Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Can Indianapolis Colts' Matt Ryan, Jonathan Taylor Reestablish Identity vs. Philadelphia Eagles?

Starting point is 00:00:00 It's time to cross over once again today, and the topic is two teams that have done plenty of cross-pollinating themselves with the Indianapolis Colts and the Philadelphia Eagles. Last weekend's results actually make this matchup a must-watch on Sunday, which just a couple weeks ago would have seemed weird to say. Thank you all for tuning in and making us your first listen of the day. This is your daily podcast covering both your Indianapolis Colts and Philadelphia Eagles. We're all part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And of course, Crossover Thursdays are presented by our friends at PrizePix. PrizePix is so much fun and it's easy to play. There's no competing with other players.

Starting point is 00:00:38 It's just you versus the projections that are available. Just pick two to five players and if they score more or less than their prize picks projections, then you can win up to 10 times your money on your entry. It can literally take less than 60 seconds to enter. It's that easy. We love prize picks and we know that you guys will too. First time users can receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code locked on. That's prizepicks.com, promo code LOCKEDON. All right, everybody. So this is Jake Arthur of Locked On Colts, and I'm joined by Louis DiBiase of Locked On Eagles. Today, it's all about this Indianapolis Colts versus Philadelphia

Starting point is 00:01:18 Eagles matchup, man. The 8-1 Eagles coming off their first loss, finally. They were the last undefeated team in the league. Four 5-1 Colts. That doesn't sound like a great record because it's not. But they are actually coming off a win for the first time in a few weeks this week. This matchup is at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Colts are back after a couple-week hiatus on the road. So, Louie, welcome on, man.

Starting point is 00:01:42 Thanks for joining me. Yeah, Jake. First time we're doing a show together it's gonna be an exciting matchup not what i thought it would have been when the schedule came out thought maybe this would be the carson wentz revenge game didn't end up getting that but uh yeah i think it's an important game for both teams and you know for colts fans i'm more interested in their perspective of what's good for them long term when it comes to wins and losses the rest of the way but for the e Eagles, trying to stay up in this NFC race,

Starting point is 00:02:07 holding onto the one seed with, you know, Minnesota's right behind them now at eight and one and the New York Giants are at seven and two. So they got to keep stacking wins. It's crazy, seven games over 500 and you can't be comfortable at all. No, absolutely not. The Colts at four, five and one,

Starting point is 00:02:22 they're actually still in this thing. The AFC is really, really jumbled, especially the AFC South. No one is really running away with it. The Titans always kind of at the top, the Jaguars, you know, they're, they're in there in the mix, but the Colts kind of dug themselves a hole with, uh, they had like five of their first six AFC South matchups were already done within the first several weeks and they did not do favorably so um man if jeff saturday really provides a spark you know the raiders were a bad team they beat that team last week but well i think this is a true barometer game because the colts are kind of going from two extremes one of the worst teams last week to arguably the best with the eagles jake do you feel like with Saturday now going back to Matt Wright,

Starting point is 00:03:06 it was interesting because when they fired Frank Reich, and even before that when maybe it was Frank that decided this, maybe it was the front office or ownership that decided to go to Sam Ellinger earlier in the year, it almost felt like they were finally saying, okay, let's hit the reset button. Let's see what this young kid has. If he fails, great. We have a top pick and what is seen

Starting point is 00:03:25 as a strong quarterback class but now Saturday comes in and it feels like he's almost and again this is from afar my national perspective it almost feels like you know he's trying to prove he can be a head coach at this level so he puts Matt Ryan back in and you know they win this game it's just interesting for the Colts like the short term versus the long term these decisions they're making I think has been fascinating to watch. Yeah, it's no secret that they're going to need all the assets possible to get a long-term quarterback in this next coming offseason. So it seemed like, you know, putting a beloved figure like Jeff Saturday out there,

Starting point is 00:04:00 you know, kind of putting a pretty face on an ugly product and kind of letting them tank in peace. But they are not – they've been adamant that they're not waving the white flag. And this does seem like a team that wants to win, especially coming off a win right now. That's a contagious feeling. They're going to want to keep doing that. If they're competitive with the Eagles and God forbid, if they beat them, then that's going to send this team. They're going to have their playoff hopes back. It's going to be like a training camp feeling again, where, you know, they're back to zero and zero basically. So a lot of, a lot of the cynical part of us that represent the Colts,

