Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts' Anthony Richardson Will Lead Team to Win vs. Los Angeles Rams

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Colts are going to win on Sunday and Anthony Richardson is going to be a big reason why. Let's get to it. You are Locked On Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. What up, what up? Thanks for tuning in and making us your first listen of the day. This is your daily podcast covering your Indianapolis Colts, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And today's show is sponsored by GameTime.

Starting point is 00:00:46 Download the GameTime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for 20 bucks off your first purchase. Last minute tickets, lowest price, guaranteed. Hello, everybody. I am Jake Arthur, and he is Zach Hicks. And, oh, I don't know if you noticed that we both have mustaches today in honor of the final day of Menchu week, I guess it is. I couldn't leave Zach hanging alone out there all week. I had to jump on the train at some point. So you're welcome YouTube viewers. Jake, we are Mario and

Starting point is 00:01:15 Luigi today. Let's not even announce ourselves as Zach and Jake. We are Mario and Luigi. That's who we are today. I love it. I'll take Mario as the more rotund option. I think we know that's true. I'm Charlie Day's Luigi. That's what I am. I like it. I like it. See, when I do this, I've been told I look like David Harbour slash Hopper from Stranger Things. I see the glasses off. So I see. I'll take that all day. But anyways, it's our final wrap-up show before Colts and Rams. We're going to go through what we think the offense is going to look like, what they need to do with the defense, what they need to accomplish. And then ultimately, it's prediction time.

Starting point is 00:01:55 Some good news in terms of the offense. Anthony Richardson and Ryan Kelly have both been full participants through the first two days of practice. So that means pretty good chances for them to clear concussion protocol and play Sunday. Not going to say anything certainly before, you know, we need to hear from Shane Steichen on Friday first to officially know that because we've also seen them keep guys out. So I don't want to say anything definitive yet, but it looks good. And shoot, Zach, that's got to make all the

Starting point is 00:02:25 difference in the world in terms of what the offense is capable of. Yeah, yeah, for sure. I mean, I know some people will look at that first week with the Jacksonville Jaguars and say, oh, the Colts offense wasn't that efficient with Anthony Richardson, and they weren't as efficient overall with Richardson. But so far this year, in the five quarters we got from Richardson and the seven quarters we got from Gardner Minshew, the offense has been slightly better under Anthony Richardson. Obviously, that first quarter against the Houston Texans was a big part of that, where Richardson's first two series of the day resulted in touchdown runs, pretty long touchdown runs for Anthony Richardson.

Starting point is 00:02:59 So, yeah, I think it's going to be big just getting him back out there, especially for the run game, too, because Zach Moss had a really good two-week stretch now. But what's he going to look like when you have Anthony Richardson who's going to spread that defense out a little bit more, who's going to make the backside edge have to think twice before crashing down on Zach Moss, who's going to have linebackers maybe flowing the wrong way because, you know, Anthony Richardson's ability to run the ball.

Starting point is 00:03:22 So I do think Anthony Richardson's going to have a big impact on this offense. And for the admirable job that Gardner Minshew did, it's ready to have QB1 back for this offense for sure. Yeah, I also like Anthony's chances of evading Aaron Donald a lot more than I like Gardner's. Whether it's in his face, coming from the peripheral, whatever, I think Anthony's going to have a lot easier time escaping. The Rams are plenty capable, especially with Aaron Donald. Anytime Aaron Donald is on the field, the sack is possible when it comes to that.

Starting point is 00:03:53 So I like the idea of having Anthony out there. I'm also ready to just see the offense evolve. I think we can already see that Shane Steichen is trying to make the defense as multiple and versatile as he can and try and disguise things a little bit. But there's just such a cap on it when Gardner is out there. And, I mean, that's to be expected. He runs the offense to his abilities.

