Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - BREAKOUT: With Indianapolis Colts' Alec Pierce Concussed, Is This AD Mitchell's Week?

Starting point is 00:00:00 Indianapolis Colts wide receiver, Alec Pierce, might miss this upcoming game against the Los Angeles Rams. Does that mean a big day coming for A.D. Mitchell? Let's get to it. You are Locked on Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked on podcast network,

Starting point is 00:00:24 your team every day. Thank you all for tuning in and making us your first list. of the day. This your daily podcast covering your Indianapolis Colts, part of the lockdown podcast network, your team every single day. Today's episode is brought to you by Fanduil. Right now, new customers can bet just $5. And if your first bet wins, you'll get $300 in bonus bets to use across the app. Hello, everyone. My name is Zach Hicks, your resident film nerd of horseshoe huddle.com. And my partner in crime, Jake Arthur, is the credentialed crocs on the ground for round table

Starting point is 00:00:55 sports. Make sure you're checking him out over there. We have an action-pack show for you. guys today. We're going to dive into the Colts' latest injury report and what the potential replacements could look like for the Colts. Then we're going to dive into some of your Q&As that we were going to get to yesterday, but we had some injury bugs hitting our houses the last couple of days. So we're back and had it all strong today, getting into your Q&As. But first, Jake, let's get into the first injury report of the week here on Wednesday heading into week four some surprises and some not surprises for the Colts. The two that didn't really surprises Alec Pierce and Kenny Moore.

Starting point is 00:01:31 These were ones that we were made aware of earlier in the week. Alec Pierce with that concussion and Kenny Moore the second with a calf and Shane Stuyken even clarified saying that it's a little bit of the Achilles as well that you really don't want to play with. So it seems unlikely that either of those two play this week. But what was kind of your feel in that situation, Jake? Yeah. When it comes to Pierce, it's not very often that we see Colts players come back when they're put

Starting point is 00:01:56 into the concussion protocol and play that same week. And it's really been that way under Stuyken the whole time. Now, for Pierce specifically, this is at least his third documented concussion since he's been in the league since 2022. Had one early rookie year and then week 16 last year, I think, missed a game as well. So with his concussion history, you kind of wonder if they're going to play it a little safe with him. I did ask Shane about that on Monday.

Starting point is 00:02:23 I was like, do you have any hard and fast rules about that or anything philosophically when you have a guy with the concussion history. And he just basically said, it's kind of a case-by-case thing. They just go off of what their medical staff thinks, but also the player heavily weighs into it as well. So my gut tells me Pierce won't play again, even if he had never had a concussion before, it's not very often that guys play through those on the same week.

Starting point is 00:02:50 So with that one, you got a couple guys like A.D. Mitchell and Ashton Doolan, you would expect to step up. And then with Kenny Moore, the official injury designation now is the Achilles. So that one right away, you know, everyone goes immediately to thinking about Tyrese Halliburton, which different sports, it's maybe not the same exact injury. But at the same time, if you've got a calf injury that threatens the Achilles now, we know that if that Achilles goes, that's your season. Like, across the board.

Starting point is 00:03:20 If that, like that is what happens with an Achilles injury. So they're saying IR is not on the table right now, but that doesn't mean it won't be in the coming days after they look into it further. That's, again, another thing where they'll consult with the medical team. They'll consult with the player. I can't make decisions for guys, obviously, and I don't have the medical background on this specific injury right now. I'm not a doctor. Again, I only play one on TV. But I don't see what the benefit would be to not just.

Starting point is 00:03:53 probably putting him on IR and making that sure that thing is 100% before he comes back on there because if there's one guy on defense among a few that I do not want to risk their health this season, Kenny Moore is right up there near the top of the list. Yeah, and it's not even just a case of looking at from the Colts perspective. Like obviously, again, you want to protect the team and you want the team to be successful this year and yada, yada, yada. But when it comes to the player here, I mean, Kenny Moore is a 30-year-old NFL player, And it's hard to come back from an Achilles injury at any point in your career.

