Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Crossover Special with Locked On Raiders

Episode Date: December 10, 2020

On today's episode, our weekly crossover special returns as is Evan is joined by Q from Locked On Raiders to preview this super important matchup on Sunday in Las Vegas. Who's going to come out on top with playoff seeding on the line?Starting off in Vegas, what's changed for Derek Carr in 2020? More confidence within Jon Gruden's offense, as well as added playmakers, have made Carr's job security safe for the long-term. Also, what's going on with Vegas' defense? Allowing almost 30 points per game, a lack of pass rush has them looking vulnerable against Indy.Flipping it over to the Colts, how has Philip Rivers looked compared to Jacoby Brissett? Also, what has changed for Indy's defense after acquiring DeForest Buckner? Closing it out, we hit on two former Raiders who are faring well in Indy: Denico Autry and T.J. Carrie.Finally, Evan and Q provide their predictions for Sunday. Will it be the Colts or the Raiders who exit Allegiant Stadium with a much-needed victory for playoff positioning? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello everybody, welcome back into the latest Locked On NFL crossover special on the Locked On Podcast Network. I am Evan Sattery of Locked On Colts, joined by Hugh of Locked On Raiders, as we're here to talk through what I think is one of the more intriguing matchups of this upcoming Sunday's slate of games, the Colts versus the Raiders. Hugh, how you doing tonight, man? I'm doing good, man. Excited about this week 14 matchup, man. Colts, Raiders, looks like a good one. And of course, the Raiders know the Colts quarterback Phillip Rivers very, very well.

I think Phillip Rivers said it's like this 29th time facing the Raiders. So it should be a fun one. Yeah, let's hit on the first. We'll go over Las Vegas and then we'll hit on as well the Colts and close our predictions. Let's talk about Derek Carr for a moment here because this Raiders team has been so intriguing to watch this year. It's because Derek Carr, I feel like, is finally letting it fly a little bit more offensively. We saw a lot of hesitation before the last couple years, but adding in Henry Ruggs, I think more confidence from John Gruden as well. What have you seen out of Derek Carr this year compared to years past? He's just in more control. He's in more command of the offense. He understands it a lot more. He knows what John Gruden wants him to do. You mentioned weapons around him. He's

got those weapons. He's got Henry Ruggs. He's got Darrell, Darren Waller, excuse me. He's got a Hunter Renfro, you know, and again, like I said, most importantly, he's just got a better understanding of what head coach John Gruden wants him to do. One big key that he's been doing this year that he hadn't been doing in years past is the fact that he was, he's using his legs. He's keeping plays alive with his legs, and that's really important. When he just sits back there as a statue, man, he gets himself in a lot of trouble. So when he's able to escape the pocket and sometimes pick up a first down

or sometimes just move around the pocket and give his wide receivers a couple extra seconds to get open, good things happen. So I think most importantly he's incorporated his feet into the game this year, and he's really starting to turn it on. 22 touchdowns and five picks, over 3,000 yards, nearly 70% completion percentage from Derek Carr this year as the Raiders sit at 7-5.

We heard a lot of buzz last offseason about Carr just because, you know, John Gruden loves his quarterbacks. He likes to go out and look around. I think this year's kind of calming those concerns and be some Raiders fans. How about Derek Carr, right? I mean, he's going to be a hot topic when it comes to the Raiders and Raider nation, no matter what, he's always a hot topic. Some people love him.

Some people hate him. Some people are indifferent and don't really care, but he's, he's, you know, he's no doubt about it. The guy, you know, and you know, there was in the off season, there was, Oh, maybe Tom Brady is going to be the guy. Maybe this guy is going to be guy. Oh, they signed Marcus Mariota. He's going to come in and take Derek Carr's spot for the Raiders to be successful in 2020. And in my opinion, for the Raiders to be successful in 2020, and in my opinion, for the Raiders to be successful in 2021,

number four is your starting quarterback, and that's Derek Carr. He's got to be behind center. He's got to be the dude pulling the trigger because it's not that easy to pick up a John Gruden offense. It's not that easy just to walk in there and all of a sudden take this team to the next level. He's in his third year. He totally understands the offense.

It's like he's a coach on the field now. He's basically a spitting image of John Gruden, and that's a good thing. That's when you know that your quarterback is where he needs to be. So there's no question that Derek Carr is the guy and that he's not going anywhere. But there's still, I'm not going to lie to you, there's still a lot of Raider Nation that would like to see an upgrade and just tired of Derek Carr because, well, they haven't got to the promised land. Until somebody gets you to the promised land,

the next guy is always the best guy, right? Yeah, absolutely. Let's hit on real quickly just this overall Raiders team right now. I think, honestly, there's so many highs but so many lows. I mean, I remember watching that Saints game early on this year, and they were just dominant against New Orleans at some points in that game as well. Kansas City earlier on this year, they barely lose to them at home. But then some games, like last week against the Jets, you barely beat them.

Just like why is it so see-sawly? Why is it so inconsistent for the Raiders so far this year? They're really good at doing something that you shouldn't do in the NFL, and that's playing up and down to your competition. You know what I mean? Like they're just really, really good at doing that. That is a problem of theirs, and that's been a problem of the Raiders for years. I mean, they just – they get up for some really really big games and then they'll they'll

kind of sleepwalk through games that aren't very good I mean you saw them get uh shellacked and kicked out of Atlanta when they played the Falcons a couple weeks ago I mean they didn't even show up for that one 43 to 6 that was embarrassing then they come back and like you mentioned barely beat the Jets but I'll tell you I'll take a barely beat the Jets any day over getting the mess beat out of them like they did against the Falcons the week before. So they just, that's just kind of who they are, man. They're just never that team that will go out there and play their ball and not worry about the team on the other side of the field. They just, they just kind of are up and down. It's a seesaw. And I think that that's a good description there that you gave them. And I mean,

it's just, it's kind of like the life of being a Raider fan. It's just, you know, you got to figure out what team's going to show up and how consistent they're going to be and how good they're going to be week in and week out. But when this team is on and clicking, like you mentioned, Kansas City, New Orleans, the Browns, you know, teams like that, teams with nine-plus wins in the league this year, I mean, they find ways to win the games.

And then teams like the Falcons that had three wins at the time and the Jets with no wins, you know, barely squeaked by them. It's just what it is. And hopefully for that team's sake, the last four games of the season that they have in the regular season, they find a way to turn this thing around and really just be consistent. You can't go, you know, if you have dreams of being in the playoffs, you can't be up and down each and every week.

You've got to be consistent and really playing solid ball right now. So we'll see what team shows up on Sunday against a very good Colts team. Let's hit on the defense now, Q, because looking at this Raiders team right now, this really is their Achilles heel, just the lack of pass rush so far this year, allowing almost 29 points per game over their first 12 games this season. What's gone wrong on that end of the field right now? It's the pass rush. The pass rush is not getting there enough consistently,

and that's where it all starts. You know, games are won and lost in the trenches, and the Raiders' trenches aren't good enough yet. You know, they're just not. And the Raiders invested a lot of money. They invested some draft capital trying to make that defense better in 2020, and it just hasn't done that. I mean, there's games where they'll show up,

and this is all I really ask of them. Just get a couple stops. Get a couple stops. Make a team kick a field goal a couple times instead of giving up a touchdown. Then you have an opportunity because this Raiders offense is really stinking good and gives them a chance to win each and every game that they go out there, but they've got to be able to come up with a couple stops here and there. They've got to be able to limit what the other team does.

And, you know, like you said, 29 points a game, that's not very good. It just isn't. You know, the good thing for the Raiders offensively, they're up there around 30 points a game, you know, scoring. I mean, they're really good for the most part scoring a lot of points. And so they can do that. Games that they're winning, you see that they're putting up just mad points, you know. And so, you know, hopefully they figure this thing out. Like I said, the last four games of the season, you really got to be playing some of your best ball. And so that defense, who is very banged up right now,

you know, needs to find a way to come up with a few stops, rattle Phillip Rivers a little bit, you know, make him a little uncomfortable in the pocket. But that's kind of the nature, and that's kind of the storyline each and every week. You got to rattle the quarterback. You got to make him uncomfortable. And unfortunately for the Raiders, they haven't done enough of that throughout the 2020 season speaking of the last four games Q of course the

Raiders play the Colts on Sunday then Thursday night at home against the Chargers home against the Dolphins as well who are ahead of them in the standings and at Denver always a tough matchup in division does it feel like to you Q that the Raiders have to win out to make the playoffs at this point I mean you're playing against the Colts, playing against the Dolphins teams. You really have to leapfrog here in the standings. Yeah, I think, I don't think that they have to win out. I mean, obviously it'd be great if they did win out. They'd end the season at 11 and five. I've been saying that they need to, out of the last five games, they need to win four of them. And they won one on Sunday against the Jets. So I'm saying three out of the next four,

and it gives them a chance. And on top of that, it's got to be the right three out of the right next four. You know what I mean? Like they've got to win this game against the Colts in my opinion, because while the Colts are in front of them in the, in the playoff race, they've got to beat the dolphins on, on a, you know,

a couple of weeks from now because the dolphins are in front of them, at least right now they're in front of them, but still that's a game that's very important for the playoff seating. So those two games for sure. You know, I would say that the chargers in Denver, those are both AFC West opponents and both of those teams are sitting behind the Raiders, but either way, if they,

if they can find a way to win three out of the four and in particular, like I said, this game coming up against the Colts on Sunday, and especially that game against Miami a couple of weeks from now on the, on the day after Christmas, that would be huge for them. And maybe they dropped to Denver at the last, the last game of the season. I don't know, but for my liking, maybe they drop to Denver at the last game of the season. I don't know. But for my liking, if you win three out of the next four, you end the season at 10-6,

I think you have a great shot at making the playoffs. And if you don't make the playoffs at 10-6, I still look at you and say, okay, you know what? You went from 7-9 in 2019 to 10-6 in 2020. I'll take that. And then that's something to build on next year. And then you really have no excuse why you don't make the playoffs. Last one I had for you, Q, before we dive into the final seminar show,

talking about the Colts and give our predictions. I know the Oakland Raiders, historic franchise. You were also in L.A. before. But what's it like watching this team in Vegas, just a beautiful stadium, Allegiant Stadium? I know you've been there as well, covering a game. What's it like, just from the fans' perspective, your perspective, watching the Las Vegas Raiders instead of the Oakland Raiders after all these years?

Well, you know, it's funny. I rarely even put a city's name on them, but you're right. I've been to Allegiant Stadium. I was there for that Sunday night game against the Chiefs. It was amazing. It was awesome. That stadium is second to none, I really think. I mean, it's just such a nice, beautiful stadium.

And when the fans are actually able to enjoy it, I think it's going to be a great destination place. The city of Vegas has been great. They embrace the Raiders all over town. There's just Raiders love everywhere. And I think that that's great. They're like a big fish in a small pond there in Las Vegas. You know, basically they're there by themselves as the only professional football team. Obviously they got the Vegas Golden Knights there on the ice and that's great. Of course they got UNLV there, you know, all the fights and everything. It's the entertainment capital of the world. So I just think that it's a really good fit. And me being a Bay Area, being an Oakland guy, I never wanted to see them leave Oakland. But if they're going to leave Oakland and go somewhere,

why not Vegas? And it's almost as fitting that that would be the team that ends up in Las Vegas as the real deal first professional, you know, football team to be there. I don't know if baseball is going to end up there at some point. Basketball, maybe. Who knows? But I just kind of like to see them breaking that ground there in Las Vegas and really getting that entertainment capital, like I mentioned, really on and popping. And so it's great, man. The fan base has been awesome. Even a lot of Oakland Raider fans that were upset saying that they weren't going to follow the team to Vegas. They did. You know, they know that that's that's their team, no matter where they play. They could play in Africa and they're still going to they're going to root for them.

So it's just it is what it is, man. They got a beautiful home. They needed it. The stadium was a joke that they were playing in at the Coliseum, even though I enjoyed that joke. But it was still it was it just needed to be upgraded and, you know, just uprooted. Really, it just needed to be replaced completely. They couldn't get it done in the Bay. It's getting done in Vegas. It is done in Vegas, and it's been pretty awesome. Awesome stuff there from Q. We're going to dive in now to our second segment of the show to talk about the Annapolis Colts. Before we do so, a quick word here from our sponsors. Built Bar is the best tasting protein bar ever. The improved Built Bar is even more delicious,

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Evan Sutter, Locked On Colts, Q of Locked on Raiders. Q, I'll give you the floor here now to ask you some Colts questions. Yeah, the Colts are – I mean, they're cooking right now. You know, they're looking really, really good. And I know at the beginning of the season, as Phillip Rivers became the starting quarterback there in Indianapolis, there were some questions. You know, was he fitting in?

