The Colts can’t stop winning and won’t stop scoring. Even if you were quite optimistic about this team, like myself, there’s just no way you could have predicted this type of start. Let’s breakdown some of the key plays that led to Sunday’s dominant win.
Let’s start with this video game-ish run from Jonathan Taylor. Shane Steichen talked about this play at his press conference, but this is old school Iso.
This isn’t a creative play, this is a “let’s line up and play football” play. It’s as simple of a scheme as there is. But when you feel like you’re tougher, stronger, and more dominant at the Line of Scrimmage…. this is what you get.
Iso is a 2-back downhill man-scheme run. The OL is Big on Big and the FB will block the Mike linebacker.
In this case the OL is Big on Big to the Will LB. The SAM is on the line of scrimmage so the TE has him man-on. FB Tyler Warren has the Mike man on. The RB just follows the lead blocker to daylight.
The blocking get’s JT up on the safety, and that’s about where the play should probably be dead. Well, Jonathan Taylor makes an incredible cut, then a spin move, then high steps a third tackler…. just unfair.
The Pittman touchdown was one of my favorite plays of the game. It was so simple, yet so effective. The Titans in the high Red Zone (different teams have different definitions but let’s call it +20 to the +15) love to play Tampa 2 defense.
What is Tampa 2? In it’s simplest form, Tampa 2 is a way to “close the post” in Cover 2, which is the coverage’s most vulnerable area. The Mike LB will become a “middle runner’ and his job to open his hips to the passing strength of the formation and look to match any vertical route.
The downside to this defense? The Mike LB can’t make a play on any in-cut coming from the weak side of the formation because his hips are turned the wrong way.
So the Colts create a hi-lo on the LB to the boundary. He has to match Warren, so the Colts have the perfect opportunity to sneak a glance behind him and away from the middle runner.
It was a perfect call in that situation.
The Colts had multiple “throwback” style passes last week which I thought was interesting. A throwback pass is a movement style pass where the QB will setup outside the pocket and throw across the formation in the opposite direction from where he setup from.
I’ve heard this route called a bunch of different things, but let’s just call this a “nod post” route from Josh Downs. The Colts get a premiere look on this play. In single high coverage, the slot defender will always carry routes from outside leverage to maintain the structure of the coverage. On a normal post route, a nickel is fine playing it from outside leverage because he knows he has the safety’s help inside.
However, the movement paired with this play makes it tough for the safety. Everything about this play tells the post safety that it’s a movement pass toward the wide side of the feild.. Alec Pierce is coming on an over route, Josh Downs is running something deep, and Michael Pittman has something in the flat. He is fully expecting Downs to run a pylon or deep corner route here, so he is hustling to that side of the field. Downs sells it further by nodding at the top of his route to get that safety to further over-commit. From there Downs breaks it back inside and across the safety’s face and Jones has a ton of green grass to work with.
Including this because Tyler Warren is yet again the missing piece to this offense. Just look at the attention he commands. It opens everything else up for the offense.
The Colts have been rolling offensively and it’s been so study. Whenever something unexpected happens in the NFL, everyone wants to search for the WHY. I don’t think it’s one thing or one concept, but a plethora of things.
First and foremost, Jonathan Taylor and the Offensive Line are rolling. That’s keeping this offense on schedule which makes life easier on everyone. Anytime you’re in a manageable down and distance, you have your entire call sheet available to you. It’s really tough to be in 2 & 7+ and 3&7+ and expect to sustain drives and score points.
They have been able to pass on early downs and keep defenses off balance. They’ve been able to marry the run game up with an increase in nakeds, movements, screens, and play action shot plays.
They have a TE who’s opened everything up for them. It’s hard to really put into words how valuable a TE in three games has already proved to be one of the most valuable players on the offense. Teams can no longer push coverage away from the middle of the field. Teams have to treat him as an extra lineman in the run game and true receiver in the pass game.
Then obviously the QB who’s running the show. Daniel Jones has been extremely accurate. He’s played on time and in rhythm. But most importantly, he’s avoided negative plays. It’s as impressive of a three game stretch that he’s played in his entire career.
Despite how good things have been through three games, I still want to see how this team looks when they can’t play their brand of football all the time. Eventually they will have to punt, eventually they will get into some third and longs, and eventually they will have to play from behind two scores.
If they can rise to the occasion when adversity inevitably comes their way? There’s no reason not to believe this Colts team can’t do things that haven’t been done in years.
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