Starting point is 00:04:28 The studies show that this is the most devastating injury to come back from if you tear that Achilles. So if this is a Tyrese Halliburton situation where the calf is an injury and also the Achilles and like you run that risk of tearing it if you play on it, this isn't like the Super Bowl is not tomorrow. You know, there's no need for him to put the rest of his career on the line for a week four regular season game in his age 30 season. So, yeah, I think ultimately, I think the Colts will land on putting him on IR later this week. It's just not worth risking it, especially for him, too, where, I mean, just go back to a lot of Colts players that we've seen have their careers basically zapped due to Achilles injuries. You go back to Marlon Mack. The last time Marlon Mack really played any role in the NFL was that 2020 season towards Achilles and basically didn't have a role in the NFL after that.

Starting point is 00:05:20 Sansonabucom, we're talking about him every week on this show on how we don't. doesn't look even remotely the same as a 2023 self because of that Achilles tear. So it's just a devastating injury. I really hope it's something very minor and maybe like a couple weeks out or a quick IR stint can lead to him coming back this year. But play it as safe as possible because this isn't just the Colts season we're talking about. It's also a beloved Colts player's career, the rest of his career we're talking about here.

Starting point is 00:05:48 So I think, you know, I want to get your thoughts on this too, Jake. I think McCoy Blackman might step in this week to play. play that slot corner and if it goes poorly that's why mike hilton is is in the building but did you get the feel that maybe hilton could get that first run at it or what kind of your thoughts on that my gut tells me that they if they feel hilton is like in game shape and ready after they evaluate him this week then he could have a small role but for all intents and purposes i would imagine blackman gets the start there in the slot and then they just kind of rotate hilton in and get him used to things again.

Starting point is 00:06:24 But my guess would be that after this week, any time that Kenny misses, they want Hilton in there. I mean, you don't go and get a guy like that without having a plan to play him quite a bit. So that's kind of the other thing about it is with Kenny, again, you don't really go get a Mike Hilton if you're only going to be out a week or two, in my opinion, because Kenny is your 100% of the snaps slot guy. Now, they're in sub-packages throughout, so Hilton can still play at the same time that Kenny does, but at the same time, that's the guys you're basically looking at.

Starting point is 00:07:02 Mackay Blackman and Mike Hilton. I think the guy that immediately gets usurped there is Chris Lamonts, but yeah. Yeah, no, for sure. And then going back to Alec Pierce real quick, 80 Mitchell is in line to get way more snaps if Pierce misses this week, probably would jump up from like seven snaps a game into more of the 40s in the maybe near 50s in terms of snaps. You know, I don't think it'll be like taking all of Pierce's snaps, but I think we will see a pretty heavy dose of A.D. Mitchell in that case,

Starting point is 00:07:30 and I think this is a really good matchup for him. And a reason why in one of my deeper fantasy leagues I actually picked up A.D. Mitchell this week just out of curiosity, because I think this is a type of week where against Rams team that boasts two pretty small corners on the outside, the Colts have liked these max protect ISO shots to Mitchell so far this year, I think this could be a week where Mitchell gets like six, seven targets, and he's able to convert a handful of those for a big amount of yardage. So huge opportunity for him. I like that you also mentioned Ashton Doolin, too, because he's gotten some offensive run this year.

Starting point is 00:08:01 So I think both those guys will get a little bit more snaps with Pierce likely missing this week. But real quick, the other injuries that popped up on the injury report, DeForest Buckner was out with the back. I'd be shocked if he missed any game time. We've seen him go weeks without practices in the regular season, just to play every single. single games. So it would take, you know, holding him back with multiple tethers to keep him from playing on Sundays. Right guard Matt Consolvis also missed practice today. He was in a boot out there at practice. Luckily, it came out as a toe injury. We saw Tyler Warren, for instance, last week with a toe injury limited and in a boot, and he ended up playing on Sunday. So

Starting point is 00:08:40 you don't want to speculate too much, but if he gets a limited practice tomorrow or a full practice tomorrow, it looks like Gonzalez should be good to go. So I'm not going to worry too much there. And then punter Rigaberto Sanchez, who I forgot was even on the team after these first three weeks, he missed with a personal matter as well today. Look, I hope everything's okay with Rigo in there. But if he doesn't show up on Sunday, is anyone going to notice, Jake? Like, I mean, is anyone really going to notice? One punt on the season. No, I don't know what's up with him, but we'll probably see throughout the week. But no, going back to your A.D. Mitchell thing there real quick, you know, we've seen in that Bill's game last year where there was

