Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts: JuJu Brents, Jaylon Jones NEED Snaps Going Forward

Episode Date: September 20, 2023

Indianapolis Colts rookie cornerbacks Jaylon Jones and JuJu Brents need to see snaps going forward. The Colts' secondary has struggled through two weeks, so it is approaching time to get these talente...d rookies on the football field.Find and follow Locked On Colts on your favorite podcast platforms:🎧 https://link.chtbl.com/LOColts?sid=YouTube📺YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLdpxJspi1hMh5HL7ExpWOQLocked On NFL League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Draft & More🎧 https://linktr.ee/LockedOnNFLFollow Jake and Zach's written work on HorseshoeHuddle.com, and give them a follow on Twitter @JakeArthurNFL, @ZachHicks2, @LockedOnColts, and @ColtsOnFN!Catch the Locked On Colts pregame show at Nevermore at Union Station before every Colts home game! Info here: https://www.tailgateplanet.com/indianapolis-colts-tailgatesThis episode is brought to you by PrizePicks. The easiest and most exciting way to play Daily Fantasy Sports. Go to PrizePicks.com/lockedonnfl and use code all lowercase lockedononfl for a first deposit match up to $100Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Jase MedicalSave more than $360 by getting these lifesaving antibiotics with Jase Medical plus an additional $20 off by using code LOCKEDON at checkout on jasemedical.com.birddogsGo to birddogs.com/LOCKEDONNFL or enter promo code LOCKEDONNFL for a water bottle with any order. You won’t want to take your birddogs off we promise you.PrizePicksGo to PrizePicks.com/lockedonnfl and use code lockedonnfl for a first deposit match up to $100!GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Last minute tickets. Lowest Price. Guaranteed.eBay MotorsFor parts that fit, head to eBay Motors and look for the green check. Stay in the game with eBay Guaranteed Fit. eBay Motors dot com. Let’s ride. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply.LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFL. Terms and conditions apply.FanDuelMake Every Moment More. Right now, NEW customers can bet FIVE DOLLARS and get TWO HUNDRED in BONUS BETS – GUARANTEED. Visit FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON to get started.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Anthony Richardson could clear the concussion protocol in time to play on Sunday, but will he actually play? 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 episode is brought to you by PrizePix, which is the easiest and most exciting way to play daily fantasy sports.
Starting point is 00:00:51 Go to prizepix.com slash locked on NFL and use code all lowercase locked on NFL for a first deposit match up to $100. Hello, everybody. I am Jake Arthur, and he is Zach Hicks. You know the two of us from horseshoehuddle.com. I am, of course, in the resident credentialed media member of the site, and Zach is just in his element like a hog and slop, just loving all this film study that he's bringing to you guys. Was that a good one today? Hog and slop. Okay, I like it. I like it. i like it okay perfect i mean i was in the trenches all day today i was looking at offensive line stuff for something that's going to be coming out here on wednesday and then i did a whole film room on
Starting point is 00:01:33 grover stewart which i know you guys were a fan of because who isn't a fan of grover stewart fan or grover stewart film i mean shane syke and we're going to get to here in a second yeah went out of his way to shout out Grover Stewart because yeah, Grover Stewart's that great. So yeah, that's over on horseshoehuddle.com right now. Yeah. Read all of Zach's stuff.
Starting point is 00:01:52 You're going to be smarter from reading his, his film studies because you can see it with your eyes, but when he puts it in a certain way, you see why things happen the way they do. So anyways, on today's show, the Colts made some roster moves on Tuesday. We'll get to those, the impact that they might have on the roster as a whole.
Starting point is 00:02:11 And then we'll look at some things that Shane Steichen and the coordinators have said since the game happened on Sunday that really kind of resonated with us. There's a few guys on defense that we would like to see get some more snaps, maybe even starting as soon as this Sunday against the Ravens. And then ultimately, who do we think needs to step up the most against the Ravens? I don't know about a win, but to be as competitive as possible, essentially, like who really needs to step up. So we'll go ahead and get these roster moves in here. So the Colts elevated offensive lineman Arlington Hambright
Starting point is 00:02:49 to the active roster from the practice squad. That's a guy who had a big impact during the summer, played right guard, left guard, and left tackle, I believe. Looked best at left tackle. To make room on the roster, they waived offensive tackle Ryan Hayes, who is a rookie, one of their waiver pickups right after roster cuts. And then the most interesting one is they signed running back Trey Sermon to the practice squad. That's a guy who he was with the Eagles.
Starting point is 00:03:17 We saw plenty of him when the Colts played the Eagles in the preseason, and he actually got off to a hot start in that game. And I believe the commentary in that was the Colts might want to keep an eye on this guy early in the game. And then ultimately they liked what they saw from that. So he is now on, he's pretty interesting because he actually could factor into the active roster. He's a veteran in his career. A couple years, he has started two of 11 games. he's been with the 49ers and eagles has 46 touches in his career for 212 yards and a touchdown so he has been out there he could be useful you know special teams basically could replace the jake funk you know element in the
Starting point is 00:04:00 backfield which there there really wasn't much of anyone besides Zach Moss on Sunday. So it gives you some proven depth back there. Yeah, I think you have to say the elephant in the room. He could replace Deion Jackson on the roster because that's possible. After week one, where Deion Jackson played a ton of snaps, absolutely zero. None snaps. Yeah, he was just not out there. I think he's kind of in the doghouse right now, which rightfully so. I mean, when you average under one yard per carry and have two fumbles in your one start, I mean, you're going to be in the doghouse a little bit. No, Trey Sermon, former third round pick out of Ohio State, was with the Eagles last year,
Starting point is 00:04:38 with Shane Steichen last year. I think he was their third or fourth running back in that rotation. Did a couple good things on the year. So he knows the offense. He knows what he's doing. He just has to stay healthy, and he's going to fit in pretty well. So I would expect him to be a call-up to the main roster here in the next couple weeks. He might even get one of the practice squad elevation things this next Sunday. Yeah, because in terms of, I don't know whether it's more special teams they're looking for or just contributions and the... They need another runner. They need another runner
Starting point is 00:05:11 because they definitely played 98% of the snaps this past week. They need someone else they can actually put in the backfield. Yeah, so I don't know. They're going to start burning through the three allowed practice squad elevations they're getting with some of these guys. So I'm curious to see how much of it is for special teams. But beyond that, Shane Steichen and the coordinators have kind of said some interesting things about some of these guys in the positive aftermath, I guess, of the Colts' first win of the season. So right now, I guess the biggest thing on everyone's mind is Anthony Richardson is in the concussion protocol, but will he play on Sunday? It's certainly possible for him to clear the concussion protocol and get out there. But he's a quarterback. He's a rookie quarterback
Starting point is 00:05:55 where you're looking towards his future. He's gotten banged up now in each of his first two games. So regardless of if he clears it, should he like, he's not going to get an entire slate of practice reps that he normally would. So is it worth throwing him out there? And then, so Shane Steichen was asked about it. So he responded, we're going to work through those things and we'll talk through those tonight, which was Monday. I don't have a definitive answer for you guys right now, but we'll work through those things. And then he was kind of pressed again about how much time does he need. He said, like I said, we'll work through those things.
Starting point is 00:06:32 I don't have a definitive answer. So not much there. Super honest. Yeah. He didn't come out and say, you know, if he's healthy, he'll play, which they would with a lot of other people. But he was asked again about drew Ogletree because drew Ogletree was in the concussion protocol last week. He cleared it in time for the game,
Starting point is 00:06:52 but did not play. Will Mallory was available. And I think they just elected to give Ogletree a little more time to come back from that concussion, even though he cleared. So that could very well be what they do with Richardson. I mean, they have Gardner Minshew and Sam Ellinger. So yeah, I don't, I don't really think that the injury in week one really factors into this. Like, I don't think it's a, the Colts looking at it being like, ah, he's banged up.
Starting point is 00:07:18 Let's give him a week to rest. I don't really think that's what it is. I think it's, you know, concussions are a very serious injury, even if they have a pretty quick turnaround to coming back and playing these are serious injury it's a brain injury you know like that's exactly what this is and because of all the steps you have to go through the concussion protocol it's unlikely that he's going to be cleared by you know wednesday or he's gonna be cleared by thursday even if he gets cleared it might be a situation where it's you know friday Friday evening or Saturday you know right before the game and then how comfortable are you throwing this rookie quarterback who yes he needs reps but
Starting point is 00:07:54 also he needs those reps in practice you know to understand the game plan and understand what he's going through if he's spending a whole week just going through the protocol and then throwing him out there against a really really really good Ravens team, I feel like that's setting him up for failure. Like I'm not saying he's going to fail, but I could see the Colts perspective of, Hey, you know what? He was in the concussion protocol all week. We have a veteran quarterback who can move the offense a little bit.
Starting point is 00:08:19 So let's just give him a week here, like to get ready for the Rams game, get him actually some practices under his belt for that game. And he doesn't have to play all 17 games his rookie season. If he's getting 16 under his belt, that's still fine. He's getting those quality reps. So I think the Colts are ultimately going to play it safe with this. Unless he's cleared by Wednesday somehow, which I don't think is actually possible. But if he's cleared by Wednesday when you guys are listening to this,
Starting point is 00:08:46 then I think it changes. But if he's cleared by like Saturday, I just don't see the Colts throwing him out there with no practices under his belt throughout the week or maybe one practice under his belt. I agree. I think it's just better to play it cautious with this. And again, this is a tough defense. Like does he still probably give you the best chance to win?
Starting point is 00:09:05 Because you can just drop some runs for him. We obviously saw how effective that was. Yeah, but he's also your future. So you don't, you just don't want to, it's not necessary to force it. And when I mentioned the, you know, getting banged up in week one, it wasn't like resting him because of that. It's just like, okay, it's two weeks in a row. Now this guy has gotten a little banged up. Like, let not force it. And like, you know, week three, whatever.
Starting point is 00:09:29 But yeah, I mean, we'll obviously keep you guys posted on that quite a bit throughout the week. He's going to be on the injury report. So we'll, we'll have more on that before we wrap up the segment though. I'm going to mention he was Shane Sykes asked about the defense and like specifically some things about like the defense and like specifically some things about like the secondary and how they struggled. And he wrapped that into a praise of the defensive line, specifically Grover Stewart. I said,
Starting point is 00:09:53 you know, there's some little things we got to clean up little details. We'll get those cleaned up. And then he said, I thought the defensive line, I'm just going to point out that one guy, Grove shoot. He played awesome.
Starting point is 00:10:03 And then he went on to mention like DeForest Buckner, Samukim quitty blah blah so it went from man how how do you guys clean up the mistakes in the secondary to man do you guys see grover stewart he was awesome so getting some love from his head coach that was me all week talking about this colts defense as well like i don't want to talk about the secondary after what just happened. This Colts front seven though, they looked awesome. So Shane Steigen, I totally get it. I totally get it. Why talk about really crummy secondary play when you can praise Grover Stewart? 100% get it. That's what we're doing at horseshoehuddle.com right now too. So understand completely. I love it, Shane Steigen. And so that segues beautifully into Zach and I are going to talk about the secondary
Starting point is 00:10:46 here in a little bit. But first, let's talk to you about some fantasy. Let's talk to you about eBay Motors. Our partners over at eBay Motors have teamed up with Locked On Fantasy football host Vinny Iyer to bring you some of the best fantasy picks each week, all season long. Whether you're prepping for a daily lineup or scouting the waiver wire for your best ball team, every week we're going to provide you the players that are guaranteed to fit on your roster. So let's see who Vinny has picked out for us on this week's eBay Guaranteed Fit Fantasy Picks of the Week.
Starting point is 00:11:18 And it's Kismet, because right here he's got someone the Colts are going to be facing. It's Ravens rookie wide receiver Zay Flowers, who had a fine debut in Week one before a modest week two, but he had a huge catch from Lamar Jackson that week two game. So the guy has shown a lot of flashes. If you've been impressed by Josh Downs, Zay Flowers has basically been that on steroids so far.
Starting point is 00:11:39 But Flowers is going to go into full bloom, Iyer says, while cruising to a big game on a week-old secondary at home in week three. Flowers will be schemed open as well as Baltimore's new-look passing game continues to find more life with Lamar Jackson. Also, remember, Odell Beckham Jr. banged up. Probably going to bump Flowers up in the
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Starting point is 00:12:41 And every day, as we move back tomorrow with Crossover day as we back tomorrow with crossover Thursday, we're talking with Kevin from locked on Ravens to get the lowdown on this matchup with the Baltimore Ravens. Do the Colts have a chance? Maybe, maybe we'll see. We'll see if I roll over in this crossover as well. You guys said last time.
Starting point is 00:12:58 So it'd be fun one with a conversation with Kevin from locked on Ravens. All right, Jake, getting into this next segment, we're going to talk about some Colts defensive backs that just need to have some playing time because these current guys are just not having a great go of it right now. Again, I don't want to make this show all about
Starting point is 00:13:17 just bashing players over and over again, so I'm not going to bring up the starters that are struggling right now because I feel like we've done enough the last two shows talking about those guys. They just haven't been doing good enough right now. So they need to consider a replacement or just getting some rotational guys in there. And obviously they have the players that are capable of playing right now,
Starting point is 00:13:41 Juju Brents. You're going to give us a quote from Gus Bradley here in a second on why he hasn't been playing yet, but he's coming up. He's eventually going to get there. Jalen Jones, obviously we've heard a lot of really good things about Jalen Jones, and then Nick Cross as well. So I think these are three guys that at least need to be rotated in a little bit more on defense. We know Gus Bradley's a little bit stubborn early in the season when it comes to his rotations, but with the struggles in the secondary right now, I think it's time to get these guys going.
Starting point is 00:14:08 I mean, again, I know you're going to give us a good quote on Juju Brents and why he hasn't been playing yet, but the other two guys, Jalen Jones, Nick cross, like it's just time getting him out there, man. It's time getting those two guys out there because it can't be much worse than what we're seeing right now. And at least these two guys are going to be playing at a hundred miles per hour. They're going to be giving that effort.
Starting point is 00:14:27 They'll be giving that tenacity, that aggression that we're just not seeing right now in the four starters. And I mean, for aside from Kenny Moore, the four guys we're seeing out there. So I think it's time to get these guys out there. Yeah. And you, you read my mind about Gus Bradley because it was roughly around this time or about a week later last year where the cries for Isaiah Rogers over Brandon Faison hit a fever pitch and we finally saw it.
Starting point is 00:14:52 Like he was willing to adjust things a little bit. So Juju Brents, there's been a lot of speculation from fans kind of about like he's a healthy scratch. What's the deal? There is no deal. There is no deal. There is no problem. It's just, he missed all of the on-field stuff during the off season while he was recovering from his wrist surgery. And then during the summer, he missed like the first two or so weeks with a hamstring. So he's a second round pick. Yes. But the guy has barely practiced. So he's got like, I don't know,
Starting point is 00:15:22 a dozen or so practices under his belt. Finally, he just needs to get up to speed because in this defense with Gus Bradley and Ron Milas is the defensive backs coach. Like you're not going to play unless they're comfortable with you being out there yet. And it's not a problem. They're not comfortable with him yet. Cause again, he's a rookie who has not practiced like Jalen Jones, for example, I can't remember any, I can't remember any time he's missed. He's been out there all spring, all summer. So it's again, it's, there's no ominous thing. It's just the guy needs more practice reps.
Starting point is 00:15:55 So Gus Bradley kind of dove in on that a little bit on Tuesday. He said, Brent's got more reps last week. I thought he had a good week of practice last week, that time that he was missing, but he's now coming back. He's getting more reps and walkthroughs, more reps in practice. So he's getting along nicely. We hope to get him a few more reps this week. So they're just trying to get him up to speed.
Starting point is 00:16:17 Like there's only so many reps you can get because you do have to get the starters prepared to play, but they'll get them in there eventually. Like within a week or two i've got to imagine we're going to start seeing him active on game days like because you also don't want to hide him all week you have to get him some even if it's just special team stuff during the game like you have to get him out there so yeah it's no big deal like it's disappointing because he's a second round pick but he'll get out there yeah but again that kind of leads to the jalen jones thing where it feels closer to the Isaiah Rogers thing last year with Brandon yeah Jalen Jones is
Starting point is 00:16:50 time for him for sure right and again I know he's a rookie still trying to learn the coverages which are going to give us a quote from Gus Bradley on that as well so I understand it to a degree but he needs to at least get a couple snaps out there because like again i'm not asking him to completely take over from daryl baker jr but like it needs to be at least a two series for daryl baker jr one series for jalen jones and that kind of rotation you know a two for one rotation is what what they typically say you know uh for coaches whatever where it's like two series on one series off two series on one series off jalen jones at least needs to get those reps out there right now because again we're just not seeing the urgency or the aggression whatsoever in Daryl Baker Jr. We need to see someone else eventually and again I'm not completely burying Daryl Baker Jr. I know that's
Starting point is 00:17:35 really what what I've been doing all week I'm not saying there's no chance of him turning it around but like at some point you have guys that you've invested a little bit more in and have a little bit more upside. So just go with the younger guys. If you're going to if you're going to have guys making mistakes out there, at least let them be 21 years old like they are with Jalen Jones. You know, and it's tough to say because I like Darryl Baker Jr. And I like them all offseason. But like Jalen Jones, I think just needs more reps. And if they're going to if they're going to have someone out there struggling,
Starting point is 00:18:05 I'd rather it be the young guy who can learn and play it at 100 miles per hour, not the guy who's going to miss tackles high on the five-yard line and let a guy walk in for a touchdown. I know I've been harping on that all week, but that just can't happen at cornerback. So I think it's time to get at least Jalen Jones out there for a couple series this next game for sure. Yeah, Colts defenses are not normally poor tackling defenses.
Starting point is 00:18:29 And like once that starts to get out on tape, like it's got to, you got to nip that in the bud. Like Brandon Faison last year. Brandon Faison, like don't get me wrong. He didn't want it. Right. Like you could see contact coming and he ran from it. Yeah. Like I will say Faison was better in coverage than what
Starting point is 00:18:47 Daryl Baker Jr. has shown through two weeks but again the tackling and the effort was just not there and and that's why when we were all saying for Isaiah Rogers Sr. even though he's five foot nine 170 pounds last year he was getting out there and he was tackling Daryl uh Derek Henry in space he was tackling you know all these receivers in space. It's like, I don't care if you make mistakes at corner, but at least make them playing fast, you know, make them playing fast and aggressive. You're going to miss a tackle, at least give a good pop in there. Don't just whiff on it and not even touch the guy. Again, I know I've been hyping on this too much all week, but I think it's time for Jalen Jones to get out there. And then once Juju Brents is ready, you start getting Juju Brents in there as the starter as well. And you have that rotation of those guys. I think again, if Baker Jr. can
Starting point is 00:19:29 turn it around this week, but it's time to get some new blood out there. Yeah. And Jones in terms of effort and fire and everything, he's been one of the most tenacious members of the secondary in every practice I've seen. Like he's always competitive for the ball and that's just the kind of stuff you want to see. So Gus Bradley had some some things to say about him as well I said the thing about Jalen Jones is when he gets up and plays man coverage one-on-ones he's very talented I think the knock on him before was his consistency on the perimeter with all the different coverages that we do I've seen him get a lot better in that we're kind of in a good situation as far as the corner spot just because we are young but I really see those two younger guys, which is Jones
Starting point is 00:20:09 and Brent's coming along. Um, so to me that reads like worse, he still needs to like get a, get a hang of like all the different things in coverage we're going to be asking of him. It's not always just going to be man. Um, but once always just going to be man um but once he's kind of got those things down and he's able to kind of decipher what's in front of him then he'll get out there and do it more often so it feels like a film study type of thing yeah i think it's just he's young again 21 years old completely new defense so get ready to get him out there i know it's so early in the season for me to be freaking out about getting these young guys out there but like again if you're someone like me, who is so
Starting point is 00:20:47 passionate about the cornerback position, seeing what I saw on film with this cornerback room last week, you would understand my frustration guys. So I don't want to seem like I'm like borderline tears or anything here, but like, Oh, just, just play fast. If you're going to make mistakes, play fast. That's why I always loved about Rockyia Sin. Rakia Sin would grab guys and pull guys to the ground if he's getting beat, and it's frustrating because he's giving up all these penalties, but at least he's trying out there. At least he's moving the way he can. It's just I can't stand lackadaisical play.
Starting point is 00:21:18 That's why I soured on Xavier Rhodes towards the end of his tenure with the Colts as well. Enough of my tangent here, though, guys. Coming up, we're going to talk about some Colts players to watch in this Baltimore Ravens game and players that are key for the Colts to get the victory or the surprise victory even against the Baltimore Ravens. But first, our friends at PrizePix are the most fun I've had winning up to 25 times my money this football season. You just select two or more players, pick more or less on their projected stats, and place your entry. PrizePix is really simple to play. I can make my picks and
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Starting point is 00:22:28 Daily fantasy sports made easy. All right, Jake. So getting into the players that are just the most important for the Colts to win this week are just players to watch against the Baltimore Ravens. Obviously, we've got to start with the quarterback position. Like, let's approach this entire segment with the assumption anthony richardson is not playing uh just because i don't think he's going to play you know that's gut feeling zach's gut feeling for all you guys who are here from reddit that's it's a whole tag on the colts reddit page right there is zach's gut feeling
Starting point is 00:23:01 my gut feeling is he's not going to play this week. So Gardner Minshew is a starter, Jake, who are some guys that are most important for the Colts getting the victory in this one around Gardner Minshew? Yeah. So with a Gardner Minshew led offense, I cannot see it being advantageous for him to throw like 40 times. So because of that, I think Zach Moss needs to play a pretty significant role. When you look at the Ravens' first two games, Damian Pierce and Joe Mixon have combined for 97 yards, but four yards per carry. The Ravens have just kind of been overwhelming these guys, their opponents. So it's not that you can't run on the Ravens. They're generally good against the run, but if you get from Zach Moss and the offensive line against the Ravens, They're generally good against the run, but if you get from Zach Moss in the offensive line
Starting point is 00:23:47 against the Ravens, what you got against Houston, which it's not even. We're not comparing apples to apples there. But I think Zach Moss is going to be a very big factor. If he is successful, then it's going to help Gardner Menchie be successful in the Colts offense overall. But if Moss is getting blanked, Minshew's not going to throw for 400 yards and win the Colts the game. Yeah. Yeah. The whole thing with Gardner Minshew is whatever your offense is capable of doing, he's going to get you that. If your skill position players are not
Starting point is 00:24:22 playing up to par, your offensive line's not playing up to par your offensive lines not playing up to par your running backs not hitting the holes then he's not going to be an effective quarterback which i know is a is not that crazy of a concept because like duh but like when you have a quarterback like an anthony richardson with his playmaking ability and his ability to create or that potential i guess to create there are chances for him to create plays when nothing is there gardner mentioned that's not what you're going to get. He's going to create the plays that are in front of him. He's not going to do much creativity or background kind of stuff, or playground type of stuff.
Starting point is 00:24:53 He's going to do the Gardner Minshew thing, which is distribute the ball and let the offense flow. So you need a running game where, yes, Zach Moss doesn't have to run for 200 yards in this game, but he needs to be what he was last week where first down, I'm getting this into a second and six. Second down, I'm getting this into a third and two, third and three. So third down, Gardner Minshew can come out
Starting point is 00:25:14 and he can do his Gardner Minshew thing and throw the ball under five yards and get that first down. That's what Gardner Minshew needs. So, yeah, I think Zach Moss is a really important player. And on top of that, you mentioned the Colts offensive line. I think they're massive this week because this Ravens defense is so creative with how they draw up pressure and how they attack offensive lines that this Colts offensive line needs to be on the same level of play that they were last week. Last week, barely challenged by the Houston Texans, made everything look easy. And we're really just
Starting point is 00:25:43 punishing the Texans for being a bad defense. They need to kind of do that against the Ravens. Again, not punish the Ravens for being a bad defense by any means, but have that same level of communication, confidence, and just skill level in this next game to keep Gardner Minshew clean if Gardner Minshew starts. Because if Gardner Minshew is under duress and he's thrown off his back foot, scary things can happen. But if you can keep him clean and let him get that ball out to his playmakers, then he can run an efficient and effective offense. So this Colts offensive line has been really good through two weeks, has been, I mean, honestly, phenomenal compared to last year. Just got to keep that going against this really good Ravens defense. Yeah, absolutely. And to that point, you know, we've talked about,
Starting point is 00:26:23 you know, the PFF grades, for example, for the offensive line reflect that as well. Like Will Fries had an elite grade. Braden Smith had a really nice game. Ryan Kelly in that first half was lights out. Quentin Nelson had an elite pass blocking grade. So just really good stuff there. But something that really stuck out to me was Shane Steichen again, was asked about the success of the offensive line and he really commended their communication and you could say i mean the offensive line was one of the bigger downfalls of the entire offense last year and the most glaring thing was the lack of communication like it felt like the veterans were overdoing it if a defense brought extra pressure, it was getting through. Their communication was just rough last year. And so for that to be one of their strong points right now, and now we're seeing the offensive line is doing really well, that's not a coincidence.
