Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - LOCKED ON COLTS -11/2- Updated Indianapolis Colts PFF Grades; Week 9 Matchup on Paper

Episode Date: November 2, 2016

After a less-than-impressive performance in Week 8, where do the #IndianapolisColts stack up in PFF's updated grades? Who is rising at their position? And check in on what the Colts can expect to see this week out of the #Packers at Lambo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

That's for my crazy day. My packed commute. All those unread emails in my inbox. But I'm getting stronger, faster, and pushing myself further every day. I don't care if I'm not like everyone else. This punching bag is the best way to end my day. Fearless is knowing yoga isn't your style. That's the power of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Federal Employee Program.

Learn more about our healthy benefits at fepblue.org slash getmore. No, I'm not for sale. You are lockeded On Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Welcome to Locked On Colts, ladies and gentlemen. I'm your host, Matt Dainley, and thank you for joining me for Lockdown Colts for November 2nd. And today we're kind of going to give a look-see at what the Colts are headed up against when they travel up to Lambeau to play the Green Bay Packers. In Week 9, the week before their bye week, which they desperately need for so many reasons, not so much in health, but just to get their mind right, if nothing else, if possibly need a mental week off, if anything. And I think the Colts players and coaches need it

alike. So hopefully they'll have some sort of a rebound in how they come out in the second half of the season. But the week ahead of us right now, this is all Green Bay Packers, Aaron Rodgers. It's a steep hill. Going to Lambeau in general, it doesn't matter who their quarterback is or really who's on their team. Lambeau is notoriously a difficult place to play. And this Colts team is notoriously not great on the road, so that doesn't help either.

But as always, I want to give a reminder to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts. It is the only place you can get expert advice on the Indianapolis Colts every single day and sometimes a day or so more. So you guys kind of get lucked out and you get to hear my voice an extra day of the week every now and again. But let's kind of get into it here just a little bit. If we're looking at just flat-out blanket stats, so to speak, the Green Bay offense, as many people have noticed, is not quite themselves yet this year. They're 11th.

Now keep in mind that I'm not so much comparing this to the Colts offense, but this is a bit of a matchup here. You've got, I mean, that's really where at least the Colts are going to have to succeed. They're going to have to out, they're going to have to out-duel the Green Bay Packers offense because of the Colts situation on defense more than anything. So the Colts really need their offense to step up, but they basically have to score more than this Green Bay Packers offense. So that's kind of why we're looking at their offense, at least first anyways. They're 11th in the league in points per game, which is 24. It's not, that's not a bad statistic for them. I mean, 11th in the league at 20, almost 25 points

a game. And a lot of that's coming from their field goal kicker. As you've noticed throughout the season, they've had trouble scoring sometimes, at least putting six on the board, and the Colts really have to find a way for their defense to try to take advantage of that. I mean, it's absolutely necessary in this game. Not to mention, when you look at their overall yardage per game, they're way down. They're all the way down to 20th in the league, just over 340 yards per game. That's a significant dip for them because I think they're closer to 375, 380 typically every year. And they're just not getting the production out of Jordy Nelson, maybe the connection between Jordy and Aaron Rodgers, so to speak.

And they've had to use wide receivers in the backfield. And they've had to use all sorts of different gadget-type setups for how they're running their offense right now. But they do have Aaron Rodgers. So as we know well with seeing the Colts' situation with a lot of different areas. Quarterback covers a lot, and Aaron Rodgers is always capable of covering the ugliest of warts. Yards per play, maybe a little more realistic look at what the offense is doing for them, and their yards per play is way down as well. So, I mean, they're not getting the first, and I think it's probably a first and second down situation with them as well.

But as you'll see, that's not so much hampering their third down success rate. They're at 5.2 yards per play. You know, that could be a bevy of things. Like I said, they've been forced to put wide receivers in the backfield just to have a quality backfield. And they've been able to use them a lot out of the passing game. So Aaron Rodgers has been checking down a little bit more to that position. But they're not suffering in the first downs category because they're still racking up first downs like crazy. Right now they're seventh in the league.