Starting point is 00:04:37 we were ready for them to just pack it in and, you know, maybe they get a win or two left in the season, get a great draft pick you know do what you can to build yourself up positively for the long term but that is not what this team is looking into doing that's for sure and if it feels like that was kind of where the eagles were at a year ago in 2021 the roster was good not great you had a quarterback that you weren't winning because of, but you were winning with, and it was like, you were just stuck in almost this purgatory. And to see that I was kind of nervous. They were going to get into that long-term purgatory of where they're not bad

Starting point is 00:05:13 enough to have top picks and grab one of those top prospects, but they also weren't good enough to be a championship contender. And to me, I don't want to fight for wildcard spots every year. So the fact that, you know, Jalen hurts on the Eagle side did end up becoming that answer is so huge. You know, the fact that the Eagles are eight and one right now, and he's a top MVP candidate, it's really big. So yeah, both teams definitely on different timelines, you know, with the Eagles got to keep stacking wins.

Starting point is 00:05:37 As I said, it's going to have to come though with some elevation because there is a bunch of injuries right now to this team. Dallas Scott, their star tight end today was placed on, or I should say on Wednesday was placed on injured reserve. Their defensive tackle Jordan Davis is on IR, their slot cornerback and Avante Maddox on IR. So they're a little banged up for the first time. I feel like they're finally facing some adversity this year. It was a pretty smooth sailing two months, of course, as you mentioned, being the only undefeated team left in football at 8-0 before that game against Washington. Yeah, the Colts have had some injury issues as well. They've gotten used to playing without Shaquille Leonard this year.

Starting point is 00:06:13 He's only played in a few games, really. But he's out for good now after having back surgery yesterday. So luckily, their linebackers are playing well in his absence, but you definitely miss that element of playmaking ability. It's like, you know, in the games he hasn't been out there, you know, they've really struggled to force turnovers. And he had one of his real serious games back recently. And right away, you know, he had the interception, you know, you're just sitting there watching that game like they really need a turnover. And boom, he made his return that game and there's a turnover. So they'll definitely miss that.

Starting point is 00:06:57 The defense is more, they try to be a shutdown unit that they just don't create very many turnovers, which is odd because that used to be their bread and butter, you know, the last several years under Matt Eberflus. But not so much the case anymore. I feel like the Eagles too right now with, you know, both several years under matt eberflus but not so much the case anymore so i feel like the eagles too right now with you know both sides of the ball they were healthy throughout the entire season and you know although they're they're facing some adversity right now that's kind of expected in the nfl you know that you're going to lose games you're not going to be undefeated the rest of the way it's kind of fun as it was to follow and they had a pretty favorable schedule so you thought maybe they could pull it off, but the injuries too, they happen to every NFL team. I'm just glad that it's not happening. Even with these injuries, none of these are

Starting point is 00:07:34 season-enders, and it's not to the severity of what you saw in 2017, 2008, 2017 to 2020, basically, Philadelphia was the most injury-ravaged team in football. The fact that they could get through two months without a lot of these serious issues is good and I feel like they can against the Colts and the rest of the way for the next month or two while they're waiting for these you know key players to come back I think they can weather that storm so it'll be interesting to see though if anything changes with their approach on either side of the ball on Sunday and Indy yeah Yeah, absolutely. And that's one thing. One of our local reporters is actually from Philadelphia. And she said, you know, you actually want to be rooting for the Eagles

Starting point is 00:08:13 to win this game, of course, on Monday night, because you don't want to face the Eagles coming off their first loss. So that's definitely something you don't want to look forward to. But, you know, if there's something I'm looking forward to with the Colts this week, you know, they've got a good feeling now. Something they haven't been able to establish at all this season is consistency or an identity on offense. You know, it always used to be the offensive line was the backbone of the team.

Starting point is 00:08:39 You have this strong run game powered by Jonathan Taylor. Even before then, Marlon Mack was a thousand yard runner. So it's been for several years that that's been their identity. And Jonathan's only got two 100 yard games this season. It was the norm last year. You know, he had, he was, I think he tied an NFL record for a hundred yard games and rushing touchdowns in a single game. And that's just not something we've really seen this year up until week one and then week 10 essentially so uh definitely a different kind of season the passing game hasn't really been there obviously sam ellinger made a couple starts so right uh ryan is back in as the starter you know they they had this nice kind of tune-up game

Starting point is 00:09:21 against the raiders let's find some consistency Do those same things work against Philadelphia that worked against Las Vegas? Because Philadelphia is, I think, 20th against the run defensively. So I like their defensive line, but they have given up some rushing yards, especially these last few weeks. I think they're averaging 150 against them. So that's what I'm looking for. You know, I think last week was a perfect example of what their identity had always been so can they re-establish that yeah I think