Starting point is 00:09:18 know Michael Pittman. He had an increased role. Obviously, Pierce missed a game last year. There was an increased role for him. If Pierce is out, I am looking forward to seeing Mitchell in that increased role because he just looked so much more comfortable than he did last year. Even though he hasn't had like a huge impact yet this year, you know, he's catching the catchable balls. He's drawing defensive past interference calls. Like he looks a lot more comfortable this year. So I'm pretty eager to see if this, this might be his breakout this week. But the other guys, yeah, Buckner, I'm not super concerned about. The back is something they managed with him earlier in the summer anyways.

Starting point is 00:09:55 Gonzalez, you obviously want him in there, so we'll keep an eye on that one. Yeah, and one quick thing about Mitchell, too, is this might be his last true audition to show that the Colts should move on from Pierce after the season and roll with him as that starter. So this is a huge game for him. If he comes out and gets like 80 yards, 70 yards, whatever it is, and makes the most of his opportunities, this could be the big selling point of this off season to promote him to starter and let Pierce walk for the big payday he's probably going to get. So big opportunity coming for A.D. Mitchell and this Colts offense in week four.

Starting point is 00:10:28 But coming up, guys, you guys send us a lot of questions earlier this week. We're finally going to get to them in our next segments. We have a whole segment on offense questions and then one on defense questions to wrap up today's show. Mazda crafts cars for those who do more than simply move. Mazda delivers confidence with every ride with more I-IHS top safety pick plus awards than anyone else in the game as of August 2025. You can feel the Japanese craftsmanship in every detail from the metallic accents to available Napa leather upholstery. You can make everyday drives feel like anything but from smooth handling and intuitive controls. Like our players, we sweat every detail because when you make every move count, impossible becomes irrelevant.

Starting point is 00:11:15 Mazda, move and be moved. All right, guys, welcome back everydayers. We are about to start diving into some questions you guys sent us over the last couple days throughout social media, some really intriguing ones here. I pulled a few of the favorites to present to Zach here. I've seen all these so far. These are new for Zachs. We're kind of putting them on the spot here.

Starting point is 00:11:39 This first one is right up his nerdy alley. What about our offensive line specifically has made our running game. so lethal so far this season. That is from Tim Wells on Facebook. Yeah, I think it's a great question. I actually wouldn't put a ton of the credit on the offensive line. And don't get me wrong. Like I love to credit the offensive line where credit is due. I think the left side of the O line has been fantastic and run blocking in particular. Tanner Bordolini and Quinn Nelson have just been phenomenal in that aspect. But it really comes down to three factors why the run game has been so effective for the cold. So stick with me here. One, Jonathan Taylor is playing.

Starting point is 00:12:15 out of his mind just playing out of his mind like we have to give credit where credit is due into this running back where he is creating so much yardage after contact and then turning 10 yard runs into 46 yard touchdowns turning a negative three yard run into a 68 yard run against the Denver Broncos like those were I mean the the one against the Titans was a really well blocked play but the Broncos play was not a well blocked play there were three missed assignments up front he turned that into a 68 yard run so Jonathan Taylor is obviously a huge part of this The second part is the way the Colts are mixing and matching their personnel groupings. They are running out of 11 personnel the most because that's their base personnel set.

Starting point is 00:12:54 But when they're getting into 12 personnel, if they do run it, they're running pulling and they're running power type run plays against lighter boxes if teams want to put light boxes out there to match their 12 or 13 personnel. So they're mixing in a lot of really good things in the running game. A lot of their inside zone out of 11 just to keep defense as honest. And then running some really cool designs off of 12. personnel and 13 personnel to utilize the mismatches they have. But then honestly, I think one of the more underrated aspects of this is how involved the tight ends and wide receivers