And then when you look at their third down percentage, like I was alluding to earlier, they're very first in the league right now, 52% on third down efficiency, which is insane. I mean, them and the Saints are just phenomenal right now on third down, and it's kind of crazy to think that. The other part, and probably the part that's hurting them the most, is the fact that they're them the most is the fact that they're in the bottom half of the league in turnover ratio with a negative two. This is

something that's kind of a byproduct of fumbles not forcing turnovers so much with their defense which is a good thing for the Colts offense. Hopefully the Colts can kind of right the ship there not giving the ball up like they did this past week a couple times, especially in their own territory. But it's just something that is just kind of an overall look at their offense. They're not real great across the board, but on third downs, they're definitely going to give the Colts some fits for sure. There's just no two ways about it, and that's not something that the Colts are particularly good on defending is third down. Now, on the other side of the coin, their

defense is pretty decent when they're not allowing. You know, the Colts defense typically in years past has been one of those bend-don't-break defenses. Not so much this year. They've been broken quite a bit, but the Green Bay Packers are only giving up 320 yards a game, so that's helping their success a little bit. At least they're not giving up a ton of big plays, and they're not giving up a ton of yardage either. With that, they're giving up 19 first downs a game. They're sixth in the league in third down percentage with 34%, but where they are kind of similar to the Colts in this regard is that they're stinking it up as far as penalties are concerned. They've had 56 this year. Now the Colts are

just awful in this category, but the Packers aren't very good in this area either. So you kind of hope that one will play off of the other and that this won't be a major issue for the Colts, that they won't be the ones giving up the big plays and being stupid, whether it's in a third and short situation like they've been doing it all year and have a false start penalty. I mean, it's not a major penalty. It's a five-yard penalty, but it's crucial on those third down situations, and that's definitely led to their, uh, inability to, to, uh, convert on third down. It's just been a year long thing where they

refused to, uh, not refuse maybe isn't the right word, but they certainly fail to, to be disciplined, uh, in, in a critical situation. And, you know And you just can't have that. That's one of the, not the main issues, I wouldn't say. But just those in poor time and the inordinate amount of penalties that they've had overall is just kicking themselves in the butt because their defense isn't strong enough to give up terrible penalties downfield. Their offense can't do it all, and when their offensive line or running back or wide receiver or even Luck, for that matter, you know, you just can't have all this just continually coming about, putting yourself behind the eight ball

in serious situations. So the situation looks like it could be, you know, the Colts have possibility to keep this close as they've done in most games this season. And, you know, and I think that's the thing that aggravates me so much about this past week is that the Chiefs didn't play well. They weren't a great team Sunday, regardless of what you listen to or hear nationally. It just wasn't a good game either way by either team. They made more plays than the Colts, and that's about it. And the Colts were within striking distance and didn't deserve to be. So if there's any hope in turning the season around, I think that's it, is that the Colts have played some really bad pieces of games, if not a full game at a time,

and they've been in the game each time. What's keeping him in these games? I've yet to kind of really figure that out. But I think it's interesting to note that that's definitely an issue and something that's kind of got me baffled that they've been able to stay in some of these games as bad as they've played at certain times. Let's go through the pro football focus grades real quick. Andrew Luck is standing pat at second, even after a bad week this past week, which, you know, does it surprise me? No, not so much. You know, one bad week doesn't necessarily, you know, drop him that much, especially when he's been playing at such a high level this year. At running back, Frank Gore's 22nd overall with a

69.5. That's an improvement for sure for him. I think it's about a two or three point improvement and he's definitely steadily moving up the rankings because he's efficient and he's quality, not so much for his yards per game or anything like that. T.Y. Hilton at 12th at 82.8 for wide receivers. And Philip Dorsett and Chester Rogers are down at 99th and 101st at 52 and 51.7 respectively. The Colts definitely need some of those guys to step up. Dante Moncrief had a pretty decent week last week, although you could definitely tell he was just coming back as he lacked some effort in a couple spots. Maybe it was just working out the kinks, so to speak. But he definitely needs to pick it up as well.

