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 1-3; Quarterly review

The first quarter of the 2018 season is over. A somber tone has set in amongst the Colts fan base. Some fans are already calling it in, and are optimistic for next year, while others still cling onto small shreds of hope and pride. Sunday was a heartbreaker. After battling back from an 18 point deficit, the Colts could only watch, as Houston Texans kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn nailed a 37 yarder to win in overtime. Now Indianapolis finds themselves at 1-3, and last place in the AFC South. Weeks 1-4 weren’t pretty, but there are pieces to build on moving forward.

1) Andrew Luck’s shoulder is healthy, and this past Sunday was proof. 40 completions on 64 attempts for 464 yards (all career highs) 4 touchdowns and 0 interceptions against Houston. He played as well as you could as for, against a solid defensive team in the Houston Texans. Yes, there were some early miscues, but overall, this was classic Andrew Luck, and let’s hope he’s here to stay.

2) Nyheim Hines is stepping up as a quality receiving back. Whether it’s snaps from the slot, or coming out of the backfield, Hines has shown that he belongs in this Indianapolis offense. At 22 receptions after four weeks, the rookie is on pace to catch 88 passes this year. That production will likely taper off, as I don’t see Luck throwing 62 passes again anytime soon; However, it’s good to see Luck has found another reliable target.

3) It’s not just Darius Leonard making noise on the defense. While the rookie did perform admirably on Sunday, several others joined in what was a festival of sacks on Houston quarterback Deshaun Watson. Indianapolis sacked Watson 7 times with 8 Colts registering at least 0.5 sacks on the day. They also registered 11 tackles behind the line of scrimmage and 11 quarterback hits. Indianapolis also recorded 2 pass deflections and an interception by cornerback Pierre Desir.

My grade for this quarter is D+. While there are plenty of positive takeaways, the Colts need to finish their work. 17 sacks in 4 weeks is great, a 9:3 TD to INT ratio for Luck is great, but it means nothing if they don’t register W’s.

The Colts do however have something to work with. They have a foundation, a ton of young talent, and a bunch of cap space to make waves in the off-season or potentially before the trade deadline. With whispers of trade interest in Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell have being heard, as well as, the need for wide receiver help, the Colts look like a potential landing spot for big acquisitions. While Indianapolis general manager Chris Ballard has long been focused on building the team through the draft, you have to wonder if he’ll want to spend at least some of the Colts’ hard earned nest egg. Names like Bell and Dez Bryant have been tossed around, but plenty of big names are set to be on the free agent market in 2019. Names like Green Bay wide receiver Randall Cobb, Detroit wide receiver Golden Tate, Dallas defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, and Houston outside linebacker Jedeveon Clowney are all set to be unrestricted free agents. It’s hard to predict what Ballard will do, but it’s fun to think about the possibilities.