Starting point is 00:04:18 But with Anthony, we can have a better shot at seeing the downfield plays open up more, whether it's Alec Pierce leaving his defender a couple steps behind and hitting a shot on the outside or just finding someone downfield down the seam, just whatever. I feel like the opportunities for downfield shots and explosive plays, the chunk plays, it's just more likely when Anthony is out there. Yeah, for all the positives we can say about this Colts team through three weeks the offense is still kind of bare bones at the moment it still hasn't really taken that next step to being a above average or even an average NFL offense as of right now it's playing at like a below average level which is still a step up from

Starting point is 00:05:01 last year last year it was at an abysmal level. This year, we're at a below average level with a backup quarterback playing seven of the 12 total quarters for the offense. So we can't complain too much. It's still really early in Shane Steichen's tenure, but we do want to see that next step happen for this Colts offense with Anthony Richardson, obviously, at quarterback. So yeah, seeing more downfield shots, seeing more big-time throws over the middle of the field,

Starting point is 00:05:24 seeing more explosive plays for the offense. There's a lot more that we need to see from this Colts offense, seeing more dry success rate. We want to see that ball actually getting first downs more often. There's just too many three and outs as of right now with this Colts offense. So I do think this offense still has a little bit of a ways to go compared to the Colts defense right now. But I think getting Anthony Richardson back, getting Shane Steichen more comfortable with

Starting point is 00:05:46 Richardson, getting those two on the same page and getting obviously Richardson just more comfortable in general too with the offense, we'll start seeing this Colts offense go from below average to at least average, above average, and maybe even, you know, top tier before the end of the season. But it's all about taking those steps forward with the offense because as of right now, it's still not good enough, but it is fine. Like it's fine, but we want it to be more taking those steps forward with the offense, because as of right now, it's still not good enough. But it is fine. Like it's fine. But we want it to be more than fine going forward. Yeah, you don't want the defense to have to pull so much of the weight. But in terms of the passing game, I'm kind of counting on more of the same until we see a development there.

Starting point is 00:06:19 But with the run game, I think it becomes more wide open, obviously, with Richardson. And I mean, the Rams are susceptible to some big performances. I mean, Christian McCaffrey is kind of a unicorn, but he had over five yards per carry. Kenneth Walker had over five yards per carry when the Rams handily beat the Seahawks. Joe Mixon didn't have the greatest game, but he did have a 14-yard touchdown run on Monday Night Football last week. The Colts have already proven to be a team that is advantageous in the run game. They're above average. Again, if they had all the parts, they probably would be top 10. They're French right now. I'm counting on the run game powering this thing, and it's obviously going to

Starting point is 00:07:00 be more effective with Anthony. Whether they take the approach that they did against Houston, where they just, they showcase him as the runner. And, you know, he had two touchdown runs of 15 plus yards right away in that first quarter. I don't know, but I do think just looking at what the Rams have done so far, and if the Colts are in fact getting Richardson back, I think it's going to be another run, run heavy approach, maybe some short passes still, but yeah. Yeah, no, I agree with you.

Starting point is 00:07:34 I think it's going to be more run heavy, but I do think we're going to start seeing the offense move a little more towards the big play. You know, we have seen some big plays dialed up for the Colts offense that just haven't been hit on either. It's Gardner Minshew at quarterback, Anthony Richardson at quarterback, you know, whoever. The Colts haven't really hit on those downfield shots. I do think we're going to start seeing it this week where the Colts do take some more chances down the field.

Starting point is 00:07:55 I mean, Alec Pierce this year has a 22, I think a 22-yard average depth of target as of right now. Now, he hasn't caught too many of the deep ones ones but he is being targeted down the field a little bit it's about getting more targets in those isolated situations for him uh before we get out of the offense though Jake I did want to touch on the most important game for this young player's career as of right now and that is Will Fries versus Aaron Donald now obviously he's not going to be lined up with Aaron Donald, you know, isolated situations all game long, but for the five, six, seven times that he will be isolated with Aaron Donald, just stay in front, just stay in front. Like I'm not expecting Will Fries to completely lock down Aaron Donald. Aaron Donald is arguably the greatest pass rusher in the history of football, arguably the greatest defender in the history of football. Even if he's not in his