Starting point is 00:13:26 have been in the run game. We're looking at a lot of these run plays that the Colts are calling where Michael Pittman Jr. is motioning into the backfield is like a sniff or tight end and blocking a defensive end, blocking a linebacker at the point of attack and doing this at a very high level. Ashton Doolin, we talked about him in the first segment. He's getting a lot of run on offense. And typically whenever he gets in there, it's going to be a run play or a play action play because he's a blocking wide receiver for them. And they've used a lot of cool aspects where he's even been like an insert player motioning into the backfield and inserting against a linebacker in the hole, you know, and using him as like a lead blocker for the running

Starting point is 00:14:02 game. And then obviously these tight ends, Moecox is doing Moecox stuff. Drew Bowler, Trey's been solid. Tyler Warren's been an awesome blocker to start the year. So I don't think you can really just look at the O line and say, oh, yeah, the O lines doing all these things. I think it's just, again, with this Colts offense, it's a sum of their parts type of offense right now. It's not just one guy doing everything. Like, if we have to get the most credit to anybody here, it'd probably be Taylor because he's just been an animal this year in the run game.

Starting point is 00:14:28 But the O lines blocking well, they're mixing and matching personnel groupings really well against defenses. And then it's kind of been all 10 guys getting out there and blocking at a really high level or I guess all nine guys blocking out of very very. very high level where you're getting wide receivers involved. You're getting tight ends involved. You're getting backside offensive linemen who are away from the play involved. They're just operating at a really high level and everyone's kind of communicating well

Starting point is 00:14:53 and everyone's kind of on top of what their assignment is. So yeah, great question. It's not just the O line. I think the O line has been doing well, but I honestly give a lot of credit in terms of the blocking to the tight ends and wide receivers. Those guys have been blocking their butts off. No, they've been getting shouted out a lot by the coaches and even the players and people who they're producing yards for lately.

Starting point is 00:15:12 And I do think they would probably be successful with Taylor, even running just like just a stagnant man-on-man blocking scheme. But the amount of movement and spacing that they're creating, it's just really fun to see. And obviously that puts defenses on their toes. And, you know, it gets guys moving in a way that they're at a disadvantage because here comes an extra blocker. Here comes Tyler Warren.

Starting point is 00:15:37 You know, it's just, it's really effective. and I think they're going to probably keep that up throughout the year. This next one, what are the Colts doing to improve their red zone woes? That's from Jacob C.N. over on Twitter. Yeah, it's a great question because it's an issue that has plagued the Colts in all of Shane Steichen's time with the team. They've had a lot of red zone issues, even going back to the Minchew season. This team has never been great in the Red Zone.

Starting point is 00:16:02 I did think we saw a good improvement this past week. They were, I think, two of three in the Red Zone, or technically two of four, but that fourth one, I think, was the end of the game drive. where they just like the drive ended they could have scored if they wanted to but yeah two of three and like real drives in this game at converting in the red zone what we saw in the first one was they used a screen to Tyler Warren that punched them down close and that's how they were able to get in and then the next one the past interference got them to the one yard line and they were able to punch that in there from from there so you know we don't have a ton of data saying that they're changing

Starting point is 00:16:34 anything or what they're doing differently I would like to see just more rush attempts more diversity of those rush attempts in the red zone. They keep trying to treat the red zone like it's the rest of the field here with these play action boots and these dropback designs that take the top off the defense and open things underneath. And that just doesn't apply to the red zone. It's very difficult with the spacings there. So I think they need to lean into their star players, lean into their separators like downs and maybe an AD Mitchell as well. And then don't be afraid just to run the ball. You know, Jonathan Taylor is a fantastic runner. We did see this past week. they called a read option keeper for Daniel Jones just to keep the defense honest and move that

Starting point is 00:17:14 ball forward. I think that was an effective play call. So yeah, I think at the end of the day, maybe just get into more old school type of style of offense when you get to the red zone. Maybe like the passing proficiency isn't as good down there. But if you can lean into your star running back, lean into effective ways to move the ball forward. As long as they get within the 10 yard line, they're pretty good at scoring. So maybe just punch that ball as close as you can and then you can do what's been working for you within the five and within the 10 yard line. But great question. It's been an issue that's plagued the Colts for years now.

