Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts: Can Nick Foles Lead Team to Victory vs. Los Angeles Chargers?

Starting point is 00:00:00 It's time to cross over once again as we figure out what to expect from two unpredictable teams in the Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Chargers this week on Monday Night Football. Thank you all for tuning in and making us your first listen of the day. This is your daily podcast covering your Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Chargers, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And today's crossover Thursday is presented by our friends over at PrizePix. PrizePix is so much fun and it's easy to play. You guys hear us talk about it a lot. There's no competing with other players. It's just you versus the projections that are available.

Starting point is 00:00:40 Just pick two to five players and if they score more or less than their stat projections, 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 PrizePix. You hope you guys will too. First time users can actually receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code LOCKEDON. That's prizepix.com, promo code LOCKEDON. That's prizepix.com, promo code LOCKEDON. Welcome to the show, everybody. This is Jake Arthur of Locked On Colts, and I'm joined by David Droegemeier of Locked On Chargers. Welcome. Thank you, man. I'm happy to be here. I mean, we got an interesting one to talk about here on Monday Night Football.

Starting point is 00:01:20 No kidding. You guys are a little more exciting to watch than the Colts who just keep getting put on prime time. Today, we're going to tell you guys all about this Colts Chargers matchup this week coming up at Lucas Oil Stadium on Monday Night Football, including what the main storylines to watch are, the biggest difference making matchups, and finally our predictions for the game itself. So David, for the Colts, I think the main storyline is fairly obvious. So I'll flip to you first. What are the biggest storylines you're watching from a Chargers perspective? Yeah. So I think for the Chargers going into this game here, the biggest storyline is really handling your business. And it's because last

Starting point is 00:02:01 year, the Chargers found themselves in a very similar situation where they had an 80 plus percent chance to make the playoffs. But they really faltered down the stretch and they cannot allow that to happen here. They're in a pretty good position. And if they continue to win, they could find themselves as high up as the five seed. So with these three remaining games on the schedule for the Chargers, it's all about taking care of business. Yeah, the Colts have definitely been at situation before last year with two games remaining. All they had to do was win one of them against the Raiders or Jaguars and could not do it. Yeah. So for the Colts, another new quarterback on the carousel.

Starting point is 00:02:40 Third time is hopefully the charm for them this year. Matt Ryan has been benched once again. It is Nick Foles time. As far as like the sacks and turnovers, I don't really anticipate that changing much. Matt Ryan's look like a completely different quarterback than the 14 years previous in Atlanta. Nick Foles is probably just a tad more mobile than Matt Ryan is. Maybe a little bit. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:03:06 Yeah. Yeah. Uh, he's a, he's a little more of a gunslinger, but he's still going to be prone to some of those turnover plays. I think his arm is much stronger, which is probably going to give him the confidence to make some more errant throws. Yeah. But an area I'm, I'm hoping gets unlocked in this one is the downfield passing game. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:03:24 From what we've seen yeah in the preseason and training camp Foles is a lot more willing to push things downfield and the Colts do have those guys you just wouldn't necessarily know it because with Ryan that part of the offense just has been non-existent well the arm strength is just so noticeably different for Matt Ryan I mean that's one thing I've noticed just watching their games this year is like he just he can't get it there. He just doesn't have the velocity. He doesn't have the, like the touch and the accuracy to, to get it there anymore. It just seems like that's deteriorated so quickly for him. Yeah. And it kind of a similar situation is something

Starting point is 00:03:59 you've seen. Phillip Rivers never had the greatest arm strength but matt ryan's uh his mechanics almost seem to have changed it looks like he's pushing the ball yeah rivers did it's like that that shot put uh for his formation a little bit um but no i'm hoping with foals you can see guys like alec pierce downfield jelani woods just hopefully something to to get unlocked in this one is there anything else that you're looking for from a charger side of it? Yeah. One other thing for the, for the charges here is just to continue to get healthy. There are two big names that could be returning very soon. That would be the safety Derwin James, who has missed the last couple of games dealing with a leg

Starting point is 00:04:40 injury. It's been a quad injury. He's supposed to make his way back to practice sometime this week. Hopefully that's today. Obviously with the extra day, they're trying to get everybody as healthy as possible for this game. And then the biggest one is a guy who's missed the better part of the season, and that's the defensive end, Joey Bosa. Joey Bosa, for the last couple of weeks, there's been rumblings that he's been getting close to returning to practice, but the Chargers have yet to start his 21 day window to return from IR. And I'm sure at this point in time, it's got to be right. Like he's got to be a hundred percent before they throw him out there. But you know, that's definitely something that Charger fans are paying very, very close attention to because it's supposed to be soon. And the Chargers pass rush has, you know, been kind of anemic because, you know, you've

Starting point is 00:05:28 been able to really dedicate all of the resources to preventing Khalil Mack from ruining the game for the opposing team. And when, you know, you get Joey Bosa back, then you really, you know, you go back to that pick your poison situation, which they thought they were going to be able to get and enjoy for the better part of the season. But injuries happen in this violent game that we love to cover here. So unfortunately, the Chargers have been without Joey Bosa. Hopefully he will be making his return very soon.