Starting point is 00:08:43 absolute prime, he is still one of the best defenders in all of football here so if Will Fries can just stay in front be competitive get hands-on early and slow down that rush that's all I can really ask because there will be a certain amount of rushes in this game where the Colts have to send help the other way versus the the a-gap that's more threateningaron donald out on the three tech or or something like that or the four eye or something like that so there are gonna be situations where will fries is one-on-one with aaron donald the colts can obviously help him out a little bit but he just needs to be competitive needs to stay in front needs to make it as difficult a rush as

Starting point is 00:09:18 possible if you end up on your back that's fine but just make sure that aaron donald has to waste two seconds before he put you on the back rather than one second or half a second like he does to some guys yeah that's i can't even blame the guy if it doesn't go well but i mean shane steik and tony sperano jr they're smart guys i trust them to have a plan for that they they know what's out there they know what this matchup is even if it's quentin nelson and aaron donald like we we saw that matchup a couple years ago and and it wasn't always good for quentin i mean he had his wins in that but that that's one of those just ferocious ferocious matchups where you have to be prepared for for donald no matter who you have on your sidewalking but we'll get to the cold side of things because the Colts defensive front probably has an even bigger advantage in this matchup.

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Starting point is 00:13:32 Eastern time on any Locked on NFL YouTube channel. All right, Jake, so diving into this Colts defense, you kind of mentioned at the end of that last segment talking about the matchup that the Colts have up front. It's just another one of those weeks where it's like this Colts defensive line should be able to feast on the matchup across from them. And unlike the last two weeks, it's not really due to injuries. It's more because the Rams offensive line is just kind of, you know, I want to be as nice as possible. But like, you know, it's it is what it is.

Starting point is 00:14:04 You know, last week they allowed six sacks to the Cincinnati Bengals, who have a good defensive line, but it's a defensive line that's fairly comparable to the Colts' defensive line, in my opinion. DJ Reeder is very similar to Grover Stewart. They have their one big pass rush winner in Trey Hendrickson. The Colts have DeForest Buckner, and then they have a lot of complementary rushers around them.

Starting point is 00:14:23 The Colts obviously have Abu Kam, and they have Quidiitty Pay, who have been playing some great football this year. So for a Colts defensive line that has 12 sacks, or I guess a Colts defense has 12 sacks already this year, seven forced fumbles. They really should be able to get after it this weekend against the Los Angeles Rams. Yeah, it would be a big surprise to me if they didn't answer the call there, because through three games, they've pretty much held the advantage offensive line versus defensive line, and they have really gone above and beyond. Like you mentioned, 12 sacks, which is tied for second, seven forced fumbles tied for second. They're 23 tackles for loss because it's not just about pass rush. It's about disrupting things in the backfield altogether. That's tied for first.

Starting point is 00:15:08 So this is a team that is really deep up front, and they're getting contributions everywhere. You know, so far we haven't really called the names of guys like Taequann Lewis much yet. There's guys out there who still are playing quality football, but just haven't, like, we're just so used to saying everybody else's name because they're just getting those contributions. Evie Com, like you mentioned, I mean, it's only three games in, but so far has lived up to that contract.

Starting point is 00:15:35 Quitty pay a big third year. He's healthy. Three sack, three games in a row. I believe that is Buckner and Grover Stewart were relatively quiet in the last game. That has not been the case throughout the season. So, again, I would be very, very surprised. I'm not going to say they're going to have six sacks, but they should have a very, very productive day up front.

Starting point is 00:15:59 Plus, the Rams' run game isn't really anything to write home about either. Kyron Williams is fine, but Cam Akers was probably a better pure running back and is gone. So now you've got an older quarterback who's not the most nimble mobile guy and just a run game that's okay. So I don't see any reason why the Colts defensive front shouldn't really take advantage of this matchup. Yeah, and going back to the last couple of weeks, you know how we talked in week two against CJ Stroud,

Starting point is 00:16:28 the Colts need to get after him, bring that pressure, make him uncomfortable. And that's how you're going to get that lead. And we saw that in that game. They got that pressure on him early in the game and the Colts were able to build up a massive lead to where it's insurmountable in the second half for that Texans offense. Last week,

Starting point is 00:16:42 we actually talked about more sitting back in zone against the Baltimore Ravens because you can't really blitz a quarterback like Lamar Jackson. But then Gus Bradley said, you know what, Zach, you're way off on that. I'm going to blitz Lamar Jackson like crazy. And it ended up working for them. But I do think when you go into a Matthew Stafford type matchup, this is the matchup where I think you want to try to get home with four. You don't want to blitz too much because he's such a cerebral quarterback who can get that ball out hot and get the ball out quick that you don't want to give him easy reads or easy assignments there at the quarterback position.

