Knee-jerk reactions: Colts pull of come-from-behind win, move to 4-3 after 16-10 win over Dolphins

The Indianapolis Colts pulled off a second straight win on Sunday, defeating the Miami Dolphins 16-10 to move to 4-3 on the 2024 season. Indianapolis will now look ahead to a major AFC South showdown against the Houston Texans, with the winner taking the lead in the division. Here’s what stood out most following Sunday’s game.

COLTS’ DEFENSE FORCES KEY TAKEAWAYS, SHUTS OUT DOLPHINS IN SECOND HALF IN 16-10 VICTORY

The Colts’ offense struggled for much of Sunday’s game against Miami’s defense, failing to muster any form of consistency through the first half. Trailing 10-3 and needing to find a way to climb back into the game, it was linebacker Segun Olubi who made perhaps the game-changing play to force a crucial fumble. Olubi’s forced fumble and return inside Miami’s 30-yard line flipped field position and allowed the Colts to capitalize on the takeaway with a touchdown, tying the game at 10.

Olubi wasn’t the only Colts linebacker to have quite an impact on Sunday’s win, as Grant Stuard, filling in for an injured E.J. Speed, finished with 19 total tackles (11 solo) and one tackle-for-loss. Stuard also aided fellow teammate Zaire Franklin in another forced fumble. Franklin finished the game with 16 total tackles (11 solo), one tackle-for-loss and the forced fumble. Franklin’s punchout came with the Dolphins poised to score deep in Indianapolis territory, sparking another shift in momentum for the Colts.

Yes, the Colts’ rush defense struggled against a talented group of Miami rushers, but they did just enough Sunday to help secure a win, despite allowing 161 rushing yards and an average of 10.7 yards per carry. Indianapolis’ defense pitched a second-half shutout thanks to the aforementioned turnovers. On the flipside, the Dolphins’ top wideouts, Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, were held to a combined two catches for 19 yards. Granted, the Dolphins were dealing with two backups in Tyler Huntley and Tim Boyle, but Indianapolis’ defense did its job against two of the league’s best at their respective positions.

COLTS’ OFFENSE STRUGGLES IN ANTHONY RICHARDSON’S RETURN TO IN-GAME ACTION

At the end of the day, the Colts will take a win over the Dolphins. But what can’t be ignored is their offensive struggles in quarterback Anthony Richardson’s return. Perhaps the lone bright spot for Indy’s offense on Sunday was the 155 rushing yards they put up in their winning effort. Richardson’s legs provided a much-needed spark to a Colts’ ground game that had struggled the previous two weeks without star running back Jonathan Taylor. However, as a passer, Richardson was off the mark with a fair amount of misses. The second-year quarterback finished Sunday’s showing 10-for-24 for 129 passing yards along with 14 carries for 56 rushing yards.

The biggest difference for Richardson by far was his first-half and second-half numbers through the air. Richardson started 5-for-18 and, despite an overall poor showing through the air, finished 5-for-6 for 65 yards, which included a few key completions that help the Colts’ offense capitalize with two Matt Gay field goals. One of the more underrated plays of Sunday’s win was Richardson’s long completion to Michael Pittman Jr. toward the end of the first half. A Matt Gay field goal cut Miami’s lead to just seven (10-3), rather than Indy being down 10. Those three field goals from Gay ultimately mattered in a six-point victory for Indianapolis.

Richardson has struggled at points this season, but the Colts have also seen the upside of their second-year quarterback on display, too. Sunday was a far cry from what Indianapolis is expecting out of the No. 4 overall pick. They’re going to need to see consistent improvements over the course of the rest of this season and going into 2025. For now, though, much of what Indy saw from Richardson Sunday should be expected as he continues to play and gain experience. Ups and downs are part of developing a young passer, and the Colts are going to be patient with Richardson as he learns and grows.