Stampede Blue’s own, Clydesdales, presented the Indianapolis Colts season in a vacuum from the positive side. That may be all well and good, but let’s take a look from the inverse. As he put it, we are entering the “when it matters phase” and the luster has certainly worn off the feel good story that was the Colts. Still at 8-3 but losers of two out of three with another close call and a schedule that will make stomachs turn, the season has taken on a new type of feel. Let’s discover why things might not be so rosey for the Colts.
Starting with the record, the Colts are 8-3 but who have they played? The Raiders, Dolphins, and Titans twice? Oh boy. The three losses were on the road and tough, but the Colts dropped them all. A great team finds a way to win one of those. Not only didn’t they win but they had ample opportunity to do so. Mental errors against the Rams, five turnovers to the Steelers, and a fourth quarter meltdown to the Chiefs. Good teams and even pretty good ones can find ways to lose those but not great teams with Super Bowl aspirations.
Statistics are fine but let’s talk about the eye test. In two of the last three, Jonathan Taylor has been shut down. Daniel Jones has handled the brunt of it and has shown cracks in his armor. Sacks, pressure, and turnovers have ratcheted up big time. The historic offense has turned anemic. To look at the season in a vacuum is fine, but one must consider the whole product and what we have seen as of late. This is not the same offense. A fractured fibula could be to blame, but that’s a story for another day.
The defense has been suspect all year. With Deforest Buckner out, things haven’t been as solid upfront. Getting off the field on third down has been a challenge, and the lack of consistent pressure on the quarterback has reared its ugly head too often to count. The linebackers are getting swallowed up in coverage and are the weakest unit by far. Sometimes the defense will bend but not break, but go back to the losses in which the defense could have salvaged the game with a critical stop or turnover. It really isn’t there.
The Colts may still be at the top as playoff favorites according to Vegas, but they could have a chokehold on this division if they had taken care of business in at least two of those losses. Two games apiece against the Texans and Jaguars puts them in a dogfight the rest of the way. Throw in two NFC playoff teams and things are tough. A 3-3 split seems likely, but where does that put them at season’s end? Will it be enough to consider things a success?
Look, this was the inverse opinion and while some takes may be overly harsh, are they untrue? Seasons are full of ups and downs. The Colts could spring back, but they are certainly in a bit of a dip. There are a lot of questions going forward about whether this is sustainable as the schedule exponentially increases in difficulty. The Colts control most of their own destiny, but they better tighten the grip or risk losing control.
See More:
