Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - INDIANAPOLIS COLTS Q&A: Fans Unimpressed By Daniel Jones/Shane Steichen Combo vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Colts has had a meltdown out in Kansas City, and Fennanxiety is rising, to say the least. You guys had questions, and I've got some answers for you. 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. Hello, and welcome to the show, everybody. I am Jake Arthur, the Indianapolis Colts beat writer for Roundtable Sports, and welcome to Locked-on Colts, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, now the number one sports podcast network out there. And today's episode is brought to you by Bandw. Right now, new customers can bet just $5, and if your bet wins, you'll get $300 in bonus bets to use across the entire app. All right, everybody, so let's just get into it a little bit.

Starting point is 00:00:58 Obviously, the Colts have had a rocky go of it the last month. So they had their by-week in there. But outside of that, their last three games, they're one and two, and they've had really rocky performances against the Steelers, Falcons. And now the Chiefs, they led the Chiefs 20 to 9 going into the fourth quarter, completely fell apart offensively, three, three-and-outs in the fourth quarter, let the Chiefs come back. And then, you know, the Chiefs tied it at the end, very indirect.

Starting point is 00:01:28 regulations and at the overtime, Colts often still lifeless, and the Chiefs go and win it. So a total collapse by the Colts, no matter what, the national media wants to tell you about how the Chiefs controlled this game and the Colts were lucky to just be there. That is not how it went whatsoever. I actually got a wild hair and wrote about it over at Roundtable Sports earlier this week. If you didn't already see that, go check it out. But we're going to kind of go over the tail of the tape here. what went wrong in this game because, I mean, we opened up the floor to you guys for questions,

Starting point is 00:02:02 and you had a lot about this game still. I mean, I think we're all ready to move along to the Texans next week, but there's just still so much laundry we got to air out here when it comes to this Chiefs game. So this first one here is from Woe-O Domino. What is the offensive, what is what the offensive play calling thoroughly out-coached in the second half against KC? So, yeah, this was just a game that I thought went against a lot of the things that Shane Steichen kind of is in his DNA. The things were used to seeing from him. They didn't go for any fourth downs in this one, which is odd because they go for most fourth downs.

Starting point is 00:02:47 Now, their ineffectiveness in the fourth quarter on offense, that's probably when they would have done a lot of it. but they just kept going three and out. I think they scored on four of their six drives in the first three quarters. So they didn't necessarily need to keep going for fourth downs there. But no fourth downs, just kind of a lack of aggressiveness. And then obviously I think what really kind of peeved everybody in the fourth quarter is, again, three, three and outs in the fourth quarter. They ran the ball one time.

Starting point is 00:03:20 And that one time they ran the ball was when they were backed up at their own six-yard line, I believe, and it was a loss, and it was just, it was just ugly. I know a lot of people really like the aggressiveness, and I think even like Zach and I would maybe have a little bit of debate on this, but Kansas City did do everything they could to stop the run, and for the most part, it was effective, even though Jonathan Taylor ripped through and got some productive gains there at certain points. Personally, like, I, understand. I think this is probably where Shane was coming from. He knew Kansas City was going to try and stop the run, especially as the Colts try and milk out the clock and kind of nurse this 11 point lead in the fourth quarter. And then he just went pass heavy and they got behind the sticks early every time and they weren't able to run whatsoever because they kept passing and it was ineffective. And the chiefs were bringing pressure on Daniel Jones. I think it was like 11 blitzes and 19 pressures overall. and 31 dropbacks.

Starting point is 00:04:26 So they just completely abandoned the run. And, you know, if you're going to fail offensively and you're nursing a two-score lead, do it trying to run the ball. You know, that's at least going to take time off the clock. With the Colts 3, 3 in outs in the fourth quarter, it took just three minutes and 15 seconds, I think, off the clock. And that allowed Kansas City more than enough time to come back and win

Starting point is 00:04:51 because the defense did get a couple of stops at certain points, but when they're on the field the entire time, like over 90 snaps, like that's just not sustainable. So I'm with you guys. Obviously, I did not love the offensive play calling late. This next one is from Edward. I have two questions. The first being, why did the offense not attempt a single deep shot?

Starting point is 00:05:14 I feel like that was a big reason why the Chief's defense was able to drive so confidently on the short to intermediate throws down the stretch. and then Edwards' other one is why did the O-Line struggle to run block so much? So we'll go with the deep shots one. That's valid. I mean, the Colts only attempted one pass beyond 20 yards. That was deep down the right side. I believe it was to Alec Pierce.

Starting point is 00:05:41 And then of the 31 pass attempts that Daniel Jones had, only six of them were beyond 10 yards. So, you know, Jones was obviously under duress quite a bit. not looking to go very far down the field, even though you've got guys that can do it. You know, Josh Downs and Tyler Warren and Michael Pittman, Jr., I thought they were all kind of being used much too short. Obviously, Alec Pierce can do some things for you downfield. That's where he butters his bread, so to speak.

Starting point is 00:06:13 So, yeah, just a lack of aggressiveness, just everything altogether. It just, I think the entire game playing is something they might want back. So I'm with you, you know, not much going on downfield and that statistically is supported. I think going into it, this was a matchup where if you hit some of these crossers and slants over the middle of the field and got Kansas City's linebackers to be a little overaggressive or pull up a little bit, really was an area where they could have taken advantage. And it did happen a couple times. They got a couple yard after catch things that worked well for him. I think, you know, Tyler Warren off the bat. But overall, yeah, the entire thing from play calling to execution just left a lot to be desired.

Starting point is 00:07:00 And then hitting on Edwards' last one here, why did the O-Line struggle to run block so much? So I was going to go and check the NFL next-gen stats to see how often Jonathan Taylor did run into a stack box or was presented with a stacked box. because I think we could all just see with the eye test. Like that clearly is what the cheats were trying to do. You know, let's let Daniel Jones. If we lose, make Daniel Jones beat us, but we're not going to let Jonathan Taylor, the league's leading rusher go for 200 on us,

Starting point is 00:07:30 which is smart. I mean, they put guys in the box. They did things to kind of muddy the spacing for the Colts, I think. But yeah, I think that's really what happened to the O line, just mismatches. Like, you got too many guys to come. If the Colts aren't going to go with 12 and 13 personnel a ton and match those numbers, then it's just going to be ugly.

Starting point is 00:07:53 And they didn't want to run a ton, I guess, or at least their normal recipe is really not to establish the run much until later in the game, the last 20 to 25 minutes. And that's just not how the tenor of the game went, I guess, for them. You know, as we just discussed, they didn't really do it at all in the fourth quarter. So, yeah, Shane, Shane Steichen has been asked about it a handful of time so far on Sunday and Monday. And, you know, he did say, you know, on their final drive of regulation in the fourth quarter, maybe he could have run it a little bit. But I don't think he had a ton of regrets about how things went.

Starting point is 00:08:35 You know, when asked about fourth downs and such, he did say, you know, you kind of go back and rewind those things in your head and wonder if you made the right decision, so to speak. So, yeah, overall, game playing and execution, I just think there is a lot that these guys are going to want back on this one. All right, guys, so coming up next, you had more questions, especially some revolving around this game, some specific targets mentioned in this one as well, so we'll get to that in just a moment. The NBA is back, and there's no better place to get in on the action than Fandle.

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Starting point is 00:09:50 All right, welcome back, everybody, and thank you for making Lockdown Colts, your first listen of the day. And thank you for making Locked on the number one sports podcast network on the planet. All right, so we're getting back to your Q&A here. This one is from For the Shoe. after watching him get snatched trapped into oblivion by rookie Josh Simmons all day long on Sunday is quiddy pay a priority

Starting point is 00:10:15 to re-sign this off-season. You know, you can't pay everybody. The Colts do have several in-house guys that they probably would like to have back, and I think under the right circumstances, the Colts would probably like to have quidipa back. But a guy of his

Starting point is 00:10:32 caliber is probably going to get 10 to 12 million on the open market per year, and that might be low-balling it a little bit. It's tough because Quitty Pay is a quality starter as a run defender and everything, but he's obviously never developed to the level of pass rusher that you need. I mean, by the end of this, his fifth season, you know, I think he's got three and a half sacks right now. I think that's 30 for his career. At this rate, he's only going to.

Starting point is 00:11:04 barely have more sacks for his five-year career than Miles Garrett is going to wind up with just this season alone, you know what I mean? So, obviously, he's not a guy that's going to be a prolific pass rusher. And obviously here in his fifth season, I think we know what he is, a very solid run defender that can set an edge, high motor, high effort. But he's really only going to get just six to eight sacks a season. Like, that's who he is. And when you don't have, when you don't have a guy that's going to get you 10, 12, 14 sacks a year on the other side, that really starts to show up. And especially DeForest Buckner not being around, that really shows up.

Starting point is 00:11:44 Because, like, the Colts need pass rushers right now. And Lyotu Latu is, I mean, I think he's been kind of productive, but he's not yet that 10, 12, 14 sack guy. And when you're missing a DeForest Buckner, you just need all the help you can get. And pay is just not a consistent amount. enough guy. So I'll say all that to say this. It seems unlikely for me that Quitty Pay is resigned. You know, they activated his fifth year option for this year. I think to be kind of one final evaluation year. And obviously we saw Dioa Dengbo go out the door to the Bears. So they knew

Starting point is 00:12:21 that little extra depth. They needed one more year to evaluate with Quidipa. And he's been healthy, but he just hasn't been that guy that's going to kind of wreck shop and even really rack up the tackles for loss. Like I think I think you could probably make an exception for him what he lacks as a pass rusher if he was like if he was a perennially getting like 12 to 15 tackles for loss a year. But that's not happening either. He's just like a good solid run defender who can give you a little bit as a pass rusher. But I don't think that's enough for what the Colts need. And I don't think it's enough for what he's probably going to earn from another team on the open market and free agency because teams will pay for guys that can give you something like just remember

Starting point is 00:13:06 samson ebicom is making like 10 million bucks a year this year for never having had 10 sacks in a season either so that's why i say quitty pays probably getting 10 to 12 million per year as a floor on the open market next off season i think that's probably just a little higher than what the colts are going to wind up wanting to pay all right this next one is uh from Amelash McCorm. Who really was, and I apologize if I butchered that name, that is, that was not easy to go. So who really was to blame for the fourth quarter and overtime collapse of the offense? Was it Daniel Jones?

Starting point is 00:13:45 Was it the receivers? Was it the play calling by Coach Steichen? I think it really take your pick. I don't think any one area, you know, holds the entire burden of blame there. I think it was a group effort. I do think the defense has probably been given too much, too much crap for what they really had to wind up dealing with. So they were on the field enough to play two games. I think it was 95, 96 snaps.

Starting point is 00:14:16 And that really does equate to about two games, just about of gameplay. Obviously, that can be fine and that can work if the Colts would have continued scoring. off on offense uh like i mentioned the chiefs dominated time of possession i think they have like a 17 minute advantage and it didn't really matter much because the colts were scoring with those limited opportunities again like four of six drives resulted in points to the first three quarters and so you know they weren't turning it over they weren't getting sacks special teams was playing lights out so it's like it didn't it didn't matter that the chiefs were dominating with the yardage and the time of possession,

Starting point is 00:15:04 the Colts offense didn't need that in order to put points on the board. So if the Colts offense would have continued and even just been putting field goals on the board in the fourth quarter, you could have lived with the fact that the defense was on the field for forever. But it's really difficult to expect the defense to not get gassed when they are on the field, like double the amount that their offensive counterparts are. you know what i mean and all things considered i think they did a really nice job they had four sacks on the

Starting point is 00:15:34 homes uh they had they forced a couple turnovers and they stood up at least a time or two in the red zone really really well so i thought the colts defense did a really nice job overall we talked about shane stike and not running the ball in the fourth quarter i think that was a huge deal like of all the things that carry the most weight i think that is probably the big biggest one to me, only because, like I mentioned, near the top, if you're going to fail running the ball, it's at least taking time off the clock or making the chiefs use timeouts. If you're just going three and out with nothing but passes, it's taking no time off the clock. It's getting you nowhere. You're not moving the ball whatsoever.

Starting point is 00:16:19 You're not able to, even if you're going to punt, you're not pinning the chiefs back any further with your punts. Like, the Colts just don't. have the quarterback right now to deal to deal with that. Like they were getting heavy pressure and he has not dealt well with pressure in a month. Like this is now three games in a row now where it's a trend where he handled it great early in the season. It's not like he wasn't getting pressure because he was. He faced the Rams.

Starting point is 00:16:52 He faced the Broncos. I mean, even against the Dolphins, they got after him a little bit, but he was able to escape. keep composed and find an open receiver accurately to get some sort of game. And it worked because it kept the Colts ahead of the sticks. It kept the moving. It kept them on the field. The Colts offense had been sustaining really, really long drives themselves early in the year. But for whatever reason, it's like Jones is, I don't know if he's paranoid about coughing up fumbles or just getting like the crap knocked out of him or delivering an accurate throw.

Starting point is 00:17:29 but there is something that's changed in him when it comes to all this pressure and all these hits and all these turnovers. Again, 12 sacks against the Falcons and the Steelers. Was it like seven turnovers as well in those two games? So like he had a lot he was dealing with. He didn't turn the ball over or take any sacks against the Chiefs. So you kind of wonder why he still isn't delivering the ball accurately under pressure

Starting point is 00:17:55 or handling it like he was early in the season. But, yeah, I think kind of everyone shares the blame there. Stuyken is a play caller. Jones and his inability to execute under pressure. Those guys primarily, I think, share it. And then if you want to put anything on the defense, you know, there was a couple times where it seemed like there was a blown coverage when Kansas City got their bigger pass plays in the fourth quarter.

Starting point is 00:18:23 It's one thing if it's just getting beaten one-on-one. but like if you're blowing coverages, that's clearly a miscommunication thing. That's a problem that the coaches will always want cleaned up moving forward. All right, guys, Sue, we have a few more questions and really grievances and people just wanting to air out their sadness that you guys send in coming up here in just a moment. Today's show was brought to you by friends over there at Peloton. Look, folks, it's time to break through the busy time of the year with a brand new Peloton cross training, tread plus that's powered. by Peloton IQ. It's Peloton's most elevated technology and equipment yet that gives you real-time guidance and it gives you endless ways to move whether you want to work out by yourself or if you want

Starting point is 00:19:05 to work out with your favorite instructor like my personal favorite, Alex Toussaint. He always gets me fired up to tackle the day. And the thing I like about Peloton, it helps me achieve more in less times. They have features that help you plan, stay motivated, track your progress. And Peloton IQ also provides personalized workout plans and recommendations. That's something that I use. right now during the busiest time of the year covering the NFL. They plan my workouts for me based on my mood, my vibe, and also my favorite instructors. So make sure you check it out and use it because it also helps you correct your form in real time

Starting point is 00:19:38 and it maximizes your reps. It counts your reps so that you can do it smarter, safer, and more efficient. Let yourself run, lift, flex, push, and go. Explore the new Peloton, cross training, treadplus at one peloton.com. All right. welcome back every dayers we are answering the questions that you guys sent out on socials today if you didn't get your question in or i haven't answered it yet don't worry we're going to do another bonus episode like we did last week again you guys sent a ton of questions enough to fill

Starting point is 00:20:09 another new episode uh so i know it's thanksgiving week but we didn't get with you monday because you know we we want to have time to really give you guys something different that you maybe didn't get from the squad show like us being able to watch the games again uh us getting your feedback in these q and a stuff like that so you know just hectic stuff obviously early in the week but as we're all going through thanksgiving week schedules are crazy uh so we want to give you guys an extra bonus episode later in the week which probably will drop on thanksgiving uh so be sure to look out for that later in the week uh this next question here is from cam collins why do we have to reflexively pick our team apart after a loss instead of considering that the other team just deserve some credit for playing incredible defense?

Starting point is 00:21:02 So, Cam, I do get where you're coming from, but I'm kind of from the thinking of teams when they don't perform well are a victim of the expectations that they have created. So this team was damn near flawless through the first half of the schedule. They had just one loss. They were going toe to toe with playoff caliber teams, only losing to the Rams, who kind of looked like the Super Bowl frontrunner at this point. You know, they beat the Broncos. They beat the Chargers. They were killing the really bad teams.

Starting point is 00:21:41 And now three games in a row, they're one in two. two, so they've dropped two of their last three games, and we're seeing a lot of the same problems continue to happen. So like I mentioned with the Steelers and Falcons, that was 12 sacks and I think eight turnovers overall for the team. But even though they had zero sacks and zero turnovers against the Chiefs, so much of it felt the same offensively, at least in the fourth quarter. You know, heavy pressure, the passing game in Daniel Jones not being able to adjust to it now i understand he has this fibula injury which i think we all can see he is a bit limited by it but you know what the colts aren't giving anything on that that he is limited by it so

Starting point is 00:22:28 if that's what they're putting out there that's what we have to take it as sorry it's you guys are saying he's not limited or the play calling is not limited by the injury so that's got to mean that what's being called has to be able to be executed you know so I just think, Cam, to answer your question, I don't, like in general, yes, some people are very overreactive about one game and saying, fire this person, fire that person, we're terrible, this or that. But this isn't one game. This is three games in a row of a lot of the same issues for a team that looked like the

Starting point is 00:23:07 best team in the NFL through the first half of the schedule. and now that it's time to really sort things out and secure your spot atop the playoffs, we're not even positive that the Colts are going to win the division at this point, and it looked like they were going to run away with it at a certain time. So I think there's real concern and anxiety from the fan base about what the final six games are going to look like, because we don't know. You have four of those are division games. The Jaguars don't look terrible, and the Texans, that defense is unbelievable.

Starting point is 00:23:40 And with what we've seen the Colts offense, what we've seen from them these last few games, you can't be super confident that these are all going to be wins. And then you've got the Seahawks, which is another one of the best teams in the league, and the 49ers who are always tough and hardly ever get blown out. Shoot, they just blew the Panthers out on Monday night football. So this final six game stretch is not kind. the Colts have got to get it together and figure out these same chronic issues that keep popping up their heads over the last month. So again, I get it.

Starting point is 00:24:17 There's a lot of times people are very reactive after one game, but I don't think that's what this is. And then the rest of this here is just people being sad, but I thought these were funny. So let's go ahead and get to them. This one was from Imagine Eric. Will the joy of the first half of the year be enough to sustain us through the long winter if the second half continues this way? And he said the too long didn't read version is, why can't Colts fans just be a loud happiness? I'm with the imaginary.

Starting point is 00:24:44 We can never have nice things, it seems. This next one from Zonson 3,000. Can I donate some extra stem cells to DeForest Buckner? Maybe you might go to Panama and just write him and let him know there's something waiting there for him so his neck and he'll heal and get back better than ever. And then the last one from Kyle Winslow just defeated. he said, I'm sad. You know, I think a lot of people feel that way, but it's not the end of the year.

Starting point is 00:25:14 Like I mentioned, this, this episode probably had a little bit of a doom and gloom vibe to it, which I didn't intend, but that was just kind of the tone of the questions. Again, this team is five games above 500, still very much likely to make the playoffs, as long as they shoot, as long as they split these last six and go three and three, they'll be 11 and 6. And I think 11 and 6 will be enough to get you into the playoffs. So as long as they just don't completely collapse, they'll get into the playoffs. We've seen that they can go toe to toe and win against any team in the NFL.

Starting point is 00:25:56 Even that Rams game, the Colts should have won that one. We all know that. So this is still a good team with some things. They absolutely have to get figured out. I'm not incredibly discouraged. I'm concerned with, again, the repeated issues. But, you know, there's a lot of ballgame left in this season. So we need you guys to stick with us and keep watching.

Starting point is 00:26:17 You know, we'll keep bringing your content as well each and every day. So thank you guys for making Lockdown Colts your first listen of the day. The NFL season is in full swing. So for your next listen, get a double dose of the Lockdown NFL podcast. Tyler Madman Rowling gives you a shot of espresso to start your football day. while Tony Wiggins takes you into the barbershop for the smoothest breakdowns to end the day. Find Lockedon NFL on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts.

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Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - INDIANAPOLIS COLTS Q&A: Fans Unimpressed By Daniel Jones/Shane Steichen Combo vs. Kansas City Chiefs

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