Starting point is 00:17:12 But I do want to see this Colts defense go into a little bit more man, a little bit more cover one robber, a little bit more aggressive man coverage because look, Puka Nakua has had a really good season. Tutu Atwell has had a really good season. But these are guys where if you can get up on them on the line of scrimmage, you can beat them up a little bit and rely on your front four to get some pressure

Starting point is 00:17:30 while also robbing everything over the middle of the field. I think you can have some effective things happen in the man coverage game. I don't want to sit back in these softer cover three zones and let Matthew Stafford anticipate over the middle of the field like CJ Stroud was doing in the second half of that week two game. Because if you're going to give him those deep digs, Matthew Stafford can hit those deep digs. He might not be able to throw a guy open from man coverage

Starting point is 00:17:54 when you're beating them up at the line of scrimmage and throwing off timing. But if you're giving them the deeper digs off of whatever kind of concept they're running on offense in your cover three zone, he's going to be able to hit those with anticipation and timing. So I want to see the Colts really challenge these wide receivers this week. I want to see them get after it in the passing game. And I want to see the Colts make things difficult for Matthew Stafford. Highly anticipatory passer, really smart passer, knows how to get the ball out of his hands and playing some high level football this year. I think the way to slow that down is to really come out them with man coverage,

Starting point is 00:18:27 come out them with robbing over the middle of the field, coming after with an aggressive man mindset and make them have to dink and dunk either behind the line of scrimmage or make all the completions just very difficult down the field. Yeah, I totally agree. You don't want to have to blitz them too much because you want to have as many people in coverage as you can, but they do have a young receiving core. Like without Cooper cup out there, you've got to make Puka Nuku a two,

Starting point is 00:18:52 two at well, Ben score, score a neck. You have to make those and Van Jefferson, you got to make those guys beat you. Like you can't just let them sit in those soft zones and everything like disrupt things. If you're getting,

Starting point is 00:19:03 if you're getting pressure on Stafford, awesome. But these are young receivers and like again gus bradley has been on fire lately like i have full confidence in what he's gonna do but i just think the the key to it is going to be pressure and just mugging these receivers because we've seen just i mean cooper cup is a different animal but just two years ago the rams versus colts when he went on that historic season it started in indy and stafford to him just ate the colts alive you know just finding all those soft spots and everything and stafford can still do that he can still spin it and rip the ball and i mean he again he's an older guy he's not going to be super mobile but we saw what cj stroud did as a passer just like you mentioned so it's going to be about getting that pressure if they have to bring the corner blitz or the

Starting point is 00:19:57 linebacker blitz we've seen them do pretty well at that but in general i would just really get physical with those receivers. This may be like you had mentioned the other day, the Juju Brent's DPI game holding game, which is fine. Yeah, it's fine. Like,

Starting point is 00:20:13 you know, it happens, but I do think this is the type of game where what we saw in the second half against CJ Stroud could happen throughout the course of this game. If you're going to sit in those softer zones, you have to be aggressive. You have to come after it because this Rams team is not like that. Texans team.

Starting point is 00:20:26 You're not going to blow them out from, from the first minute of the game. This is going to be a competitive football game. You just can't be sitting back in soft zones against Matthew Stafford because he has such a high level of IQ that he's going to pick you apart over the middle of the field. And that just can't happen in this game. But coming up guys,

Starting point is 00:20:41 we're going to get to our final predictions before this upcoming game. Do we think the Colts win? Maybe, maybe we're optimistic on this show. But coming up, guys, we're going to get to our final predictions before this upcoming game. Do we think the Colts win? Maybe. Maybe we're optimistic on this show now. We'll see. We're going to come up. We're going to talk about that here in just a second.