Was he old and just kind of lost it or not? But from what you've seen from the beginning of the season to when they took that loss to the Jaguars, to where they are right now, coming off a nice little victory over the weekend, what have you seen? How much growth have you seen from Phillip Rivers? Yeah, Phillip Rivers' Q has been, I think, outstanding.

Outside of one or two games this year, he's been exactly what the Colts have asked for. I think over the last two months of the season, he has 14 touchdowns and four picks. Unlike the few years past with Phillip Rivers, who was the gunslinger throwing 20-plus interceptions, he's definitely reigned it back in. Frank Reich, I think, is the perfect quarterback whisperer for him.

And he just fits Reich's offense to a tee. Just really quick one, two, three throw. Just rhythmic offense. You have the playmakers who can do yards after catch as well. Michael Pittman Jr., T.Y. Hilton, who's coming on a little bit. John Taylor as well. Naheem Hines is an underrated catch as well. Michael Pittman Jr., T.Y. Hilton, who's coming on a little bit. Jonathan Taylor as well. Naheem Hines is an underrated weapon as well, the backfield. Just a lot of solid pieces for Rivers, as well as the offensive line.

You can't go without mentioning that. He only, I think, has 11 sacks so far this year, which is the least amount allowed in the NFL. He's definitely preserving his career another couple years for the Colts, I imagine. But Phillip Rivers, I think, has just been exactly what they've asked for. Accurate quarterback. He'll take the risk down the field when he's asked to. Unlike Jacoby Brissett last year, he just was a very hesitant quarterback. Rivers is the exact

opposite, but he's also more accurate, which makes it all the better for this Colts offense and why the risks aren't hit their stride at the right time, Q. Yeah, no, it does look like Phillip Rivers is really coming into his own. Obviously, he's a quarterback Raider Nation knows very well. He's faced the Raiders so many times. He talks a lot of trash. I always call him that gnat that won't go away. He just kind of flies around your head. But, I mean, hell of a quarterback. Really, really a damn good quarterback. He does what he does.

You know, Marlon Mack, your running back, he went out early in the season, man. Four carries, and he goes down season-ending injury since he's gone out. Jonathan Taylor, you know, they drafted him to kind of be that compliment. How has he done from the running back position for the Colts? Yeah, it was a really, honestly, rough first few months for Jonathan Taylor.

His adjustment to the NFL speed was very noticeable for him. He wasn't hitting the holes as hard. I think he was overthinking things, maybe thinking more than he was actually running the football. And he also went to the doghouse a little bit. He fumbled against Detroit about a month or so ago. Didn't do well against Green Bay. Didn't do well against Tennessee.

And he was really a third-string running back for about three straight weeks behind Naeem Hines and Jordan Wilkins. But this past week, he erupted in Houston. He had 13 carries for 91 yards, seven yards per carry. I think he should have gotten a lot more touches in that game. But really, Frank Reich is all about running back by committee. But at this point, if he does play well against the Vegas Raiders on Sunday, I think you should take that label off of him

and make him the workhorse like it was at Portland Mac because the way John Taylor looks right now, he's very confident. He's looking a lot like his vision is improving week by week, which is a great thing for a rookie running back. I think next year is going to be a monster year for Jonathan Taylor. But looking at just the overall year, I'd probably give like a C, C- for him just because it was such a rough start. But if he can have a huge stretch here in December, maybe January, he's going to be a weapon

here come playoff football. Well, you know, for any run game to go and for any quarterback to be successful, they need a successful offensive line. And I know the Colts have invested very, very greatly into the offensive line, either by way of free agency or the draft over the years. Anthony Costanzo, the starting left tackle, he's dealing with a knee injury. I know he didn't play last week. What are your thoughts on him? Do you think he's going to get a chance to play this week, or is it going to be the third string guy? Because Clark is out. He tore his Achilles. The third string guy, who's Chaz Green, I know he's a turnstile at the tackle position. Do you think he's going to go, or do you think Costanzo can make it happen on Sunday? Yeah, it sounds like Hugh Costanzo will not be going on Sunday and possibly even the week after that.

It was a MCL spring. The Colts got really lucky. If you've seen the replay of that injury at Hugh, that Jacoby Brissett was a quarterback sneak on the red zone, and Jacoby's helmet goes right into Costanzo's knee at full speed from right behind him. It's an awkward twist of the knee, and he goes down. He's out for the rest of the game.