Starting point is 00:17:44 And we'll just have to see if it improves more data this season. Yeah, my simple answer is just get Michael Pittman, Josh Downs, Tyler Warren, a little more involved. Those are guys who can find those small creases and you can win on those little slants and everything to just get right in between defenders. Those are the guys I would really lean on. That's more of the low red zone. when you get closer to the 20 and everything. I think you're right. They're probably getting a little too broad with it.

Starting point is 00:18:11 But yeah, here's the last one I've got for you in terms of the offense. How long, and we've discussed this one before, but I think it's intriguing. And if no one has heard this discussion yet, I think they'll probably want to chime in. How long does Daniel Jones have to keep performing at this level before he forces the cults to give him a multi-year deal? Now, I researched this one a little bit, and I couldn't find a great answer. I probably have to talk to an agent or somewhere in a front office about this for clarification.

Starting point is 00:18:39 But when a guy signs a one-year deal like this, like Jones did, I don't think the Colts can give him a new deal or like an extension until the team's regular season is over. So I don't think they could just do it right now. I think the regular season has to end and then they can do it. But regardless, what like what's the barometer for you on giving him a new deal? like how much do you have to see of this to make him the guy at least a leader in a competition or the V guy in general on 26th 17 games in the regular season and hopefully a couple games in the playoffs and then we can go from there but like even if the Colts could extend him midseason it's the last thing I would do here there's no real incentive for the Colts to extend him midseason

Starting point is 00:19:25 this year because if he keeps this level of play up whatever he asks in a contract demand you're willing to hey, like I pay anything for a quarterback that keeps up this caliber of play. So I don't care how high it gets because essentially where it's at right now, it can only go lower, you know, so if we're trying to be good agents and good bargainers for the Colts, like we're going to let this thing play out as much as possible before we go to the negotiation table. I will say as of right now, you're obviously leaning towards resigning him, but you want to get that whole 17 game sample size, hopefully some playoffs in there as well.

Starting point is 00:20:00 just see what the whole body of work looks like, see if any limitations appear and then go from there. But yeah, he's got to just keep up winning football ways and keep up productive quarterback play. And I'd have no problem giving him a multi-year extension, but it has to be for longer than just three games. It has to hit, you know, give me game 17. And regardless of what happens with the team, let me do my evaluation post this season, even if they could come to the negotiation table now because there's just no incentive to give out a contract right now like let's let's see this thing play out but it's looking great right now like as of right now surely i would want to extend him after the year but let let's get the whole 17 games under our belt before we talk about that

Starting point is 00:20:41 i'm with it i think if he can prove to show up big and like big moments like the two small ones i'll get out of the way is like week one he was the quarterback that led them to their first week one victory. You could even go in Jacksonville. If he beats Jacksonville, that's the thing. If he breaks the four-year playoff curse, that's a thing. But if he proves to be able to go toe-to-to-to-with guys you're going to be facing this year, like Justin Herbert, you know, you've got Matthew Stafford this week and you got Patrick

Starting point is 00:21:10 Mahomes later this year, if he goes toe-to-to-to-er Aaron Rogers in a little while, if he goes toe-to-to-to and is not clearly like the worst quarterback in every instance, like if he pulls his weight and looks like a good quarterback in those moments, that's kind of what AFC teams have to do right now is that your quarterback has to be someone that can answer the call against those guys. And so I think if he stands up and looks the part in some of those matchups, and obviously, like, he has to keep what he's doing. Like, statistically, it doesn't have to look like this, but as far as efficiency and moving the offense, well, I, like, I'm with it. I do think they have to make the playoffs too, but I think that is a foregone conclusion

Starting point is 00:21:57 if all the rest of that falls into place. Yeah, he's passed every test so far and just continue passing tests, and then we'll talk after the year. I think he's doing a lot of things right, but that's all we have for the offensive question, guys. Coming up, we're going to talk about this Colts defense and how a lot of you all have some concerns that we're going to address in our final segment. The NFL season is here, and Fandle is making sure that you're ready for kickoff with I can't miss offer. All right, let me bend your ear. So right now, new customers can bet just $5.