Starting point is 00:27:17 Like it feels more like the offensive line is turning the page and moving forward and getting good again. So that's really good to see. Something else that's going to help out, Michael Pittman Jr. I'll just make this one quick. When you look at the Ravens, their first two games, Nico Collins, who we saw be a real thorn in the side against the Colts, and T. Higgins, they combined for 14 receptions for 169 yards and two touchdowns in two games. So it's possible to do like Alec Pierce has not had that come out performance yet possible if they play more man coverage, the Ravens do. So that's certainly possible there.
Starting point is 00:27:55 It's more likely if Minshew is going to be out there. So we'll see, but Michael Pittman jr, if he can look more like week one than week two, not that he had a bad performance in week two, but he averaged like seven yards a catch. But Pittman is probably, again, the guy in the receiving game this week. Yeah, I think the three players to watch in the receiving game this week are Michael Pittman Jr.
Starting point is 00:28:16 because there's going to be a lot of RPOs to keep that Ravens pass rush and Ravens defense kind of honest a little bit. And that's where Michael Pittman Jr. thrives. So Michael Pittman Jr. big on those. And then Josh Downs is going to be massive in the passing game because they just need that quick win wide receiver. And they're starting to trust him a little bit more as that quick win wide receiver. So yeah, I do think he's going to have one of those games eventually where it's like
Starting point is 00:28:38 eight catches for 70 yards or nine catches for 80 yards, like something like that, you know, like really high production in the short passing game in a week like this against a Ravens team that's going to come after you. And then Kylan Granson as well, the mismatch at tight end, a guy who can get that quick separation. Those are the type of guys that are going to be really big this week. I did want to touch on defense real quick. Obviously, we want to see the secondary step up,
Starting point is 00:29:01 but the one player we just want to see a vintage moment from is Shaquille Leonard. And I say that with like, yes, Zyra Franklin and EJ speed have both been phenomenal this year. They have both been outstanding linebackers. We just need that Shaquille Leonard moment. I think Shaquille Leonard has been fine this year.
Starting point is 00:29:18 I don't think it's been anything special so far. I know he's still working back from injury, but we need that turnover. We need the punch out. We need the interception, whatever it's going to be. We need a vintage Shaquille Leonard moment this weekend just to say, okay, here we go. Now we have three really good linebackers because Leonard is kind of in third place among those three right now, which isn't a bad thing because the other two are playing so well, but I need him to have that Shaquille Leonard moment to feel like he's fully back.
Starting point is 00:29:51 That's exactly right. Again, EJ Speed and Zyre Franklin, they've kind of earned us thinking, giving them the benefit of the doubt and that they're going to play at a high level. But this is an attack. I mean, Lamar Jackson has been lights out as a passer, but we just know what he can do as a runner. And hasn't been unlocked much yet so far i mean he's only got what a handful of designed runs so far we know that is obviously something they can do i mean the lamar and the ravens have beaten the colts a couple times in recent memory you know especially with second half stuff just kind of going back to what lamar does best and so i think a vintage Shaquille Leonard performance, he doesn't even have to have 10, 12, whatever tackles.
Starting point is 00:30:28 Just like you're saying, that punch out could be critical. It could come at the most important time. That interception that just magically appears in his chest out of nowhere, like they need him out there performing at a high level and just kind of turning that magic. But another guy, I'll add to it, Rodney Thomas. It hasn't been the super strong start, but he led the team in interceptions last year. I just keep picturing, you know, that bomb to Zay Flowers, you know, the downfield passing game from Lamar Jackson. He throws a beautiful, accurate deep ball.
Starting point is 00:31:00 And as the deep safety, I think Rodney Thomas could really help them out making life difficult there. And, you know, making Jackson pay, even if it's just something as easy as picking off a tipped pass or something, which he did a couple of times last year, kind of along the same lines of Shaquille Leonard. It hasn't been a banner year yet, but he's capable of creating those turnovers. And especially for him, it's usually on downfield passes. So make Lamar Jackson pay. That's what I'm looking for. Yep.
Starting point is 00:31:31 Yep. If you guys are big fans of our show, please follow us at locked on Colts at Jake Arthur NFL at Zach Hicks to on Twitter again, every day as we back here tomorrow to talk crossover Thursday with Kevin from locked on Ravens. Also subscribe to us over here on YouTube where we listen to your guys' podcast. You know, we love your guys' ratings, reviews, and we'll see you guys again bright and early tomorrow morning talking Locked on Crossover.

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