Jack Doyle for tight ends is 67.9. He's 22nd overall. And Eric Swoop's actually 27th. So he's actually impressing some people where Dwayne Allen is 33rd. Granted, he hasn't played in a couple weeks, but it's nice to see Swoop moving up the charts there. He was a guy who kind of went into his second or third year and is finally getting some action. And he's done a good job. Even the balls that he's missed, he's

put in quality effort to go get them. Just hasn't always been so lucky. And before we continue, I want to tell you guys, if you guys are looking for tickets for any NFL game, especially the Colts games, obviously, if you're traveling to Lambeau, if you're going to come to Lucas Oil Stadium after the bye for a game or wherever you're getting these tickets, you've got to go to SeatGeek. It is the smartest, easiest way to find tickets for football games

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deal on every ticket because SeatGeek price compares for you by searching multiple ticket sites. Prices can vary depending on where you shop but SeatGeek will always find you the lowest available price and SeatGeek wants to help you get the most bang for your buck and that's why every ticket on SeatGeek is given a grade based on value. You can also find out where you're sitting. You can see from your seat where you're going to be sitting and what your view is going to be like. You'll immediately see any underpriced seats and be able to find the best deals that fit your budget. Plus, every ticket you buy on SeatGeek is backed by their 100% guarantee,

so you can shop for tickets on SeatGeek with confidence. Best of all, my listeners get a $20 rebate off their first SeatGeek purchase. To get your $20 rebate, check it out. Download the SeatGeek app. Go to the settings tab and add promo code. Make sure you do this before you do anything as far as searching for tickets because it won't be available after you start searching for tickets. You'll have to go back anyways. So go to the, add the promo code first, enter the promo code LOCOLTS. That's for Locked On Colts, LOCOLTS. SeatGeek will send you $20 after you've made your very first ticket purchase. Download the SeatGeek app and enter the promo code LOCOLTS today. Now, as we get to the left tackles and continue this, Anthony Costanzo's dropped down to 17th. I believe he was in like right around 12th last week. And, you know, he's still at an 80.4. Now, if you want to critique these minute pinpoints

and grades or whatever, that's fine. But, you know, Costanzo's had a couple down weeks over the past several weeks. But, I mean, guys, he has literally been the best offensive lineman the Colts have had for a long time, minus what Muhort's done this year. Can you imagine what the Colts would be like without him? It would be awful, and we'd really have a lot to be complaining about. I mean, if you think that Luck gets hit now, think about how bad it would be without Costanzo. There's only a handful of really, really, really good left tackles in the league.

And he's definitely a guy that we, you know, feel free to critique his play or something like that. But don't mistake the fact that the Colts need him on this line. Joe Wright's at the right tackle. He's at a 42.3. He's all the way down at 66th amongst the league. Not great. Nothing, you know, to write home about, that's for sure. We move over to guards.

Jack Newhort's at 12th at an 83.1. A lot of the other guard play, whether it's been Haig or Good, has been kind of inconsistent over the past several weeks. But Haig is actually sitting at 61st, and Denzel Good is at 67th. Haig's got a 55.2, Good at a 48.7. So who ends up being kind of the stickler on the other side at guard on the opposite side of Ryan Kelly for Muhort and Costanzo? Could still be up in the air, but I think they've got two guys right there

that can definitely play the position, but I still like've got two guys right there that can definitely play the position. But I still like Good at right tackle better than I do him at guard. I think he's been a good piece, and he's still coming along. He's got some room to grow, but I like him. Ryan Kelly is at 77.5 amongst all centers. That's 22nd in the league. Not bad, not bad at all. I mean, considering there's been a ton more centers play since the very first few weeks

in the league, and he's had virtually every snap under center from luck. So he's better than what his numbers say. He makes mistakes too, but he's definitely an anchor to this offensive line. The Colts have some really good pieces in place among the offensive line. Though we have some real issues right now, like I said, the future is bright for some of these guys. Cornerback Darius Butler, still the top-rated Colts corner at a 75.9. We have Rashawn Melvin at 71.8, and Vontae Davis still at 71.5.