Starting point is 00:09:52 identity is key for both teams the Eagles have it's kind of changed every week and that's what I like about this offense especially is they're very multi-dimensional if they want to be one of the best rushing offenses in the league with that top tier offensive line with Jalen Hurts and Miles Sanders they can do it but you know over the last three weeks, Jake, they've definitely been more of a pocket passing team. Jalen Hurts really actually hasn't run that much and he's done his damage through the air. And I've been excited about that because again, you know, the rushing offense is never going to be an issue to know they can kind of do both now, whatever the game script really calls for the fact they can do

Starting point is 00:10:25 that is key so with the eagles our identity has kind of been you know various each week so what they do against the colts will be interesting it really does change per matchup which we'll definitely get into coming up next yeah two similar teams like you said we'll get into that next but first today's episode is brought to you by blue Nile. Whether you're looking to pop the question, have a milestone to celebrate, or want to let your love sparkle, Blue Nile can help you make your celebrations even more memorable. As the original online jeweler, Blue Nile offers the largest selection of independently graded diamonds and pieces priced significantly below traditional retailers. If you're looking for a piece of fine jewelry to commemorate a

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Starting point is 00:12:55 of this game, what are some of the biggest matchups you're looking forward to seeing? Well, you mentioned before we took a break, Jonathan Taylor and the rushing offense kind of being the identity for the Indianapolis Colts as it should be for sure without you know a true franchise quarterback and I think that's going to be what they want to do on Sunday is run down the Eagles throats and that's what a lot of teams have been able to do this year you know Jordan Davis the Eagles first

Starting point is 00:13:19 round pick from Georgia really did kind of right the ship when he got more snaps in October really helped this run defense get stabilized. But since he's been out the last few weeks with an ankle injury, still he's going to be out for a couple more weeks here. They've struggled again. Fletcher Cox looks like a shell of who he used to be. Javon Hargrave has six sacks in the last three games, but against the run, he has struggled.

Starting point is 00:13:39 The linebackers haven't been great in that area either. They're 20th against the run. They brought in Linval Joseph, the 34-year-old nose tackle, on Wednesday, but he hasn't played since 2021. And their defensive coordinator, Jonathan Gannon, I just feel like at times has not adjusted the scheme to what they need. They have a great secondary. I think they need to stack the box more.

Starting point is 00:14:00 And I'm nervous because Damian Pierce and Brian Robinson, back-to-back weeks, a day three running back has shredded this defense. And now you have to play one of the best running backs in football. If you don't adjust, it's going to be an issue. It's going to give teams that are inferior opportunities to hold onto the football time of possession and have a chance against you, even though you're the more talented team. So I think that's definitely the key mashup. Yeah. And I think you're right. That's the first thing I looked at too, because how the Colts are constructed, they totally live and die by the performance of their offensive line. You know,

Starting point is 00:14:35 if, if the line gets overwhelmed and it's leaky and there's sacks and everything, the passing game is non-existent. And so the run game it's like right if if they're totally if they're failing it's a total system failure they're not just run blocking or like none of it works so i'm really curious to see if they're able to do that against a better defensive line than what the raiders provided last week also interesting because parks frazier their new offensive play caller had to get ready for everything on a short week last week was was given the reins on like tuesday i think monday night tuesday so kind of had to get everything ready on a short week uh the game plan was very simplistic uh it leaned on the

Starting point is 00:15:18 things they do really well again which is they try to establish the run and then matt ryan nor really any quarterback they've had under the Frank Reich system which which Frazier still runs yeah just the quarterback is there to take what the defense gives them and they like to do a lot of stuff over the middle of the field to create yards after the catch not much downfield threat whatsoever so that's a very simple approach again I'm curious if now that they've had more time to prepare a game plan for the Eagles, they've had a full week, like a normal week would go. Does the game plan change at all? Or do they try to establish themselves and make it more about

Starting point is 00:15:56 what they do well, rather than what do the Eagles not do well defensively? Yeah, you know, the both these sides know each other quite well. Of course, Nick Sirianni and Jonathan Gannon were here in Indy from 2018 to 2020. But again, Nick Sirianni knows Parks Frazier and Frank Reich's offense very well too. So it's an intriguing matchup, to say the least. I think the Eagles offense, flipping the sides of the field. Without Dale Scotter, it'll be interesting what they do. They still have AJ Brown. They still have Devante Smith. Um, they're I'm sure they'll run more for sure with mile Sanders and this top tier offensive line. But I think the way Jalen hurts is playing right now, he has enough weapons