Starting point is 00:05:56 No doubt if they're able to make the playoffs and they can get Bosa and James back with just, you know, these last few weeks of the regular season that those are a couple of huge difference makers for that squad. Yeah. For me, for the Colts, kind of like you said, handle your business. I, the Colts, there's a possibility. I think they could get up on the chargers in this one, but in their last two games, we've seen historic collapses three weeks, three weeks ago against the Cowboys. They gave up 33 points in the fourth quarter. The Cowboys just really opened one that's unbelievable. And then last week against the Vikings, the Colts gave up the biggest comeback in NFL history. So it's a little bit offense, a little bit defense. It's a team thing overall.

Starting point is 00:06:39 The offense has to be able to maintain their drives long enough to not totally gas out their defense. So yeah, for the for the Colts defense, you know, can you prevent yourselves from just getting totally just totally beaten down if the offense isn't functioning? Yeah, because we've seen these points can come in bunches and quickly the Colts. Yeah, oh, absolutely. And before we're going to get into some of the specific matchups we're watching here in a moment, but first, this episode is brought to you by Audible. Audible is releasing a slate of new football podcasts that we're sure you guys are going to love. That's why you'll be able to find an episode from The League, which is available as a bonus episode over on Locked On NFL.

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Starting point is 00:07:54 Audible, get in the game. So David, I've got a few matchups I'm really looking forward to in this one, and one of them leads back to the Nick Foles thing. Alec Pierce versus Asante Samuel Jr. It looks like Samuels had taken some lumps this year uh PFF has docked him with giving up six touchdowns now that could be a little ticky tacky I don't know what the reality of that is you you can explain further uh but Alec Pierce versus Asante Samuel downfield with Nick Foles, I'm really intrigued by that one. Yeah, for Asante Samuel Jr., I think you kind of have to look at the game film

Starting point is 00:08:31 and not really pay too much attention to the PFF numbers. I mean, yeah, he's given up a couple of touchdowns, but if you look at who those touchdowns were given up to, half of those were Devontae Adams. And so, I mean, hey, Devontae Adams is the best receiver in football. I mean, he's Devontae Adams is the best receiver in football. I mean, he's going to get his. I mean, that's just part of who he is and how darn good at football he is.

Starting point is 00:08:52 I mean, he's a maniac. But he also, Asante Samuel, also picked off a pass that was attended for Devontae Adams in the end zone. So, you know, they've had their battles. Obviously, Devontae is going to win more than he loses. That's just, you know, the fact of the matter there. But yeah, that's a matchup I'm definitely paying attention to. I'm also paying attention to Pittman and Michael Davis. I think that one's really, really going to be a good matchup because Michael Davis has

Starting point is 00:09:17 everything that you look for in a corner. He has the size, he has the length, and he has the speed. And he can really keep up with anybody. I mean, he was keeping up with anybody I mean he was keeping up with Jalen Waddell and Tyreek Hill against the the Miami Dolphins and the only reason why Tyreek was able to score that long touchdown is because Michael Davis slipped and if he didn't he probably picks that ball off he was in very very good position he's been playing some fantastic football but I think one of the matchups that I'm paying attention to kind of in

Starting point is 00:09:44 reverse are the Chargers receivers against the Colts corners. We're talking, you know, Kenny Moore, he missed last week. Stefan Gilmore has been starting to get back into the fold. He, you know, he's missed time this year. The Colts are 10th in passing yards allowed. And Michael, excuse me, Mike Williams and Keenan Allen have been playing together for the last couple of games, which is something that has been sorely missed for this Chargers offense. It's a big part of their downfield passing attack. Keenan Allen is an animal on third down. He's almost uncoverable.

Starting point is 00:10:13 And with Justin Herbert, he can really fit the ball anywhere he wants to. It's always fun watching him play quarterback because he's going to do some things that just blow your mind and make you go wow. And Mike Williams is one of those guys that really is on the receiving end of a lot of those wow plays because of his ability to go up and get it. I mean, his contested catch skills are probably the best in the NFL. I mean, you know, we hear the term 50-50 ball. With Mike Williams, it's more 90-10. I mean, it's really hard for anyone to really go up against him. His body control is fantastic.

Starting point is 00:10:48 And, you know, that's going to be a matchup that's going to be very important in how this game ends up being decided. Yeah, I'm glad you mentioned that with Michael Davis especially because he's really been an underappreciated cornerback this year, really playing some really good football. And the Colts offensively in their passing game try to have some things similar to what the Chargers have. Alec Pierce and Michael Pittman Jr. are both better than most people they play when it comes to those 50-50 balls. So this could be a pretty exciting matchup to watch through

Starting point is 00:11:22 the air. One I'm really looking forward to very intrigued by colt's left tackle rookie bernard ryman up against khalil mac it looks like mac splits his time on the left and right side of the defense so it's not probably not going to be the whole game right uh ryman for the most part has done really well you can see him getting better all the time but he has some slip-ups in big moments like he'll give up like the biggest sack of the game and it seems like each each week that's happening but other than that he's playing pretty good ball uh no one is gonna fault even trent williams for losing against khalil mac you know so i'm really interested to see how ryman responds because

Starting point is 00:12:02 mac's a very strong guy and anchor is the weakest part of, of Ryman's game. You could say so very intrigued by that matchup for sure. That will definitely be a true test because Khalil Mac is, is a bull. I mean, when you get him on, on that, that strength bull rush, like it's, it's hard to stop. We've seen a couple times this season where he's taken the tackle and literally pushed him into the quarterback for a sack I mean that's you know how just freakishly strong that that guy is and I think that that matchup is important but I think it's more important what happens on the other side I want to know what Kyle Van Nooye is going to be able to do when obviously like I said before before, all of the, you know, the,

Starting point is 00:12:45 the past protection assets are going to probably be going to wherever Khalil Mack is. They're going to want to chip him. They're going to want to put an extra tight end over there. They're going to want to slow him down as much as possible. So that's going to leave more one-on-one matchups for Kyle van Nooy and for Chris Rumpf, who are going to be the guys that are going to be rushing opposite of Khalil Mack. That, that is going to be very important in deciding this game. Another matchup I'm kind of looking forward to is the Chargers defensive front versus the Colts offensive line. As of late, the Chargers defensive line has been playing some pretty good football with Sebastian Joseph Day and Brayden Fajoko being inserted into the middle of that defensive line. They've done very, very well lately stopping the run.

Starting point is 00:13:27 And hey, Derrick Henry is a monster. So keeping him to 104 rushing yards is probably considered a win, especially for a Chargers defense that has literally given up 5.5 yards per carry to running backs this season, which is, of course, dead last in the NFL. Now, obviously, we know Jonathan Taylor is not going to be playing in this game because he's been put on IR. So I guess my question is, is how confident are you in the running backs that are going to be carrying the football for the Colts going into this matchup? Yeah, I think they're fine. It's, it's something I obviously

Starting point is 00:14:03 checkmarked as a potential advantage they could have just because the Chargers are what 28th against the run and played a lot better recently, but yes, they've been bad most of the season. Yeah. Yeah. I, I don't expect any one Colts running back to really like show out. I, I expect it to be a team effort. Zach Moss appears to be with Jonathan Taylor appears to be their new early down between the tackles guy. Deion Jackson has handled a lot more of the pass catching responsibilities. So I think they're going to split that. We could even see Jordan Wilkins a little bit out there.

Starting point is 00:14:36 I think their Colts should have a decent game on the ground. We'll see what they want to do on like third and shorts and things like that. They kind of have a tendency to outsmart themselves at times. But no, if the Chargers are particularly vulnerable up the middle, I think that works in the Colts' favor. Because they don't have very much of a diverse run game and get things going outside very much even with when it's jonathan taylor so yeah if they're if they're weak inside i think jackson and moss could could do a little something against them yeah i would say probably uh they're they're probably weaker

Starting point is 00:15:15 towards the edge towards the edges opposite of cleo mac obviously cleo max is a fantastic run run defense or uh run defense defensive end but um the opposite side not not so much but I would say in the middle they're probably a little bit stouter than they are on the edges so that'll be an interesting matchup another matchup I'm looking at is the Colts offensive line you know just against the pass rushers the Colts line is allowed 49 sacks this year and I know a lot of that has to do with Matt Ryan and his inability to kind of maneuver and escape the pocket. You know, he, he can't move around very much, but the quarterback that is going to be stepping into his place also is not the mobile, most mobile quarterback in the world.