They are 62nd and 63rd respectively so next guy is Patrick Robinson and he's all the way down at 86th with a 51.4 there's a lot of guys that the Colts should be on the Colts that should be ranked higher than this and I think that's just because of their expected production they should be better at what they're and I think that's just because of their expected production. They should be better at what they're doing, and they're just not because our secondary's getting eaten up in the passing game, and it just continues to be bad. Another position group that was bad this past Sunday was the safeties. Mike Adams and TJ Green were pretty bad.

Mike didn't rotate back over on that touchdown in the corner, the very first one that folds through, and he's all the way down to 26 now amongst the league at 79.6, and Clayton Gethers is at a 76.1. He's 44th. T.J. Green's way down there, and until he can learn how to cover the deep ball and be able to track, he's just really not worth talking about right now, in my opinion. We get over to the linebackers. Guess who's at first? Jarrell Freeman. Seems that I remember that guy from somewhere, but we're not delving into the past right now.'ll uh pass that off but uh as far as colts linebackers we start at 76 with josh mcnary somehow i have no idea i don't care what number

he is he should not be any higher than anybody um other than you know maybe antonio morrison for the colts he's he's so bad uh josh mcnary's at 76 with a 40.9. DeQuell Jackson is at 40.7, and he's 77th amongst the league. So after that, you get down to the guys who have really not had many snaps. But Edwin Jackson is at a 76.6 for what he has done, and I expect that to climb, and I expect him to get more snaps as he goes. I thought he was quality this past Sunday. He was in a lot of plays. He did really well in the passing game and in the running game, so he's a guy that the Colts are going to see improve, and there's no doubt about it. Now we get to the interior defensive lineman, T.Y. McGill, top-rated Colts defensive lineman in

this area, 74.8. He's 37th among the league. Not great when you look at the raw number of it, but he's definitely been good, and he definitely needs more attempts. He didn't have a real breakout game or anything like that this past week, but he's definitely a guy that they need to stay in there because he's definitely improving. Hassan Ridgway, a guy who doesn't really get a whole lot of pub. I really like Hassan Ridgway. I think he is super duper. I think he is a super piece for the Colts in the future. He's done pretty well as much playing time as he's gotten this season.

But he, I mean, if you're looking straight against the league, he's 91st with 44, not a great grade. But the guy is going to be, I mean, he's a rookie. He's going to be very good. And there's some other rookies in there that were ranked considerably higher than him, as far as draft stock that are really not much higher than him. And plenty of them that were rated ahead of him that are below him. Um, I mean, just guys like Eric Armstead, for example, not the same draft class by any means, but he's 97th. So, I mean, and then you look at some more guys under there, like Jerron Reed for Seattle.

He hasn't had an inordinate amount of snaps or anything, but he's all the way down at 103. And there's just several guys like that. You know, I think he's definitely played pretty well. He's definitely going to be a guy that the Colts need. And we'll expect to see him do some good things in the future, I think, for sure. As we get to the edge defenders for the Colts, surprise, surprise. Guess who the top Colts edge rusher is? Akeem Ayers at a 75.9.

He got a bunch of snaps this past Sunday. He did really well against the run and the pass, and I am really happy that he, he stepped into a role here where this scheme fits his style. And I'm really proud of him. He's done a good job. I like, we've been talking him up. He's a, I mean, granted, he hasn't had the snaps that some of these guys have, but listen to who he's ahead of, uh, Derek Morgan, Andre branch, Shane Moore, or I'm sorry, Shane Ray, uh, Trey Flowers, Dee Ford. Dee Ford is really good. Man, he's good. So I'm really liking the way that he's turned out for the Colts so far this year. I'm really happy that he's gotten

a bunch. Eric Walden's the next at 79th with a 46.9 grade. You know, I thought about something and I'm thinking about looking a little more into it, is what if the Colts didn't actually use him for edge and maybe used him as a pass rush option a little more? Maybe he would succeed better. You know what I mean? He's done pretty good. He's got most sacks on the team.