Starting point is 00:22:27 And if that bet wins, you'll get $300 and bonus bets to spend across the entire app. I personally love using Fandall because it just fits however you like to bet. Not everyone likes to do the same things. Like parlays aren't for everyone. Daily Fantasy is not for everyone. Whatever you want to do, though, they've got something for just about everybody. It makes every game more exciting, whether you're watching your team or you're just keeping an eye your fantasy lineup it's quick easy and it's the best way to add a little more spiked to your

Starting point is 00:22:56 sundays so are you ready to play download the fendool app now by visiting fandle.com to get started that's fanduil.com to place your first five dollar bet welcome back every dayers we are discussing some of the questions you guys sent us over social in the last couple days uh pulled some intriguing ones here we already got those offensive ones out we're going to shift focus to the defense first. Now, the last of the unique ones, because we'll get to it and the stuff that everyone's pounding the table to know, this first one says, are there any concerns about the run defense? We've done a decent job at the moment, but it feels to me that if the RB isn't contained on the first level, they easily get past the second level and it's up to

Starting point is 00:23:40 the safeties to stop them at that point, which to me is a bit worrying. That's from Chetman over on Twitter. Now, I agree. The Colts haven't yet faced a team. That's that's like truly committed to the run throughout a game. You know, Miami couldn't really do it. They were getting pounded. Same with the Titans. And the Broncos, they just found a better formula in that shallow passing game and like all the stuff they were doing to the cold secondary.

Starting point is 00:24:05 They just didn't really need to do it. But when each of those three teams kind of wanted to get the run game going a little bit, it worked to an extent. Each of those teams had some good runs to them. So if you face a team like Baltimore or Buffalo, or a team that, like, can get the running game really going, I do think I would be a little bit worried about that one sack. And it's not, like, the personnel alone is part of the reason

Starting point is 00:24:32 because the Colts are almost never in a base defense. So when you have an extra DB on the field versus an extra lineman or an extra linebacker, that's just inherently going to make you a little behind the eight ball against the run. Yeah, there's certainly some concerns just because they're such a heavy nickel and dime team. and it's just harder to fit the run when you are asking your safeties and corners to do so much to fill the void of a linebacker not being on the field.

Starting point is 00:24:58 But I think naturally it'll get a little bit better with time. They are fitting the run a lot differently in this scheme than how they were in the previous scheme, also having a lot more diversity of defensive fronts, where with Gus Bradley, it was typically the same old, same old, like you're going to have four down linemen, you're going to have two or three linebackers, and then you're going to have your defensive backs behind them. And whenever Bradley really wanted to be heavier against the run, it mostly just involved bringing a third linebacker on the field. Where we're seeing with Louana Rumo,

Starting point is 00:25:28 he will diversify the front in terms of sometimes it'll be three defensive tackles and two defensive ends on the field with one linebacker behind. Sometimes it'll be three defensive linemen in general with three linebackers out there. Sometimes you'll be in dime and have extra defensive backs up in the box. So it's a lot more diversity of fronts and diversity of fits. And that does cause confusion for your guys early in the season when it's a new scheme. So I think naturally it should get a little bit better. But ultimately, I think it just comes down to the personnel needs to perform a little bit better out there.

Starting point is 00:26:01 The linebacker play has just not been up to par so far the season, especially in the run fitting department. I actually don't think they're missing many tackles right now. It's more so just being content with their fits and being on top of their fits and trusting the guys around them where it's like, if I'm going to fit outside here, the guy inside is going to make a play there's a couple of moments where guys are freelancing a little bit too much and the same could be said about the defensive line if we look at that third and two against the titans in the red zone late in that game i think it was polar or yeah pauler broke outside when samson wcombe tried to go inside instead of trusting his outside run fit and it turned into a 20-something yard run on a third and two on one of the titans touchdown drives so it's just stuff like that where i think everyone needs to be on top of it they just need to keep getting on these guys to trust the players around them, trust the fits of other people. There's going to be mistakes with that, too, and there's going to be times where you're out-schemed. But I think that's the biggest thing in run defense is just no freelancing and do your assignment, and the rest will come.