Starting point is 00:15:53 And also what can you really expect out of him? Because he hasn't played a single game this year and he played one game all of last year. So it's going to be interesting to see if the offense changes at all. And also, you know, he started, he was with the starters for the first time, pretty much since training camp on the Wednesday practice of this week. So they had going to have to cram a entire game plan for Nick Foles, um, into, you know, the four or five days before game time. So I'm interested to see what that matchup is. So I guess the matchup I'm really talking about is Brandon Staley's

Starting point is 00:16:25 defensive game plan versus what the colts offense is going to look like on monday night yeah i'm pretty curious about that as well because i mean most quarterbacks especially the veterans know to get the ball out of their hands quickly and nick fools has sat there and seen all 50 of those sacks basically so, a veteran quarterback like that has got to know with observing all that, man, like they're holding on to the ball too long. They got to get it out of their hands. This is that. But at the same time, he's going to be more aggressive, I think.

Starting point is 00:16:56 So I'm also curious. I would imagine he could get sacked three, four times in this one. You know, I mean, no matter how often the Chargers can kind of go stale in that pass rush, the Colts have really not shown any ability to sustain protection for a long time. And kind of on that topic, I was looking at Colts defensive ends, Quiddy Paye and Dio Adangbo up against someone like Trey Pipkins, for example, over on the right side. Pei's been really good throughout the year when he's not hampered by that ankle,

Starting point is 00:17:30 but he's been playing the last couple weeks and has looked better. Dayo Adangbo has really come on as of late. His last several games, he's got a couple sacks last week against the Vikings. Together, those two young guys have 9.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss on the season. So I want to see if they can really take advantage of Pipkins. Is he the weak link on that offensive line or at least on the edges? Actually, I wouldn't say that. I would say Trey Pipkins is probably one of their best, better pass protectors this season. He's just been dealing with injuries a lot. So he's been in and out of the lineup. I would say on the left side, you have a rookie in Jamari Sawyer, who is a sixth round pick. He's been playing extremely well this year. I mean, he's

Starting point is 00:18:14 filling in for an all pro and Rashawn Slater. And so some really huge shoes to fill. He's played decently, but I would say if you're looking for the weaknesses on the Chargers offensive line, you're probably looking at the guard spots. You're looking at Matt Filer on the left side, and you're looking at Zion Johnson, who I think Zion has played well. And you kind of have to look at it through the lens of, hey, he's a rookie guard. And, you know, he's had his ups. He's had his downs.

Starting point is 00:18:37 I'd say he's decent in pass protection, but he is a mauler in the running game. He can when you get him on the move, he can really move people against their will. But he's had his issues in pass protection. I mean, and that's going to happen when you, when you have a rookie, but I would say on, on, at the tackles, if you're looking at Jermaine Sawyer and Trey Pipkins on the outside, um, I'd say that's probably their best current past protectors that they have on the team. Uh, obviously with Corey Lindsley, notwithstanding, he's one of the best centers in the NFL. He's fantastic. He's the best pass protector on the team for sure. That's not even close, but again, you know, obviously he's in the middle, so there's not as much you have to worry about when, when you're

Starting point is 00:19:13 pass protecting, but the chargers have given up a lot of pressure the last several games. And Justin Herbert, um, has, has had to use his magic moving around in the pocket, extending plays, throwing the ball on the run. That's been all a very big part of the offense. And the Chargers definitely need to be ready for the Colts' pass rush because they can get after the quarterback a little bit with that very, very deep defensive line. So the Chargers need to make sure they protect Justin Herbert

Starting point is 00:19:41 if they want to have any success in this game. Yeah, I was going to say, if the inside is the weakness, it's good that the Colts have DeForest Buckner, Grover Stewart, hopefully lining up outside of Lindsey. Before we bring you guys our much-anticipated predictions for this game, we want to tell you guys about our friends at BetOnline, which is the number one source for sports betting info, stats, news, and analysis. Get the latest odds and trends for every professional and amateur league out there.

Starting point is 00:20:10 From pro football to college bowl season to basketball and the World Cup, they've got it all at BetOnline.net. If you love sports podcasts, which hopefully you do, you're here watching us, you can even find those at BetOnline as well. We're always the fastest and easiest way to get your betting info. Head to the website today or use your mobile device to learn more. BetOnline, where the game starts. On a more serious note, did you guys know that driving high is considered driving under the influence?