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Starting point is 00:22:04 Download the GameTime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again, create an account and redeem code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off. Download GameTime today. Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. All right, Jake, so getting into our predictions for this upcoming Colts game here, I think the Texans game I predicted the Colts to win, but my prediction so far this year would have had the Colts at one and two. I didn't expect them to upset the Baltimore Ravens last week with their backup quarterback, but they proved me wrong. They're proving to be a really feisty and aggressive and physical team.

Starting point is 00:22:40 And now you're going against this Rams team who's coming on a short week, who just lost on Monday Night Football and still has to be on the road coming to Indy. I think the stars are aligning for the Colts to have another physical bout of a game where they can, you know, maybe upset. I think they're favoring this game, but, you know, upset in the eyes of some people who might pick the Rams due to Matthew Stafford playing at a high level right now. Yeah, I don't really see a scenario where this is a Rams win. Not that they can't, but there's too much in the Colts' favor.

Starting point is 00:23:16 And I don't know. Now, I do think it'll be competitive. I have it at 26-20 for the Colts. I do think Stafford is going to lead them a little bit. And, you know, the Colts, their offense isn't mature enough to turn all those red zone opportunities into touchdowns yet, or even as we saw last week, long field goals. So I actually have Matt Gay going four field goals again this week. So it'll be a heavy kicker game. But the Colts will score a couple of touchdowns.

Starting point is 00:23:44 But, no, the areas that the Colts will score a couple of touchdowns. But no, the D the areas that the Colts have the advantage are too important. You know, the, the defensive front, I think it's going to be a big deal. Like if one team is constantly harassing the, the other offensive front, like it sets a tone throughout the whole game. You kind of saw it with Cincinnati, especially pulling a head blade. so I think the Colts will get this one but Stafford is going to have a little juice to them yeah I think that's my big thing here is how much they can limit Matthew Stafford and then how Anthony Richardson looks after a week off coming back from you know that concussion where he missed three quarters at

Starting point is 00:24:19 Houston game and then missed all last week's game because the last we saw of Anthony Richardson in that Houston game he looked to be in line for a massive game he looked to be really in control of that game he had two touchdowns right off the bat I thought he was going to have just a fantastic game will he continue where he left off in that Houston game or will there be a little bit of rust because he's missed you know last week and a half of practice and and things going on for the Colts so it really is about where he's at and then what Matthew Stafford we get because if we get that Matthew Stafford where he's just unconscious where he's that three-point shooter who's heat checking every time up the court then you know we might be in for a long day here or maybe in for like a shootout

Starting point is 00:24:57 type day but I'm with you when you look at this Colts team right now they're running the ball really well they're winning the trench play on both sides of the ball. Their defense has been feisty and competitive, and now they're getting back their QB one and their center who was having an outstanding season before his injury. So I do think a lot of things are lining up for the Colts, especially again, when you factor in that the Rams are coming off a short week and they're still on the road after another road game on Monday as well. So I have the Colts winning this game. I was actually going to say 27-20, but that's pretty close to yours. So I'll say 27-24.

Starting point is 00:25:31 I do think the Rams, again, put some points on the board and their offense able to move the ball a little bit. But I have faith in Anthony Rich, and I have faith in this Colts offense to be able to get up and down the field, get in the end zone. And with my prediction, I have Matt Gay hitting another walk-off kick. 27-24 walk-off kick, Matt Gay, the superstar we all needed this offseason. Greatest free agent signing in the history of the Indianapolis Colts. Matt Gay, the kicker we all know and love.

Starting point is 00:25:59 Wow, that's really big of you to admit. I've come full circle. Character growth is huge on this show. I, you know, I've developed through the seasons. Matt Gay is like, I used to be all kicker suck,

Starting point is 00:26:12 except for Justin Tucker. Now all kicker suck, except for Matt Gay. Matt Gay took that title from Justin Tucker. He did head to head and he took it home. So I, yeah, I think if the Rams win and this already seems rude of me to say,

Starting point is 00:26:29 but I think if the Rams win, it would say a lot more about the Colts than it would the Rams. It depends. The Rams are probably capable of some scrappy wins. They did handily beat the Seahawks. But, again, I just really don't see any reason why the Colts should lose this. Right. I mean, it's tough any time you go against against a top 10 quarterback. And I fully believe that's

Starting point is 00:26:48 what Matthew Stafford is now that he showed in week one that he's still Matthew Stafford. And he's shown the first three weeks this year that he is still Matthew Stafford. That makes him a top 10 quarterback in my eyes. So I think anytime you go against a top 10 quarterback, it's going to be a tough game. I mean, we even remember those years where the Colts were playing against the Houston Texans with Deshaun Watson when Watson was on fire, but the Texans were a four-win team. All those games were still difficult because they had a top 10 quarterback in Deshaun Watson at that time. So I do think those games are always going to be tough, but I'm with you. I do think everything favors the Colts in this game. And one thing I want to put out there,

Starting point is 00:27:23 I don't know who I saw it from. I think it was Summit Sports on Twitter. They said the Colts in this game. And one thing I want to put out there, I don't know who I saw it from. I think it was Summit Sports on Twitter. They said the Colts playoff odds go up from 45% to 61% if they win this game. So the Colts are setting themselves up really well if they win this game because they do have a couple of games later in the season where it's, I'm not going to say gimmies because the Colts were a four-win team last year.

Starting point is 00:27:42 There's no such thing as a gimme when you were that type of team last year, but they have games they should win down the stretch. So getting this one against the Rams who, again, not, not a great team, but not an awful team. If you can steal this one against the Rams, you're really setting yourself up for later, later parts of the season for maybe being a wildcard team or even winning the

Starting point is 00:28:02 AFC South. Yeah. I mean, it's an NFC matchup, so like, it's not the end of the world if they lose, but they do have Tennessee. And I think the second Jacksonville game coming up. So like,

Starting point is 00:28:13 those are, those are big, especially if they're already ahead in the standings. And I mean, it's going to be in Jacksonville and they already lost in Indy. So like, let's just give that one to Jacksonville again. But if they beat Tennessee,

Starting point is 00:28:24 that's a big deal. Cause they haven't been able to beat Tennessee. Yeah. Yeah, I know. I think we're going to learn a lot about this team in the next two weeks. Obviously, we said that last week that I think we said about the Houston game. That was a measuring stick game to see if the Colts were going to be bottom feeders. They came out and killed the Texans. So they were not going to be bottom feeders. Then this last week game against the Ravens was see how competitive they could be and they came out and they beat a really good Ravens team albeit an injured Ravens team but a really good Ravens team now these next two weeks are going to show what kind of team they are they just going to be a middling team that can maybe squeak into playoffs are they going to be like a legit team we have to talk about as a playoff contender or

Starting point is 00:29:01 as an ASC South champion because if they beat the Rams and then they beat the Tennessee Titans, then we have to stop talking about them as like, oh, this is a retool rebuild year. We'd talk about, hey, this is a five and one Colts team or four and one Colts team, whatever that would be there. I think a four and one Colts team. So I think these next two weeks are going to be really gut check team, gut check time for the Colts.

Starting point is 00:29:21 Like this is a really crucial stretch of games. Obviously, this Rams one is not as important as the next two, but you can't overlook this Rams one because it's another, you know, it's another game on your schedule here. So I'm excited to see what the Colts can do every day. Don't worry. Jake,

Starting point is 00:29:34 we back with you guys on Sunday morning to talk all cold to be going live from never more really fun show. I like to tune in there and I'll probably talk with some of you guys on the YouTube channel as well. While Jake is doing his thing live. But make sure you guys are following us here on social medias at LockedOnColts, at JakeArthurNFL, and at ZachKicks2 all on Twitter. Also subscribe to the show on YouTube wherever you list your podcasts. We'd love your guys' ratings and reviews. And we'll see you guys back here bright and early Sunday morning

Starting point is 00:30:02 and Sunday after the game. You guys will get a lot of us.

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