And really the level of play between Costanzo to Raven Clark and Chaz green is so insurmountable for his Colts offense. It just looks a lot different than Costanza out there. And that's maybe to the Raiders favor on Sunday, because without Costanza, this Colts offense is a lot more, I'd say apprehensive.

They really may play things a lot more safely. You don't have maybe less time to throw. Cause like you mentioned, Chaz green was just flat out awful on Sunday in Houston. He allowed three, all three of the cold sacks. J.J. Watt just tore him apart, as did Whitney Merciless. So Max Crosby, Chloe Farrell, they're both probably licking their chops watching some Chaz Green tape as well.

So it's going to be a really rough one on Sunday if they don't give Chaz Green any help. He's also questionable on the injury report, but it's something he's going to play. He practiced as well today with a back injury. So it will be Chaz Green, not even a fully 100% Chaz Green. So this offensive line without Costanto, it goes from elite Q to about average or below average

because the way – how important you know this as well, Q, left tackle outside quarterback is definitely the most important position on the offense or even the team by that matter. Yeah, absolutely. Got to protect that blind side for Phillip Rivers, especially, I mean, he's a guy that's not going to run around. He's not going to try to keep plays alive with his feet too much, especially dealing with that toe injury. I don't even have to ask if Phillip Rivers is going to go because I don't care if you had to get him out there in a wheelchair. He's playing, especially against the Raiders. Oh, absolutely. Yeah, he's definitely going to

give it a go on Sunday. He actually looked fantastic on Sunday against the Houston Texans. He was 27-35 at one point. He had, I think, two incompletions at halftime. Just with the way the Colts' offense is now with Rivers with his toe injury, he was obviously a statue before him. But it's really a lot – really 100% shot on offense now. One, two, three throw. First three, get it out of there.

So you just have as much protection of that toe as possible. But even still with that injury, I mean, we saw him play on tour in ACL about ten years ago. This dude's the toughest quarterback in the NFL, probably in NFL history, honestly. And he's not going to sit this one out with a toe injury. He's going to be playing. Even Ian Rappaport mentioned last week, Q,

that he's going to need off-season surgery on that toe. But it's not going to bother Phillip Rivers at all. He's going to want to win that game. Yeah, absolutely. There's nothing more he would love to do than beat the Raiders in their own home and really kind of mess up their playoff hopes. There's no doubt about that. And, of course, the Raiders are very familiar with Phillip Rivers.

Now, looking at the defensive side of things, the Colts make the big move in the offseason leading into the draft. They go and make the trade with San Francisco. They go and get DeForest Buckner. They give him a boatload of money, and he's been worth every single penny and then probably a little bit extra. How important has Buckner been? I know he's back from the COVID-19 list.

How big has he been for the Colts this season? Yeah, Defoe has been an absolute star, superstar. I think he should be in the Defensive Player of the Year voting because we saw last Sunday against the Titans before the play of Texans that he really is the fulcrum of this defense. They lost 43 points to the Titans without Buckner on the field, and they come back against Deshaun Watson and shut them out in the second half of that game.

Buckner has three quarterback hits and two sacks against them. He also already has 19 quarterback hits this year. That is only two off the franchise record for the Annapolis Colts already for an interior defensive lineman too, which is crazy to say. Dwight Frieden has the record with 21. So it really goes to show how disruptive he is as a pass rusher, but even the running game too. The Col really goes to show how disruptive he is as a pass rusher,

but even the running game too. The Colts are top five in rush defense so far. I can't remember the last time the Colts did that with historically a bad rushing defense. The Colts have had all their years in Indianapolis. But Buckner's changed everything. He may have more pass rush. It's helping out Justin Houston as well. Put a three-sack game on Sunday.

Darius Leonard's running more free in the middle of the defense. And even less pressure on guys like Xavier Rhodes, Rock Yassen, and the secondary as well. Just having that kind more free in the middle of the defense and even less pressure on guys like Xavier Rhodes, Rakia Sen and the secondary as well just having that kind of superstar in the middle of your defense and the front four it really changes everything and as Chris Ballard mentioned in the offseason after according to Forrest Buckner he is that crown jewel acquisition for this Colts defense takes him from an average defense to an elite defense and when Buckner's on the field we see that every Sunday. Yeah Yeah, I mean, they gave him a first-round draft pick, and like I mentioned, gave him a boatload of money, but definitely worth every penny.