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Starting point is 00:21:41 could transpire. Yeah. So looking at looking at this game for the Chargers, I mean, obviously these two teams are going in opposite directions. Hopefully the Chargers are steaming forward towards the playoffs. But like I said in the beginning, they got to handle their business, and that includes the Colts on Monday night. I think the Chargers are very familiar with the Colts' defensive coordinator, Gus Bradley, as he was the defensive coordinator for the chargers for many years we know he plays a cover three and so they're going to try to limit those explosive pass plays down the football field so it's all

Starting point is 00:22:14 about dicing up those soft spots in the zone which there will be so justin herbert's going to have to be patient i think in this game i don't know if the Colts are going to be able to establish any kind of running game. I think that's going to be very difficult for them. And I think if the Chargers get up, it could really turn into an ugly contest. So I do feel like the passing attack for the Chargers is going to be a little too much to keep up with. So I'm going to go with the Chargers winning this game 34 to 24. All right. I've also got the Chargers winning this game 34-24. All right, I've also got the Chargers in this one, but I think with Nick Foles being in there,

Starting point is 00:22:53 I have a little more faith in the offense just because the downfield passing attack is something they have sorely missed all season. And if the offense can sustain a little bit, that means that the defense won't get so gassed. And so when the defense is playing well they can shut down just about anyone they held the chiefs down low they wound up beating them i have it as 20 to 17 chargers um in the end they're just a little too much justin herbert the social media quarterback which i'm sure you're tired of hearing by now

Starting point is 00:23:22 such a policy it's ridiculous. Yeah, yeah. I believe in that social media quarterback and his ability to beat the Colts, which he'll just be a little too much. The Colts are missing some important pieces. You know, Kenny Moore, we don't know if he'll be back, although Julian Blackman's been playing good football. Jonathan Taylor, that just eliminates

Starting point is 00:23:44 such a huge explosive part of the offense. Yeah. So yeah, 20 to 17 chargers. Yeah. I mean, I can definitely see an avenue where that happens because the chargers play a ton of one score games and they really have only won by 10 points one time this season. And then that was against the Houston Texans. And so I think that's probably a little bit closer to where it could actually end up being. And that's why, you know, it's really hard to predict with this team because, you know, even going into the games where they should be favored, you just never know which Chargers team is going to show up.

Starting point is 00:24:18 The offensive inconsistencies of this team has really been their biggest issue. They've really really really had trouble especially in the third quarter of games they haven't scored a third quarter touchdown since week five of this nfl season which has been just unbelievably abysmal it's just uh just it's hard to fathom that they've had that much issue with the amount of offense now again they've had a lot of injuries especially with their offensive line and their skill position players. So but now they're healthy. So that that excuse goes out the window.

Starting point is 00:24:50 So they have to put scoring drives together in the third quarter. They have to be just more consistent. They just with this offense, they should be scoring points left and right. And we just have not seen it this year. So until they get a little bit more consistent on the offensive side of the ball, a 20-17 score is very, very reasonable. Yeah, sometimes those streaks just kind of defy logic. Like the Colts went the longest time without being able to score a point,

Starting point is 00:25:17 field goals included in the first quarter. They finally have kind of broken out of that, but it was just a really weird slump that they were in. So you guys guys we're looking forward to a couple big things in this one obviously nick foals is the colts new quarterback for the chargers they've got to take care of business and just beat a team they're supposed to and look like the chargers supposed to you know secure that that playoff spot and go in go into the the tournament looking good as for match. There's a ton of them to look at,

Starting point is 00:25:45 you know, all over the field. It just really depends on either side, what, what they're able to do. Will the Colts hold things steady? Will their passing game get to be open? The chargers hold a lot of advantages in this one. So, so we will see for sure. Yeah, obviously that's why they line it up and they play on Sunday. The games are not played on paper. So we've got to show up or Monday or Thursday or Saturday on some occasion, right? So they've got to show up on Monday night and see who wins. It's going to be an interesting matchup,

Starting point is 00:26:18 and I know both of us are going to be paying very close attention to how this one ends. Yeah, no doubt. Will Justin Herbert earn more trust from people who may not believe him? Will the Colts be able to shake off the funk they've got in primetime? We will see. I think that's it for us, everybody. We'll be back with you guys again before the game gets here to give you our latest takes on things. And of course, after the game, it'll be a late one so uh we'll see when things get up um you can follow david at dro

Starting point is 00:26:50 talks sd and at locked on lac on twitter as well as at locked on colts at jake arthur nfl also subscribe to locked on colts and locked ongers on YouTube. I know for us, we're getting dangerously close to 2K and you guys, you're off and run. You've got lots. We're about 140 away from 5,000, so we're hoping we get there soon. There we go. Give everyone some love. We obviously want

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Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts: Can Nick Foles Lead Team to Victory vs. Los Angeles Chargers?

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