Starting point is 00:27:01 But, yeah, the personalities get better, and I think it'll clean up as the season goes. But we'll just have to see you with time, obviously. I think Lou's done a good job of mixing the personnel groupings up front. And then also bringing safeties and corners on blitzes on early downs to create negative yardage in the run game but again we just want to see a little bit cleaner of a process in terms of limiting those like 10 to 15 yard runs that's the area they really need to get better at i do think kind of a hidden thing with mike hilton as well like whenever he gets in there in place of kinney for however long kinney's out hilton's been a good run defender throughout

Starting point is 00:27:35 his career as well if i'm not mistaken so they yeah i would certainly assume a better run defender than muckeye black so uh this next one is pretty much the similar question but about the ass rush and whether there should be any concern about Lyotu Latu. Now, I don't think he's only played two of the three games so far, but I don't think Latsu is having a bad season. I just don't think it's enough yet. Like he is getting into the backfield and providing some pressure, but he doesn't have the sacks.

Starting point is 00:28:03 And this is a team that's super duper rely on him getting those sacks. So it's not been disappointing, but he does need to be doing more so far starting now, because this is a matchup against the Rams where, It's not great pass protection, but Matthew Stafford gets through the ball in an instant. So, yeah, LATU's got to start cashing in those trips with the backfield. Yeah, I think my biggest concern with LATU is just a lot of the issues I had with his rookie season where, like, he's getting a lot of past rush wins and areas where he's making tackles fall off of them. But a lot of these wins are coming at like the 2.5 second mark, at the 3 second mark.

Starting point is 00:28:41 So it's an effective rush, right? He's getting past these guys, but it's not quick. and it's not completely disengaging from the blocker. So sometimes the blocker is able to win ugly and still drive him outside the pocket, despite getting their hands slapped away or getting knocked off balance by Latu. So you want to see some quicker wins from him.

Starting point is 00:28:59 You want to see him be more disruptive, maybe not be as affected as much as chips. I've seen a lot of chip blocks that just knocked him completely off his rush and out of the play. So it's really stuff like that with him. But overall, I don't think he's really the issue right now in the past rush. I think more of it is just, the other guys you know it's it's quidipay and it's samson abucoms you guys that they're paying

Starting point is 00:29:22 like a combined 22 million dollars that are not really winning their rushes at a high level to start the season and not even like maintaining their gap integrity on their rushes as well um i think that those guys need to be a little bit better and a little bit more productive because look lots who stole his rookie contract he's in year two yes we have high expectations because as he's a top 15 pick in his age 25 season, but we also need to have high expectations for a pass rusher they're paying $10 million in Ebukom. And even though we were skeptical on him working out this year,

Starting point is 00:29:54 the Colts weren't. And you have to hold him to the Colt standard of we're paying him his full contract to be a productive pass rusher. And he just hasn't been that to start this year. So, you know, when we look at these issues with the Colts pass rush, there are some schematic things that could get better. There are some overall notes that you have. But I think when it comes a lot, too, he's got to, he's just got to win a little bit quicker.

Starting point is 00:30:15 When it comes to the rest of the pass rush guys, they need to get, you know, get more depth or get, create more displacement early and just maintain that rush integrity. And then for Louana Rumo, they got to find more ways to get to Forrest Buckner single team. I don't care what you have to do to move him around. He's getting doubled at such a high rate right now that he's not really effective. And like, he's your best pass rusher. So we got to treat him like the best pass rusher and move him around as much. as possible because teams right now are very comfortable just leaving, you know, whoever the other interior pass rusher is on an island because that guy is not winning enough.

Starting point is 00:30:49 So we might have to get a little bit more creative with using DeForest Buckner to get him those pressures that we need. And we've seen them do that. You know, he's lined up outside and stunted in. Like they've moved him a little bit, but they probably just need to keep that up. And it's a really tough pill for me to swallow to think that JT to him a lowout couldn't do something. It's been a healthy scratch two of the three weeks.

Starting point is 00:31:09 someone got five snaps a week two. I'm very opposed to throw the veteran out there because you know him and trust him, even if he's not producing. Like, well, that is not accountability. And I'm not saying, like,

Starting point is 00:31:25 you need to pull the Rick cord now and throw to him a low hour in there. But, like, the guy's got to be active. You have to start being able to evaluate him and more than just practice and seeing what he's like in games because, like, your pass rest just isn't good enough right now. And it can't just be reliant on Buckner and Latteau.

