The defensive battle in Frankfurt, Germany went the Colts way on Sunday, and with their 10-6 victory over the Patriots, they will head into the bye week on a 2-game winning streak. In the locker room after the game, coach Steichen made it clear that this team is “right where we want to be”. Ultimately, being undefeated is where every team wants to be, but for this Colts team and all of the adversity with injuries this season, to be 5-5 going into the bye week was crucial.
There is an old saying in professional sports that, a win is a win. The Colts did indeed win and fans can be relieved, but there is still a lot of improvement left for this football team. We’ll look at what went right and what went wrong in this victory.
What Went Right – Winning the turnover margin
The Colts are 5-0 when they win the turnover margin and naturally are 0-5 when they lose it. On Sunday, this defense racked up 2 crucial interceptions on the day and on offense, only gave up one turnover to a fairly formidable Patriots defense. Both INTs for the defense came in the 4th quarter when the Patriots had an opportunity to make plays.
What Went Right – Getting Pressure with 4
Defensive Coordinator, Gus Bradley is not one to blitz a whole lot with his zone defensive scheme. On Sunday, he did not have to as his guys were able to get home by rushing only four. The Colts would finish the day with 5 sacks on Jones, 4 of which were by rushing four guys.
It should be noted that Dayo Odeyingbo had 3 sacks in the first half, bringing his season total to 6 (this leads the team). All around, the defense maintained good pressure on Jones all day and forced him to beat them through the air.
What Went Wrong – The Running Game
The theme of what went wrong on Sunday was the offense. For the second straight week, although both wins, the Indy offense has struggled to run the football. Against a Patriots defense that ranks #2 in yards per rush, the Colts running backs managed 71 yards on 24 carries (2.9 average).
Jonathan Taylor had the lion-share of the carries and looked very good on the team’s opening drive, but once things got settled in, his production evaporated. To put things into perspective, Taylor has 9 carries for 31 yards (3.4 average) and a TD on the opening drive. The rest of the game, he would have 14 carries for 38 yards (2.7 average). Certainly credit needs to be given to Belichick and this defense, but for a Colts team that relies on the run game for its success, this kind of production cannot be sustained for much longer.
What Went Wrong – All Around Lackluster Offense
The Colts finished Sunday’s game with 264 total yards, so major improvement from their 198 performance last week, but somehow this offensive performance seems worse. The main thing is that the Colts struggled to convert third downs. After starting the game 3/3, they would go on to finish 5/13.
Gardner Minshew threw an unfortunate interception on a tip and struggled to get the ball down the field consistently. He did have one spectacular throw to Josh Downs late, but the interception was a drive staller that could’ve turned into points. At the end of the day, the struggles on third down, the lack of a running game, and the inconsistencies on throws down the field led to only 10 points being scored.
The Final Down
The Colts will head into their bye week for some much-needed rest to get healthy. They will host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at home on November 26th.
The Lucky Colt 
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