You know, it's not really close. But, you know, he is the edge guy. But why is he finding success, uh, more than anybody else as far as getting to the passer this year? I'm going to have to look and see if, uh, he's just kind of, you know, if it's a, a virtue of scheme, like if there's a edge rush with him and maybe another guy outside of him and like maybe a wide nine technique or something that's, uh, taking some of the focus off of him and that's why he's getting to him or vice versa or something like that. But I kind of like to look into that and see why he's the one that's getting

the most sacks for the Colts. And if they used him maybe in a different role, how would he succeed? You know, I think it's kind of interesting. But I'm glad to see Ayers and a couple other guys look good. Edwin Jackson got pretty good grade this past weekend. Like I said, he was in mid-70s, and he'll climb and continue to climb. But there's a lot of guys on this team that really need to step up and turn into something great for the Colts. So let's hope that a lot of this stuff can be rectified. Like I said, kind of discuss the matchup for what the Packers are bringing to the table with just strictly statistic-wise.

This Sunday, their home field advantage adds an entire element to it. So that's another part. But the Colts have their hands full this weekend, and I'd really love to see them just play good. Even if they lose, I'd love to see them put a really good game on tape, a really good game before their bye, and kind of maybe just start to, okay, maybe the season is lost, but we have to start focusing on who's playing well, who deserves to stay on this roster. It was nice. I don't want to say nice because this isn't like something you want to clap

your hands about, but as often as we've spoken about Josh Ferguson and why I don't feel like he deserves a roster spot, I'm definitely starting to see people creep up about that on Twitter and start talking about it. It's really just, you know, something to see that it's finally getting noticed that this guy serves no purpose. Fumbled a punt return. Doesn't really add much to the Colts.

He's, you know, not even in depth. And I do remember that I said that Jordan Todman was going to have a huge game this past weekend, and he had no carries and no receptions. So I don't think he got a snap on offense. So I guess we're going to have to put the Jordan Todman train on the back burner maybe. Maybe it'll be this week. You know, it'll be a break.

Sooner or later he's going to do something and everybody's going to be like, well, why wasn't he in the game earlier? Look, he's an option. I think Turbin's a good option. I like Turbin. But Jordan Todman needs a chance to prove that he's the speed guy back there that can open up the defense and prove something because they don't really have anybody else that can do that in the backfield at all. I mean, like I said, Ferguson's got the speed, but nothing else to go with it. Todman's got some power and some speed.

So, I mean, he's returning kicks, so they obviously don't think he's slow and can't get past people. And he's shifting. He does a good job in return as well, in kick return. So, well, folks, that's going to wrap it up for our Wednesday production of Locked on Colts. Remember, always go leave us a nice review and a rating on iTunes or wherever you listen to your podcasts. I appreciate it. Thank you all for

being involved in the conversation. I'd like to have more guests on and some, you know, sort of Twitter questions read on air or something like that. I'm looking into maybe getting some sort of a voicemail to get you guys' voice on here to ask questions and stuff. I can answer those on there. I think that'd be pretty neat. I just want to get you guys involved. You guys are a part of this show as well. You guys make this thing tick. You guys are the engine that makes it go. So everything that you guys can do, be a part of the show as opposed to just listening to the show would be great. So let's keep that in mind. You guys have any suggestions or anything like that, don't hesitate to tweet me at LockedOnColts at M. Dainley underscore NFL. You can catch the page on Facebook for the show

and also LockedOnColtsPod at gmail.com. Also, if you want to advertise on the show, get a hold of me via the email and let's get that ball rolling as well. So thank you, Colts Nation, and I will talk to you all on Thursday right here on Locked on Colts. You are Locked on Colts, your daily podcast on the Indianapolis Colts, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day.