He was definitely worth that first-round draft pick. How about Danico Autry? He's a guy Raider fans know very well. Used to be a member of the Silver and Black. The Raiders chose not to re-sign him. The Colts have signed him, and he's been there now a couple seasons, and he looks pretty good, and I know he's a little banged up. You know, he's been on the injury report here and there.

But what's your thoughts on Danico Autry? You think he's a go on Sunday? Yeah, I think he's going to be a go on Sunday. He came off the COVID-19 list as well as DeForest Buckner did last Sunday against Houston. He was actually off for two weeks because he's actually symptomatic, unlike Buckner, who was asymptomatic. So he actually showed some symptoms there.

But Autry so far next to Buckner has looked fantastic. I mean, he's playing on the outside now. And so he was playing inside for the first two years of his career in Indy, but now he's bouncing to the outside as your strong side defensive end. He's looked very good in that role. Six sacks so far this year in 10 games. He just looks the part of a legitimate three-down lineman, and that's exactly what he's been for the Colts.

And as you know, Q, he really flashed a lot of potential in Oakland. But in Indianapolis, he's done the exact same thing. And with DeForest Buckner, he looks like a guy you should re-sign for another one or two years and let him thrive next to Defoe because he really looks the part of a guy who can do it all in the passing game as well as a guy who's a really, really solid run defender as well. Last week for the Raiders, Darren Waller, the tight end, he went off, man. 13 catches, 200 yards, two TDs.

He was a man-child. You know, he could basically do anything that he wanted to do. I know Pro Football Focus has him ranked right now number two as far as tight ends in the league. That's all great, and that's, you know, the bread and butter of the Raiders. They love to go to Darren Waller. But with that being said, I know the Colts' defense is really good against defending the tight end.

As a matter of fact, best in the league. What makes Colts, why are they so good? Why are they so successful when it comes to slowing down opposing teams' tight ends? I think it's just because their overall team speed on defense. Chris Fowler has built a unit that he's always based on traits. The combine, if you watch the combine, the guys are the freakish wings fans, the guys, the fast 40s, the ones with the fast three cones. They're probably gonna be in that with Colts eventually. He really to get those trades guys a 4-3 defense on a fast trip at lucasola stadium it's really what they've always wanted at indy especially for chris ballard he's wanted to build that type of defense and it's shown this year i mean you have guys flying all over the place

of the ball takes less than a few seconds to get their efforts caught but i think the thing for me q is that i don't think they played anyone close to jaron waller as far as tight end goes this year the level competition at tight end has been pretty poor so I would say I think the best one they played was Austin Hooper in Cleveland he's sharing that role with Harrison Bryan as well and he's on Darren Waller's on another level compared to Austin Hooper so I think this is going to be a really unique matchup for this Colts defense I wonder if you put Darius on the run at some points maybe Corey Willis or Julian Black in the back end as well just because Waller's like you mentioned, is a mismatched nightmare.

I think he's going to be a player on Sunday. If you can't stop him, he's going to be one, like we saw last week, get 10 to 15 catches with no problem. How often does the Colts defense, how often do they like to try to blitz and really rattle the quarterback, get him off his spot? I'd probably say very sporadically. I think it's only a couple games so far this year where they've really done that. Detroit against Matthew Stafford,

they really got into his head early on. And Ryan Tannehill in their first matchup against Tennessee when they blew them out as well. That could be the same formula. I think that's what we might be alluding to, Q, about just Derek Carr feeling the pressure a little bit. I could see that coming here on Sunday just because you have all those athletes on the defense. You have DeForest Buckner just used to up front.

Could get in Derek Carr's head early and often. But I do think they might just try to bait Carr a little bit. They love playing cover two. They play a lot of also cover three this year, just having a lot more athletes on the field. So maybe they try to bait him a little bit more often. But I'd probably say it's around 25% of the time they blitz. That's not really that often.

