cornerback-Nate Hairston (ankle)

Defensive Tackle-Hassan Ridgeway (calf)

Cornerback-Quincy Wilson (concussion)

Cornerback-Kenny Moore (concussion)

With these big names here, and several others, such as left tackle Anthony Castonzo (hamstring) practicing on a limited basis, the Colts are in trouble if they can’t find a magic healing elixir by Thursday.

IND: 20 NE: 38

Photo credit: USA Today Sports

Castonzo, Autry, and Mack get updates on status for Sunday @ Redskins

After starting the week with high hopes and a confident demeanor, Colts left tackle Anthony Castonzo suffered an unfortunate setback late Wednesday. He was listed as a non participant on Thursday, and was downgraded to OUT on Friday afternoon. Dealing with a nagging hamstring injury for much of the preseason and week one, the Colts starter will miss his second game in a row, after starting every game over the past two seasons. Week one was the first time Andrew Luck had been without his star tackle in Luck’s 71 game career. This puts Indianapolis in a precarious spot at offensive line. Injuries to tackle/guard Denzelle Good (knee/wrist), J’Marcus Webb (hamstring), and now Castonzo (hamstring), have limited the offensive line depth rather significantly. Joe Haeg may get his second career start at left tackle against the Redskins, although 3rd year man Le’Raven Clark is listed on the depth chart directly behind Anthony Castonzo. Clark has started just 8 games out of a possible 24 in his career. He did not see the field in week one against the Cincinnati Bengals.

One of the Colts’ offseason acquisitions was injured Wednesday. Defensive tackle/end, Denico Autry aggravated his ankle during practice. Last Sunday, Autry played as a rotational defensive end, as he tallied one tackle and two quarterback hurries. His status has been downgraded to OUT for the week two matchup. With Autry not playing, look for Hassan Ridgeway and Grover Stewart to fill in during his absence.

Saving the good news for last, Colts running back Marlon Mack took part in his first full practice of the 2018 regular season on Friday. After working his way back from a hamstring injury suffered in the Colt’s first preseason game, he will likely see his first game action in week two. Even if Mack does see the field this weekend, he’ll likely be splitting playing time with Jordan Wilkins (14 carries/3 receptions week one), and rookie Nyheim Hines (5 carries/7 receptions week one). The running back by committee approach should help Mack ease back into a larger workload, which will be especially relevant, given the potential of rainy field conditions at FedEx Field on Sunday.

Colts lineman returns

Indianapolis left tackle Anthony Castonzo cheered up a lot of fans and teammates yesterday afternoon. While talking to the media Wednesday, Castonzo was quoted saying there is, “no question” that he’ll be playing this weekend against the Washington Redskins. With the loss of right tackle J’Marcus Webb (hamstring) on Monday, and the early season absence of guard/tackle Denzelle Good (knee/wrist), the Colts were hurting for quality at the tackle position. Last week, right tackle Joe Haeg started in place of Castonzo, in what was his first career start at the left tackle position. However, Haeg did have experience at left tackle while in college at North Dakota State. He started 31 straight games, and protected the blindside of current Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz. Now that Anthony Castonzo has returned to the starting lineup, Haeg is expected to return to the right tackle position where he has started 29 games in his NFL career. Now healthy, the Colts offensive line will have to battle the likes of Pro Bowl defensive end/linebacker Ryan Kerrigan, second year defensive end Jonathan Allen, and rookie nose tackle Da’Ron Payne.

Photo Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports