Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - LOCKED ON COLTS 10/22/19: Why the Colts have all the ingredients for a deep playoff run

Episode Date: October 23, 2019

On today's episode, George Bremer of The Herald Bulletin is back to help go over the Colts' latest win while also looking ahead to Denver. Also, we bring back Twitter Tuesday to answer some listener questions.First up, though, let's dissect Indianapolis' win over Houston. What were the biggest takeaways? No surprise, but Jacoby Brissett's impressive outing stood out the most. Darius Leonard, Eric Ebron, and Zach Pascal also earned strong praise from Bremer.What are the biggest questions listeners want to know? From Deon Cain to injury timetables, all of your questions are answered by Bremer.Finally, we go over Bremer's biggest keys against the Broncos with his prediction. How can the Colts avoid another stunning loss to an inferior opponent? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello, everybody. Welcome back into Locked on Colts, probably Locked on Podcast Network. Today's on is your host, Evan Sutter, and joined by our weekly guest, George Berman, the Colts beat writer for the Herald Bulletin. How are you doing today, George? Good, good. Glad to be here. Yeah, I appreciate you coming on as always, George. I know our listeners always love having you on and your insight, your brain here. And let me get your thoughts on the game first off. Another big Colts win on Sunday, 30-23 as a final score. And really, if it was for the second half when the Colts cooled off a little bit, I don't think it really shouldn't have been that close when you look at how –

I think just the passing game from Jacoby Brissett really stuck to me on Sunday. I know the Atlanta defense at this point, that team is not that good at this point, we can say, because they're really folding right now. But this Texans defense, I know they were kind of banned from the secondary, but an impressive performance from Jacoby Brissett. I think kind of silenced some doubters a little bit. Yeah, absolutely. It was a really, really but an impressive performance from Jacoby Brissett. I think kind of silenced some doubters a little bit. Yeah, absolutely. It was a really, really, really big week for Jacoby.

Frank Wright talked about it a little bit after the game, just the idea that they knew going in Texas was going to play man coverage. They were probably going to stack the box to try to take away anything that Mario Matt could do, and it was going to be a game that was going to end up on Jacoby's shoulders. And so to see him go out there and have the kind of performance he did, 326 yards, four touchdowns, move the offense consistently, get that big lead early, I think that it was one of the next kind of checkpoints that we've been looking at for him as he goes through this,

what's really his first season as a starter. I know he started in 2017, but we've been looking at for him as he goes through this, what's really his first season as a starter. I know he started in 2017, but we've talked many times before, he can't take a lot from that. So, you know, there's a lot of kind of levels that you want to see. Can he win games? We've seen that before. Can he protect the football? He's done that all year.

I think another one of those questions that everybody was kind of waiting on is, if he needs to, can he be the reason this team wins the game? And I think in many ways on Sunday, he was just that. You watched six years of Andrew Luck up close, George, and now you see a guy, Jacoby Brissett. Let's throw 2017 out because I know that was just a bad team around him and a new coaching staff now with Frank Reich on board in 2018. What's the

main differences you've noticed so far in the Reich system when you see Andrew Luck in it last year and now you see Jacoby in it? Yeah, I think anticipation is one of the big things. Andrew was so amazingly good at reading a defense before the snap and understanding almost exactly what they were going to do and almost running that play out in his mind. So he just made decisions a lot faster. The ball came out faster. He threw receivers open. That's still not something I think we're seeing consistently from Jacoby yet. He's getting better with it. I thought it was one of probably his best games in terms of going through his progressions, doing it quickly, not locking on to one receiver as we'd seen earlier.

He really, I thought, spread the ball around really well. And that was one of the biggest strengths that Luck had. He had, what, 13, 14 guys catch touchdown passes. You really never knew where he was going with football until he did it. Jacoby at times is locked into a few guys. Key Y, of course, can't really blame him there. Eric Ebron, Naheem Hines, they get the vast majority of the targets. And I felt like on Sunday, obviously Zach Paschal is earning more

and more trust and becoming a part of that group. But it just seemed like he was more open on every play to sort of reading the field and making a good decision, getting the ball out when it needed to and going to the right guy. I know the running game didn't do so well. I think they only had around 65 total yards and 26 carries. But I feel like the running game now with the threat of it with Marlon Mack and Jordan Wilk at the 9-8 Hines and just the setting up the play action

pass here, I feel like this Colts team now is multi-dimensional where if the running game isn't working they're still going to pound it down and really set up the defense or they get some open chunk plays in the passing game because we've seen already not only on Sunday against the Texas but we saw against Kansas City as well that play action passing game at points can really open up with that running game absolutely that that's really at the heart of philosophy with Reich and Nick Sirianni. That's what they want to do, you know, play action in a big, big part of that offense. That in the short passing game that they established early in the season, drawing those defenders up, and then you use some of those routes later in the year

to draw a defender up and throw the ball over his head. I think you're seeing that start to develop. It's something we saw last year definitely as the year went on. Deep shots became more and more common as defenses started to react to what the Colts had done early in the year. It'll be interesting to see if they can continue to do that. But I think the multidimensional part of this is a really good thing and a really good thing to talk about. You look at the Kansas City game and the way it played out,

the way the Colts won that game, controlling the clock, running the football, power football really all the way around, and then they come out two weeks later against the Texans and it's almost a completely different offense. This was dropping back and throwing the ball deep and getting chunk yardage and being an explosive kind of a team. And so I think when you can win games both those ways, certainly bodes well for the future.

I think this team this year, I know the quarterback change was sudden in August, but you have the running game, you have the passing game, just the multidimensional offense. And that's obviously what Frank Rock was going for when he first got hired here to have this kind of offense going for them. Since you started covering the team, George, is this like the most balanced team that you've seen as far as the offensive tack goes?

Yeah, absolutely. I don't think it's even close. I mean, you look at really still the offensive line is the strength of this football team. And their ability to run the ball is probably the most impressive thing they do. But when you can go back and get the kind of performance from Jacoby and the receivers they got on Sunday,

and that's going to be the big thing moving forward. You know, is this going to be a game that you look at as sort of a blip, like that one week it happened, maybe the Falcons too, or is it going to be something that happens pretty commonly when teams play the Colts the way the Texans did? And I think that's, you know, that's the key to everything in the NFL. It's great to do things once or twice. And obviously, you need to have that ability. But at the end of the day, it's what can you do consistently? What can you make a big part of your game week in and week out? time will tell on that. You don't really know right now whether this passing game will be able to continue to do this against, you know, stiffer competition as the year goes on. I think you made a good point earlier about Houston. We're banged up in the secondary, but the front of that defense,

the front seven, is really good, you know, among the best in the league. We all know J.J. Watt and Whitney Merciless and what they can do. So Colts will be able to hold up and protect the quarterback and give Jacoby the time he needed to pick apart of that secondary, that was a big thing, and not everybody can do that against Texas. I think one player should on here. We're going to talk about a few on the offensive side here, Jordan. I think the first one we should on because we talked about him a lot

as far as him kind of being in his own head recently with the drop passes. Eric Ebron kind of woke up on Sunday, had a big game, four catches, that crazy touchdown, catch the eye in the back of the end zone. That kind of game, I feel like, kind of sparked the confidence back for Eric Ebron. I don't know what will happen next time he drops a pass, but at least for the time

being, this seems like kind of got his swagger back a little bit. You can notice that in the second half of the game as well. Yeah, you know, he kind of talked about it after the open game when he struggled that he was going to make amends for that. And I felt like, obviously, that catch in the back of the end zone was part of that. I think Adam Benateri told him that that was the best catch,

one of the better catches he's seen in his career. And then, you know, Ebron being Ebron comes back, but that means a lot coming from him because he's played for 85 years. But that was the play of the year so far in Indianapolis, one of the plays of the year in the league. But he also had – I think he leaped over a defender at one point to get a first down, extended drive. That's what they need. I think one of the best things about the passing game besides

the fact that that Jacoby looks so decisive and comfortable with what he was doing was the fact that you had Eric Ebron step up and make some big plays you had Zach Paschal step up and make some big plays and it wasn't all T.Y. Hilton I think that's something that for years you know that that's been an issue with this team the more that they can get from these other guys, and Devin Funch is coming back in a few weeks, and Paris Campbell may be back this week, and we'll see if Deion Kane can develop as the year goes on. The more they can get vertically in this passing game,

the tougher they're going to be to defend, because we know they can run the ball. The more deep threat that they can establish, the more explosion that they can establish, this offense could really start going places. George, is Zach Paschal the most surprising story to you so far this season? Because I know in training camp we were talking about maybe he doesn't make the roster because Reece Fountain was breaking it out before his injury happened,

and maybe they don't keep six wide receivers at that point. But Paschal really made the roster by the skin of his teeth, and he's really proven to himself to the Colts coaching staff as well, that he's really developing right now into maybe a player who's a long-term contributor, because if he's a long-term, like number four wide receiver option, George, I think Paschal is a really good guy to have around. And especially in the running game too.

Absolutely. He, to me, he's the Jack Doyle of the wide receiving core. He's a guy who just goes out and does everything the way it's supposed to be done. And, you know, works his butt off. Not that all these guys don't, you don't get to the NFL because you don't have a work ethic. We know that. But when your work ethic stands out, even among this group, I think it says something really positive about you. This is a guy from Old Dominion,

you know, not exactly a football powerhouse. And he's worked his way up through the ranks. He got cut by the Titans. He's found a way to be effective and to make the most out of his skills. And it started with making a niche for himself in that running game, being a physical blocking wide receiver, getting a job done that way. And now you're starting to see the rest of it come along with it. He's shown that he can make big plays to pass the game. First 100 yard day, two touchdown passes that he caught. Yeah, I think he's a guy exactly like you said, who's starting to show that he can be a number four type wide receiver long term for this team. The folks at Roman, a men's health company, are changing the game with Roman Swipes,

the secret to longer-lasting sex. Get $10 off your first order of Swipes and free two-day shipping at GetRoman.com slash LockedOnNFL. Again, that is LockedOnNFL, L-O-C-K-E-D-O-N-N-F-L. I'm also noticing, George, You probably are noticing this as well. I think Jacoby is really starting to trust Zach Pascoe. I think maybe outside of T Y Hill and maybe Jack Doyle,

I think Pascoe is becoming one of Jacoby's favorite targets. And that might last even once, once punches in and Campbell are back because you see the chemistry, those two have together. Yeah, absolutely. And I think that's, it's,

it's probably not surprising that Brissette and Paschal would start to kind of have a good chemistry because they've practiced a lot together over the last couple years. When Jacoby was the backup, you know, he was thrown into Paschal and he was thrown into that second kind of tier of the receivers all through the spring and all through the summer. So I think they know each other pretty well. And I think it's just – I think the thing about Paschal right now is he keeps making plays in big moments.

And that's how you earn a quarterback's trust. When it's third down and you need somebody to get open, and Zach Paschal is the guy that goes and does it, to me those are the moments that builds that trust, builds that relationship, and you just see it getting stronger and stronger. I think one general storyline I'm kind of noticing, I know a lot of Colts fans are noticing this as well, is that this Colts team, even after being the Chiefs and the Texans,

are still really flying under the radar nationally. And I think that's kind of like the way that Frank Reich and that locker room really wants to be because I think this team actually does well when they're the underdog and they're kind of in this sleeper role because even without Andrew Oka quarterback, this team is still humming yeah absolutely they really relish sort of being that that unthought of team and you know really it's a it's a very blue collar kind of a football team there are some stars on this team obviously T.Y. Hilton one of the best players in

his position in the league Eric Ebron when he's on his game can be as good as players in his position in the league. Eric Ebron, when he's on his game, can be as good as anybody in his spot. Darius Leonard, we all know about him, and he showed again on Sunday what a difference maker he is. And then Quentin Nelson, who might be the best offensive lineman in the NFL. When you look at those guys, they're star power. Kenny Moore appeared to see her have that moment as well. I think Malik Cooker is coming back this week, and he was having a star-making kind of a season season so it's not that there's not talent here but there's not a lot of marquee

names you know this isn't one of the the shiny flashy teams and that's where the national media is drawn to that's why coming in houston had so much more uh buzz around them and it's why if you look at the espn ranking the Texans are still above the the Colts and the power rankings not that I put much you know I always kind of laugh when I see people get upset about that because it's not college football they're not going to vote people into the playoffs so it doesn't really matter you know it's just uh a way to to start a conversation but you're always going to see that when you have guys like Deshaun Watson and he showed again and again on Sunday,

why he is such an electric guy and why so many people are so excited about him. Guy, JJ Watt, DeAndre Hopkins, you know, these are, these are the stars of the league and that's, it's a star driven league. And so I think the Colts are more than happy to kind of go under the radar and, and make things work with good, talented football players. And I think that's, it's a reflection of Chris Ballard and Frank Reich and the way they want to do business.

Putting the defense side of things here, George, for a second, Darius Leonard came back after three weeks from his concussion and really kind of showed how much an impact he can be on this defense and how much they missed him. Because I know Bobby Okereke was really started blossoming a little bit in the last few weeks but the upgrade from Okereke to Leonard and having those two with Walker I think that's just a fun trio and Darius Leonard showed again on Sunday 10 tackles that game-sealing interception how much of an impact player he is in this league he's so instinctive and he just he has such a knack for being around the football we saw that

all year last year he comes right back and you had to wonder a little bit will it be some rust you know three weeks off in the middle of the season is a long time uh and but he he picked up right where he left off he went out there and and immediately you could tell with him and Jabal Sheard uh back in the lineup the run game, run defense improved tremendously. I know there were a couple times in particular where Texans running backs kind of started to go to the outside and almost looked shocked that Leonard was there, and they had to cut back inside, and then the play got cleaned up.

And that's the kind of thing that wasn't happening while Darius Leonard was out. But then I don't think you can say enough about the interception at the end, just the concentration, the awareness on that play, to understand what was happening, to understand what was at stake, to go for the football, get that interception, and end the game. I don't know there's too many linebackers in the league that can make that play. I feel like once Malik Hooker is back, George, and Kenny Moore,

whenever he's back in the next couple weeks, how good can this defense be? Because it seems like Manny Berflus has finally adjusted his scheme to where he's not going to play 75, 8% of the time zone when he needs to. He mixed up again on Sunday with man coverage. I think this defense is going a little underrated now because Justin Houston is really waking up now three sacks in his last two games. Danico Autry as well, inside presence there. This team has all the makings of being just a top-ten defense again

the second half of the season because you see the opponents they have on the schedule the rest of the way. This defense and the way they're quick right now, and with Booker and Moore possibly coming back here very soon, they're going to have all their pieces back for the first time since week one. Yeah, it's amazing to think that they did what they did against Kansas City and Houston, and they were as banged up as they were, especially in the secondary, to get those guys back.

And Kenny Moore in particular, he does so much for this team. Matt Iverflus has talked a few times about there being two hot spots, he calls them, on the defense. One is weak side linebacker where Darius Leonard is, and the other is the cornerback slot that Kenny Moore plays where they have to have playmakers. They have to have guys who are making a difference at those spots, athletic guys who can disrupt offenses in a lot of different ways.

And so it was a big task to play Sunday without Kenny Moore. In fact, it took two guys to replace him. And, well, Iverflue said two, and I think there might have actually been three. Quincy Wilson at times was playing in Kenny Moore's spot. At times it was Shaquille Taylor. And they also brought Roland Milligan in who had been a safety who mostly played on special teams, hadn't taken the defensive snap all year, and he went out there and played part of that role as well.

So, I think when you get the defense at that kind of playing the way that it is right now, I think you've got to look back to these injuries. I think they could be a blessing in disguise. A lot of guys, a lot of young guys, Okariki, Ben Banigou now, Kari Willis, even Rocky Haseen, playing a little bit more than maybe they were expected to at times because guys are banged up in front of them. And I think the end result of that is the team fits as much deeper

than it would have been maybe at this time of year. And guys are just gaining confidence. They're starting to see success. They're starting to understand that if they play together, rush and cover, as they like to say all the time, when that defensive line solidified, which it did, it seems like with Jabal Sheard coming back, now they can get that pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Now it's a little bit easier for the defensive backs to do their job and all of a sudden this looks like a really dangerous defensive team i think one notion on here before we go into our denver preview georges i think it's interesting to me that shaq taylor the undirected free agent out snapped quincy wilson on sunday and it seems like at this point i wonder just what you've heard about so

far and what you've seen in the locker room or at the games, but is Quincy Wilson losing trust with his coaching staff or vice versa there? Because it seems like Wilson is kind of falling back now. Even Shaq Taylor, a guy who was just called up on the press squad a couple weeks ago, is already out snapping him. I think that it's matchup driven, and it's sort of – they have very specific roles for each player. They have a very

defined idea of what they want them to do i think when you play kc in houston and back-to-back weeks quincy's game is physicality getting up sticking his nose in there helping out with the run uh you know kind of playing some underneath coverages not really getting out in the open field making plays you play kc in hou, you need the more athletic defenders, the coverage guys. And so I think it's really nothing more than that. They really like Quincy. They like to play him in a lot of different roles.

But I think it's really as simple as this wasn't – you know, if they go and play Tennessee, you're going to see a lot more Quincy Wilson. I think before we dive into our Twitter questions as well, George, this next three-week stretch here for the Colts, Broncos at home at the Steelers, then at the home against the Miami Dolphins. How crucial is this three-game stretch for them? And also for Frank Reich and the coach set to really get in their heads that they can't avoid an Oakland kind of letdown that we saw a couple weeks ago

because this team now can create some separation. Yeah, this is a huge stretch coming up. Three of the next four are at home. The one road game is at Pittsburgh. And obviously that's going to be a tough place to play all the time we've seen the steelers still be competitive uh even though they haven't won a lot of these games they're still making it hard on people even without ben roethlisberger and so you know that's not a game that you just write down as a as a win right off the bat but you look at that four game stretch the ability to gain some momentum gain some ground

it's it's tremendously big right now and it starts in the Denver game and you're right you go back to the Oakland game Clinton Nelson said a few times now that he felt like they they just didn't come out with the right focus and intensity for that game you could see it on the field there was no energy early and by the time they did kind of pick it up, the hole was too big and they couldn't make up for those mistakes. I think that game should teach them that's the way this league is. It's not college football. You can't go out there against, you know, an Eastern Michigan or Northern Illinois or whoever it may be on a given weekend

and get away with some mistakes that you can't in your conference. You've got to come every week ready to play. If you spot anyone a two-score lead, the degree of difficulty is going to go through the roof. And I think they understand that. And I think the good news this week is Frank Reich is very, very familiar with Vic Fangio. He was playing in Carolina when Fangio was a defense coordinator

back in the 90s. And he has tremendous respect for the defenses that Fangio puts out there and I think he's getting that across to the players so if there was any inclination to look at Denver's record and and you know kind of relax a little bit this week he's making them understand they may be two and five but they got a defense that can can break the game open and can cause you a lot of problems and I think they need that focus in each of these four weeks if they're going to do the things that they want to do this season. Before we dive into our Denver preview,

George, I have some Twitter questions from our listeners here that are chimed in. I want to get some answers from you. Our first one is from Ray Rivera, and he asks, where did Deion King go? Is he on vacation? Yeah, there's been a lot. You know, Nick Sirianni talked about that a little bit today. And I thought that it's important to note that from the Colts' point of view, their treating came like a rookie still.

He got injured very early in the preseason his rookie year, and so he's still kind of learning his way. I think there's some things that he needs to clean up as a route runner. Almost everybody does. And then some of it, Sirianni said, is bad luck at times too. Sometimes he's one of the first or second reads on a play, but the defense, for whatever reason, comes out and looks they weren't expecting or rolls coverage a different way.

And so, you know, Brissette has to look in a different spot. I think Kane's still waiting for that breakout game. And I think we've seen that happen with a lot of guys. I don't know he's that different right now than Zach Paschal was his first season here in Indy, where you're just kind of trying to find your way in the passing game and earn that quarterback's trust. It's a process, and sometimes it takes longer than others. Next question here, George, from Ryan Kirby.

And he asks, what about this team do you like the most, and do the ingredients of this team have the chance to be a team that can go deep in the playoffs? Yeah, you know, I think the best thing about this team right now is just that it's so unflappable. I mean, I don't know how many teams could lose their starting quarterback two weeks before the season and just shrug it off and go on

as though nothing happened. And you see that same kind of mentality in the course of the game. Jacoby Brissette fumbles that snap against the Texans, and Houston takes over at the four-yard line. The defense goes out and shuts the door, and the offense comes right back and goes 75 yards down the field and scores a touchdown. I think that kind of mentality just epitomizes this team. They don't really care what is thrown at them.

They're going to come at it full on and take on the challenge with 100% effort. And, you know, I think that's – in a league so tight where the margin of error is so tiny, that's such a big thing because you're going to have adversity through the course of the season. You you're gonna have adversity through the course of the season you're gonna have adversity through the course of the game and the Colts team is well equipped to deal with that as anybody around the league doesn't mean they're gonna win them all obviously doesn't mean everything will go right but I think they're definitely a team that has the right mindset when trouble comes for for how to deal with that as far as

going deep in the postseason, yeah, you know, I think the two things that you look at historically when you have to go on the road in the AFC in particular, and we'll see how things play out at this point. The Colts can have a home game or two in that process. But the two things that you need to go on the road generally are an opportunistic defense, which the Colts have shown, and a run game that can survive

throughout whatever weather conditions you have you know if you go into a game and it's windy or rainy or snowy or or whatever and you have to alter game plan can you do it this is a team that seems to be able to to morph from week to week from opponent to opponent from weather condition to weather condition so you know there's no guarantees in this league but they have the pieces they need to have a very good season a couple questions i'm gonna combine here for you george one from dre and one from aj and they're asking about the timetables for both devin funchess and taekwon lewis what's the latest you heard on those guys yeah funchess can't come back till week 11 i think he can start practicing maybe this week it's either this week or next week there's a 21 day period there where he can start practicing maybe this week. It's either this week or next week. There's a 21-day period there where he can practice,

and then they have to make a decision about whether they want to activate him or not, and I think in all likelihood he will be activated. It looks like that's week 11. I believe that's a Jacksonville game. So that would be a pretty good boost for this team at that point if they could get him back. When you know that Jacksonville has that capability to just overwhelm people with that defensive line at times, getting another receiver into that group,

another hot read for Jacoby Brissett would be really good. But we'll see how long it takes for Pontius to get back up to speed and get back into the swing of things. Lewis, there's not been a lot of information out there. It's the typical he's progressing that you get from Frank Reich. I don't at this point, I don't expect him to be ready this week. We'll see. He might still be another two weeks away.

But at this point, I think the defensive line has come together pretty nicely, and I don't think they're sweating. Obviously, he gets back. They'll be happy to work him back into the mix. But right now, that defensive line is kind of on a roll, and I think they're happy with what they've got. Last one I have for you, George, from Brandon. It's a two-parter for you.

Do you like the mix-up of man and zone courage over the past couple weeks? Do you think that's going to sustain for the Colts' defense? And the second part is, what kind of role do you expect for Paris Campbell once he's back because of Zach Paschal's emergence? Do you think it's going to be less than we expect? Yeah, you know, I think defensively, obviously, they've made a big difference here.

Getting up, being aggressive, pressing guys. I think Rocky's seen, in particular, more suited to that kind of style, more of what he played at Temple. And I think they talked all year long that they were going to do a little more of that. They kind of waited until they faced these heavy passing teams to go that route. It'll be interesting now to see this week when you face the Broncos,

and especially with Emmanuel Sanders getting traded away today, you're not anywhere near the threat in the passing game that you had the last couple weeks. Will the Colts go back to the zone now that we saw before? Will they continue to be aggressive and play some of the lesser offensive teams the way they did the Texans and the Chiefs? That remains to be seen. I think that will be an interesting storyline to watch. As far as Paris Campbell goes, I don't think that he was ever

tied to Paschal. I think they always looked at him as sort of that third receiver, that slot guy. Paschal's playing on the outside alongside T.Y. Hilton. I think when Campbell gets back, that's what he'll do again. He'll slot in there. The irony is, this would have been a really big

week for him with man defense, all the crossing routes that you saw. I think Jacoby Brissett was referring to them as runaways, where you just take the defender across the field and you outrun him. That's Parrish Campbell's game when he's healthy, and I think that's something that they're going to look to as the season rolls on. You figure they're going to see more man coverage than zone

because generally if you're stacking the box, you're going to play man coverage, and you would imagine most teams are at least going to see more man coverage than zone. Because generally, if you're stacking the box, you're going to play man coverage. And you would imagine most teams are at least going to come out initially and want to take away that run, put some extra guys in the box. So I think Paris Campbell getting back and being healthy could be a big part of what they're going to do the rest of the season. Diving into the Denver game now, George, this team, the Broncos, they just traded away Emmanuel Sanders today.

They're definitely in fire sale mode. They might be looking more towards the draft now than they are this season. What do you expect from this game on Sunday? Because we saw the Broncos play on Thursday night last week. They got destroyed by the Chiefs, who missed Patrick Mahomes for most of that game as well. This feels like a game where the Colts can really have a blowout win, but they have to just follow the ingredients, I feel like,

just step by step and not look ahead. Yeah, they absolutely have to stay focused. And seeing that it is, and you saw it in the Oakland game, and even last year when Texans came in here and they were 0-3, you can't let a team like this get confidence early. The Jets game last year was another good example. If you let that offense have some success early on and start to get on a roll, that can backfire on you in ways that are unexpected

you can see a guy get hot Joe Flacco's having a rough year right now if you go out there and you hit him early and you force them three and outs and you start making it look like it's going to be another day like it's been the last few years then the last few weeks for Denver then you know their their mindset's probably going to go one way But if you come out and you're not focused and you're not in the right place where you're supposed to be, and you're not fundamentally sound and they get some scores early, like Oakland did, like the Jets did a year ago, then it can, it can snowball on you in a hurry.

I mean, everybody in this league is good. That's why they're here. And so I think you have to respect that when you go into the game. And obviously, defensively, Denver's rankings are right up there at the top of the league. They're still a very good defensive football team. They haven't gotten a lot done on the offensive side, and that's cost them a lot.

But the Colts' offense will have to prepare for this. Like, they've got a serious challenge ahead because they do. What would you say, George, are the three biggest keys to this game on Sunday for the Colts to go to 5-2? First and foremost, don't let up. We've been talking about that a lot throughout the course of the thing, but don't go into this game thinking, okay, you're on a two-game winning streak and you just beat two of the better teams in the AFC,

so you can take a little bit of a rest this week. There is no such thing as that. You saw what happened when that happened against the Raiders. You don't want a repeat of that in any way, shape, or form. So come out the same way they did the last couple weeks. And I think the big thing in that is you look at both the KC game and the Houston game, that opening drive on offense, long drives, ended with touchdowns.

You know, I think they've made a statement in both those games about what they were there to do, and they're able to carry that out through most of the game in both cases. I think that's something that is a huge component here today, and something that I think, or this week, and it's something that I think the Colts are going to have to take seriously. Come out early, get a lead, and make the Broncos start to think about the way the season's gone. Don't give them any hope. The other thing, it's very similar to the approach against Houston. Make sure Von Miller doesn't change this game. J.J. Watt hit Jacoby Brissett, it felt like, on half his dropbacks.

I know it wasn't quite that way, but he was J.J. Watt in many ways on Sunday. But the Colts kept him from having a bunch of sacks. They kept him from getting that big turnover. That's what you can't have. You know, Von Miller's going to make some plays. He's going to beat his guy every now and again. That's why he's one of the better players in the NFL. What you can't do is have that strip sack that sets up some points for the opponent

or have that hit that leads to an interception and a pick six, you know, those sort of things. I think they've got to be very aware of where Von Miller is and just make sure that he doesn't win this game for Denver. Before we close today's show, George, appreciate the time as always. My prediction for today's game – or for the game on Sunday is going to be 27-10. I don't think it's going to be that close.

I think the Colts defense against Joe Flacco, a quarterback, probably the worst quarterback they've faced all season. They're going to probably put a lot of pressure on him. I expect a double-digit win here, 27-10. What say you? I think that's probably in the right neighborhood. I think this should be a game that the Colts are able to handle pretty easily. Again, so much of it's mindset and what you're able to do.

If they come out and they play the way they did against the Texans and the Chiefs, I think 27-10 is a very likely outcome. If they come out and they play the way they did against the Raiders, they could find themselves in a dogfight and in another game that comes right down the water. Definitely was a fun time talking to you, George, as always on Tuesdays. You can follow George on Twitter at GMBremmer. Also read his work over in the Herald Bulletin.

As always, you haven't subscribed over there already. Appreciate the time, George, and we'll talk to you again next week. Thanks a lot.