Starting point is 00:31:43 So luckily it's still early. It's still early. And honestly, if you look at the game plans against like the dolphins and the Titans, for instance, I mean, for the, for the dolphins, they barely rushed more than three rushers in that game. It was either an all-out blitz or three rushers just containing two to it to the pocket because they knew he's going to get the ball out just to a certain spot. So they just wanted to get defenders in those spots. And then against the Tennessee Titans, it was a blowout for most of the day. and then it was a lot of trying to contain rushes. And guys needed to be better with those contained rushes,

Starting point is 00:32:13 but it wasn't really like they were going all out trying to win their assignments because then it would leave escape routes for Cam Ward, and that's what Ward thrives with. So I'm curious just to see how it looks with more data points. It's so early this season, and I think we're freaking out a little bit more because this was an issue or a concern we already had coming into the year.

Starting point is 00:32:33 But let's just see how it plays out, I guess, is the biggest thing. I will say, I mean, Taekuan Lewis had a pretty good game. So hopefully Lewis can keep carrying on that. I don't like him rushing from the interior, but keeping him on the outside, I thought he's been rushing pretty well out there. Yeah, absolutely. And I don't want to run us too long, but this one, it begs a good question because, again, a million of you guys asked it at the trade deadline, given the Colts aggressiveness

Starting point is 00:32:56 and their willingness to go replace someone who gets injured right away and fill needs, would you make a trade before the deadline for really anyone, but especially a pass rush. Yeah, I mean, I think it's certainly on the table. If they're sitting at five and two or six and one or, I mean, something like that, which would be awesome, then yeah, if that's your big weakness, like, why not, right? They've shown this year their propensity to go out and get veterans and they were aggressive in the offseason and getting these veteran players here for the defense. And you don't want to let a weakness just sit there when you have the means to improve it. So, you know, you have some big name guys here, like the Brian Burns and the Trey Hendricksons and all those guys. It doesn't even need to be a huge name.

Starting point is 00:33:39 I mean, like Joseph Osai, for instance, was re-signed to the Bengals. Carl Granderson. Yeah, Carl Granderson. You know, those are guys that the Colts have liked in the past, and they wouldn't cost you an arm and a leg to get them, and they could probably help your pass rush. So, yeah, it's still early, so it's hard to really speculate. But if they're sitting at like five and two,

Starting point is 00:33:57 and that's the one clear weakness, then, yeah, I certainly think that they'll make some calls around the league to try to improve that. Yeah, I mean, their intentions very much are to win. And if you have this area that's like a, again, like you said, a clear weakness that's holding you back, like your entire defense, your entire past defense, you got to fill it. Otherwise, what are, you know, what are you? You don't have the guys there obviously to really hammer that home. So yeah, I would be in favor of that. Obviously, don't want to give up like a first-round pick.

Starting point is 00:34:26 But meaningful capital to fill what is probably your biggest need. I'm for it. Yeah. And look, what's what's giving up the 30-second overall pick? It's nothing, man. It's nothing for this team. So maybe you can go of the first round day. But overall, yeah, I think it's certainly on the table if it comes down to it.

Starting point is 00:34:44 But we do want to thank you guys for making locked on culture first listen today and every day. The NFL season is finally here. So if your next listen, get a double dose of the locked on NFL podcast. Tyler, the Madman, Rolling gives you a shot of espresso to start your day while Todian Wiggins takes you into the barbershop for the smoothest breakdowns to end the day. Find locked on NFL on YouTube or wherever you listen to your podcast. If you guys want to come on Lockdown Colts insider and chat with us directly and get that insider scoop, follow the link in our show. notes. And if you don't already, make sure you're following at Lockdown Colts at Jake Arthur in the film at Zach Hicks 2 all on socials. Also subscribe to us on YouTube where we listen to your

Starting point is 00:35:15 podcast. We love you guys, ratings reviews. And we'll catch you guys back here tonight for the Colts Squad Show 9 p.m. Wednesday night.

Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - BREAKOUT: With Indianapolis Colts' Alec Pierce Concussed, Is This AD Mitchell's Week?

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.