Starting point is 00:16:35 still to get the job done through the air. So I still think it's going to be a very balanced attack as it's been throughout the majority of the year. And again, it's just really whatever the game calls for. Um, I think keep an eye out more without Dale Scotter. And there's not a quick fix here at tight end. They activated Tyree Jackson from the PUP list, but he's a very inexperienced player, young switch from quarterback to tight end. They've got Jack Stahl, who's mostly a run blocking tight end. They have Grant Calcaterra, a rookie seventh round pick. So really they don't have a lot of options there to take advantage of that matchup. I would expect probably just an increased volume of

Starting point is 00:17:10 targets for Brown and Smith and Quez Watkins as well. Their third string receiver, and maybe even a former Colt Zach Paschal. I think that, you know, Nick Sirianni said it in his press conference Wednesday, you're not going to replace Dallas Goddard. You have to do it by committee with receivers here. I think you're going to see more four receiver sets, maybe some empty set looks with both Paschal and Watkins on the field. Quez Watkins is a very fast burning wide receiver, had a key fumble on Monday night, but had over 80 yards, including a 50 yard bomb. He's a good player that is explosive. You got to keep an eye out for where he is at all times. And without Goddard, I think there's going to be an increased volume for him, Paschal, and these wide receivers.

Starting point is 00:17:49 And, again, that's a really good point you bring up because the Colts have done well overall against really good receivers, but they haven't really faced many teams that have two really good guys with Devontae Smith and A.J. Brown. And like you mentioned, Quez Watkins and Zach Paschal, they're not slouches either. You know, Gilmore is probably going to be matched up with Brown a lot of the time. But what's really going to be interesting is Isaiah Rogers

Starting point is 00:18:14 versus his opportunities against Brown and Devontae Smith. He's actually been a shutdown corner and not many people know about it. He's only been targeted like 10 times this year you know he's giving up very little he he did well against Devante Adams of the Raiders last week uh he's occasionally going to give up some some things but he's really been a lockdown corner this year so this is another huge test because it's not like it's not like you're off of AJ Brown and then you get break. Because it's going to be Devon Smith or a guy with burning speed like Watkins. And that's actually, Rogers, one of his biggest strengths is his twitchiness and his speed. He was a sub 4.3 guy before his draft class as well.

Starting point is 00:18:57 So that should be a good matchup. Because, I mean, Smith is a really fast guy too. So those were kind of my matchups as well. I was curious how they'll perform against a really quality guy too so those were kind of my matchups as well as I was curious how they'll perform against a really quality committee of receivers no that's the thing and again you're not going to replace Dallas Goddard but you have all those receivers and I think still you're going to run the football a lot Miles Sanders has been very good in a contract year he's trying to get a deal I don't know if it's going to be with Philadelphia but I think it's going to be a very

Starting point is 00:19:24 balanced attack so it's going to be an interesting matchup between these two teams, you know, very different identities at times. And, you know, I think the key matchup though, again, Jake, and I think you would agree is really Jonathan Taylor against the interior defensive line of the Eagles. You mentioned the talent the Eagles have up front, but most of it's pass rushing talent. I am definitely nervous about you know the colts time of possession because that's how washington won that football game on monday so that's going to be the key yeah and my lap my last little matchup nugget i wanted to mention just because he's been kind of on fire lately is paris campbell and you know if avante maddox is now

Starting point is 00:19:59 out it looks like josiah scott might be. Yeah, definitely the weak link in the secondary for sure. Barris Campbell, by the way, Jake, the guy the Eagles would have drafted if they didn't draft J.J. Ortega Whiteside in 2019. Yeah. So, yeah, he's actually been heating up for sure. And so that's definitely a matchup to watch out for. Josiah Scott, he's started in three games for Avante Maddox this year.

Starting point is 00:20:23 He's held his own, but definitely not Maddox at all. In man coverage, that definitely is a matchup to keep an eye out for. And the Eagles don't really have cornerbacks shadow. So it's going to be pretty much Darius Slay's on one side, James Bradbury's on the other, and Josiah Scott's in the middle. So if the Colts want to stay away from Slay and Bradbury, that'll definitely be a mismatch, I would say to take a look at. Yeah, they've gotten Campbell a lot more involved lately,

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Starting point is 00:21:16 way to get your betting fix. Head to the website today or use your mobile device to learn more. BetOnline, where the game starts. All right, Louie, rolling out the red carpet on this one. I'll give it to you first. What is your final score prediction for Colts-Eagles? How do you think it all plays out? Yeah, I don't think this is going to be a blowout for sure. I think, again, the Colts' key is going to be time of possession. I think they're going to try to control the football

Starting point is 00:21:42 and run it with Jonathan Taylor. I do think the Eagles bounce back here and get their ninth win of the season, get to nine and one. They're a motivated team. And I don't think they're a kind of team that'll start spiraling. I think on both sides of the ball, they're too talented and just too well-prepared, unlike past Eagles teams, that even when they were talented, if things started to kind of roll downhill, it would kind of pick up steam. So I think they're good at stopping that kind of momentum. I think they'll get a win.