I think they're one of the higher-ranked teams in percentage as far as cover two goes so far this year. All right, and my final question as far as the defense goes, I know that they're really good against the tight end. I know that they're really good against the run. I know DeForest Buckner is a dude. I know Justin Houston's a dude. If there's one area of concern that you would have for the Colts defense, what would it be? It's a, it's a small one, maybe not a small one, honestly, because it's so important on the outside of the football field. That's a cornerback. Xavier Rhodes looked fantastic this year,

but Rocky Hussain, the-year pro out of Temple, has been very up and down. These last couple weeks, he's actually gotten benched in favor of veteran TJ Carey, who's gotten a lot more snaps than Rakia Sen. That's not good for a top draft pick from 2019. But I'd have to say Rakia Sen, that second boundary opposite corner of Xavier Rhodes,

who really is earning himself a big new payday in Indianapolis. But outside of that, you can maybe see guys like Hunter Renfro, or even see some other players like Henry Ruggs really start to target TJ Carey or target Rocky Asin on Sunday. Instead of going Darren Waller's way, they could go the outside more often. Well, you know, I said that was the last question, but then you mentioned TJ Carey. He used to be in the silver and black as well. What have you seen from TJ Carey as a member of the Colts? He's been outstanding. I think he's honestly been better than Rocky Asin, which might be a damning statement on Rock.

But I think just the way he's come in and just been a consummate pro. He just does whatever the Colts need him to. Nickel, boundary, play special teams. He's 30 years old at this point, Q, but he's really a player that you should re-sign this upcoming offseason. He just does everything the Colts ask for on defense. He's a snug fit in coverage as well. Doesn't make many mistakes, which I think is the exact thing the Colts want. Matty Rufus and that defensive coordinator, they want to be

able to just be smart, regimented, and not make many mistakes at all. And that's exactly what TJ Carey has been so far this year. I knew he had struggles early on in his career in Oakland, but he's really starting to find his form here and end it. Nice, nice. Well, I know he left the Raiders. He went to Cleveland. He had a little free agent deal there. Now he's in Indy. So good for TJ, man. I always liked him as a player. Just didn't work out with the Raiders. Didn't work out with the Silver and Black. So that's cool, man. I'm glad to see that he's doing well there in Indy. That's all I got for you now. I know you wanted to flip it around and do a little bit of prediction, so we could do that next, man. I'm good with that. All right, let's go ahead and do a cue. I mean,

I'll give my score. I'll go on DraftKings real quick as well just give out the spread for all the listeners it looks like a two and a half point favorites the Colts are on the road in Vegas what do you think about that cue you think the Colts gonna cover that spread or how do you think it's gonna go on Sunday I'm gonna go personally 34-24 I think it's gonna be a Colts victory I think it's gonna be one where like you mentioned the pass rush gets in Derek Carr's head a little bit they stopped Darren Waller I think Jonathan Taylor has a big one where, like you mentioned, the pass rush gets in Derek Carr's head a little bit. They stop Darren Waller. I think Jonathan Taylor has a big game on Sunday as well. Try to keep Phillip Rivers as safe as possible with Chaz Green at left tackle.

I think this offense will move the ball against his poorest Raiders defense. What's your expectations and your prediction for Sunday, Q? You know, I think that the Raiders have to stop exactly what you just said. They've got to stop Jonathan Taylor. They gave up over 200 yards rushing to the Jets on Sunday, and that can't happen. You know, you've got to make Phillip Rivers beat you. And I 200 yards rushing to the Jets on Sunday, and that can't happen. You know, you got to make Phillip Rivers beat you, and I'm not saying he can't because he can, but at the same time, I'd rather him throw the ball 35, 38 times, maybe even 40

times a game if he has to. I just feel like he gives you an opportunity to make a play, like, you know, create a turnover here or there, or you get an opportunity to sack him. So, I'm going to think that the Raiders are going to try to buckle down and slow down the run, really get after it, because what they did last week they can't do again. So at some point the Raiders got to establish some kind of home field advantage. They haven't done it yet this year, their first year there in Vegas. So with the playoffs on the line, everything that they got going, I think that the Raiders are going to find a way to get a victory.

I don't think it's going to be a big spread. I think it's going to be like 32-28 or something like that. You know what I mean? Like three-point lead or, you know, something like that. But I think the Raiders pull it off at the end. Q, I really like that one. I think either way it's going to be a super fun, entertaining game on Sunday in Vegas.

I wish there was fans in the stands because, like I mentioned earlier in the show, I just love that stadium, just the way it looks on TV. Hopefully I can go visit that soon like you did, Q. But I appreciate everyone listening on our latest crossover special, Locked On Raiders and Locked On Colts. You guys can go follow us on our stream platform listening to and listen to Q or myself covering the Colts and Q with the Raiders. Q, appreciate the time, man.

Absolutely. Great stuff, man. Good luck on Sunday. It should be fun.