Starting point is 00:22:10 Score prediction, I'll say, you know, the Eagles are very good at getting at least, you know, 28 plus points. I'll go 30 to 30, 17, 30 to 20. I'll say 30 to 20. Maybe the Colts get a late score. I think the Eagles will win this one, though. Yeah, I'm not yet ready to say the Colts are going to go on any sort of run yet. You know, it's great they got this win against the Raiders.

Starting point is 00:22:35 I think they're trending in the right direction. I think everything that happened a couple weeks ago with Frank Reich and bringing Jeff Saturday in lit a fire under them. But I'm not yet ready to say they're going to beat a team like the Eagles plus like I mentioned earlier I don't love that the Eagles are coming off their first loss just like you said I don't see consecutive losses in their future so I have it as 24 to 20 Eagles I'm going to give the Colts a little more juice offensively I think they can get to 20 points again. 25 was only their second highest of the season last week. Yeah, I just think this is kind of what

Starting point is 00:23:11 they're going to be now. They're going to be competitive. They took advantage of one of the league's worst teams. I think they'll be competitive against the good teams, but not necessarily to win all of those games. Yeah, I think another big thing, it always comes down to them, how did the offensive line play? Because it's usually either awful or really good. There's not much in between. And do they take care of the football? Because turnovers have been an enormous issue.

Starting point is 00:23:38 Like, they're very good at shooting themselves in the foot. And the Eagles are number one defense this year in turnovers force jake chauncey garner johnson their safety right now has six interceptions and he has an interception in five straight games so they're kind of red hot in that area exactly i was looking at that today looking at stats leading up to this the eagles were the best in turnover differential and they don't really give the ball up much either i think seven turnovers this year so that's that's a really tough offense or the offense takes care of the ball and it's a tough defense to play it's it's a lot like the colts were the last couple years with sirianni honestly um man any final thoughts on this one before we wrap it up yeah jake i think

Starting point is 00:24:21 it's gonna be an exciting game you know i think you said, the Colts were kind of riding that high. It felt like almost the pressure was off once Frank Wright got fired. I think you see a lot of teams when they get a new interim head coach, a lot of time they win that first game. Some of it, it feels like maybe they're more relaxed and the pressure is off. Maybe they feel a little more motivated and embarrassed because they got their coach, you know, fired mid season. But I do feel like I do feel like that momentum can only take you so far, and it almost feels like they emptied out the tank. I feel like the Eagles are just too talented of a team to win this game, but I still think it's going to be close.

Starting point is 00:24:55 The Colts are 4-5-1, so they have a chance. The Eagles can't overlook this opponent, and considering the importance of the standings right now, they've got to keep loading up wins. So this is definitely a big one for Philly and for Colts fans too, if you want to make the playoffs, um, you know, so I'm excited about this one. Yeah, no doubt. The Colts have kind of dug themselves into a hole at this point to where every game is a playoff game from, from here on out. And wild cards tough too, Jake. I mean, you look at it might have to be the division with all these AFC teams fighting for a spot. Yeah, without a doubt. And like you said, it's something we've mentioned

Starting point is 00:25:29 on Locked on Colts throughout the week is you're riding a high after this first win. And then it's kind of trying to find your level after that, because a lot of these interim guys do win first. We mentioned Steve Wilks with the Panthers. I forget what their first game was, but early on with Wilks, they trounced the Buccaneers, for example, and then they've leveled out. So very curious to see how they respond after their first win. But I think that's it for us, everybody. Stay tuned to both Locked On Colts and Locked On Eagles

Starting point is 00:25:58 leading up to and after Sunday's game for the best takes out there. On Twitter, follow at LockedOnBirds and at DBIACLOE, as well as at LockedOnColts, at JakeArthurNFL, and also both shows on YouTube, LockedOnColts, LockedOnEagles. Got to get those subscriber numbers up. We appreciate anything you guys are willing to give us. Thank you all for making us your first listen of the day. And now for your next listen, check out the Locked on Sports Today podcast.

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Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Can Indianapolis Colts' Matt Ryan, Jonathan Taylor Reestablish Identity vs. Philadelphia Eagles?

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