Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - MONITORING: Indianapolis Colts' Tyler Warren, Josh Downs Pop Up On Injury Report

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Indianapolis Colts got Charvarius Ward and Laetu Latu back to practice on Wednesday, but the injury bug has spread itself to the Colts offense. 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. Thank you all for tuning in and making us your first listen of the day. This your daily podcast covering your Indianapolis Colts, part of the locked on podcast network, your team every single day. This episode is brought to you by Mazda.

Starting point is 00:00:40 Like our players, we sweat every single detail because when you make every move count, pulling off the unexpected is only the beginning. Stay tuned later for highlights in this week's moving the game forward. Mazda move and be moved. My name is Zach Hickshaw resident film nerd of horseshoe huddle.com. And I'm joined as always by Jake Arthur, the credentialed, crocks on the ground for round table sports that is his official title over there so make sure you're checking that out in my contract yeah it's in his contract exactly uh we're going to be diving into the colt's latest injury report which is promising in some ways but saddening in other ways we're going to talk about all that here in the first segment then we're going to dive into some

Starting point is 00:01:19 fact or fiction on the colts offense or defense give our opinions on if some aspects of this Colts team are sustainable if they're going to last all year or this might be some of that early season mirage. We're going to give all of our opinions on that. But Jake, let's start with this injury report. You have the list of just the long list of injuries for both teams here on Wednesday. It's week three of the NFL season. Injuries pile up. But some good and bad news for both of these teams going into this game. Yeah, they're starting to come in now, baby. But no, we got some great news to kind of start Wednesday. So Charverius Ward. back at practice he was out all last week as he was returning from a concussion.

Starting point is 00:02:00 Layatu, Latu. Now, how Shane Steichen phrased it when he spoke to us before practice made it seem like Latu wasn't going to practice and that he was just working out. But then we get out there and Latu is practicing. It was pads today. So Latu was out there. Ward was out there. It was a good sign because it wasn't a red non-contact jersey for Ward.

Starting point is 00:02:20 And we've later found out he's now progressed to a full practice already. So a very positive sign for. ward to perhaps clear the concussion protocol this week. And then Latu, we'll see how it goes, limited for him. I'm always very iffy with hamstrings. For me, I almost am of the belief that you need to log a full week of full practices before you go out there and play on a hamstring again. But we'll see.

Starting point is 00:02:44 I mean, everybody's different. Every hamstring injury is kind of different as well. So nonetheless, really good news there. And then it was very sobering when we noticed that Josh Downs and Tyler Warren and we're not practicing on Wednesday. Now, it's not Doom or anything like that. It's only Wednesday. Those guys could be back tomorrow.

Starting point is 00:03:04 They could be back Friday. But the fact that two of your most critical pieces in the passing game are not practicing, obviously gives you a little bit of pause, especially Tyler Warren, who honestly has almost been the engine of the passing game so far. He's been the most dynamic threat out there for certain. And then Josh Downs, only a couple catches.

Starting point is 00:03:25 week one, but he came back and had the type of game we were expecting from him that he would have all throughout the season in week two in that win against the Broncos. So Josh Downs is an ankle. Tyler Warren is a toe. We just found out about those today. We didn't know about those coming out of the game or anything. And then Bernard Reimann popped up as a limited participant with an illness. You know, around Indy, stomach bug going around here. I don't know if that's what he's got going on, but I would not be shocked. I believe he's got a young one at home now. Austin Adjake, who was just brought up to the active roster. He, so he was out of practice last week, but they don't report practice squad injuries. Turns out he had a throat injury, which always seems

Starting point is 00:04:11 just incredibly painful, but he was a full participant. Tyler Goodson has been upgraded to a full participant now with the elbow. He's been limited for two weeks. But today, I noticed him more involved in like just going full speed more than I had been. He does have that big, huge gaudy brace on his elbow that I actually think is a knee brace that JJ Watt kind of made in vogue across the league. But it's certainly good for him to be a full participant. Maybe he can finally get out there this week. And then, of course, Trevor Ace wore a full participant with the concussion.

Starting point is 00:04:44 So very good news for the most part. We'll obviously want to monitor Warren and downs. But what do you think? I mean, obviously some big positives there, but we could fill out a whole segment on Friday about what to do if either of those really prominent players is out. Yeah, it's good news that Charverius Ward looks like he's in line to play this weekend. I think the Colts past coverage will be much improved over last weeks as long as you have Charverius Ward out there because having that top corner makes life easier for everybody else in the secondary. So getting Ward back, hopefully Laotu, but like you said, Jake, you don't want to push hamstring injuries. we'll see where that really goes there because the cult have already been burned once

Starting point is 00:05:27 by pushing a guy out there too early with a hamstring injury. Jalen Jones ended up on IR just last week because he re-injured his. So it's going to be tough with the hamstring. But it looks good over Charvarius Ward. Good to get Tyler Goodson out there for special teams. But, you know, the last thing we want to touch is this offense right now. This offense has been humming in all facets, run game, passing game. Everything is clicking.

Starting point is 00:05:50 And the last thing you need are your two guys that, essentially, I mean, Michael Pittman Jr. as well, but those two have been like core pieces through two weeks with Tyler Warren leading the team in receiving yards. Josh Downs had every third down conversion it felt like last week. The last thing you want is one of those guys, or both those guys, God forbid, being out this week. So it's not terribly concerning as of right now. We don't have much information on it. And if they both log DNPs again tomorrow, then we were probably moving the panic meter up a good bit. But Wednesday, DNPs are not the end of the world. We'll wait and see what the Thursday and then the Friday, obviously, we'll be the big tell, see what those injury reports look like for those two guys. Yeah, so let's hold our breath for now, but let's not pay in it quite yet, because it does bear monitoring, but we should not break out quite yet. And then let's go and flip over to the Titan side of things, guys who were not practicing

Starting point is 00:06:45 today. You got a couple starters on the offensive line, right tackle J.C. Lathen with a hip injury, and guard Kevin Zitler with a bice. Now, Latham was out last week. So if he's still not participating, good money says he may not be out there on Sunday. Zytler is a new one with the biceps. So I believe Zitler is their right guard, Zach, I think. Yeah, strong leads their left guard.

Starting point is 00:07:08 So, yeah. Yeah, so the right side of their line, that's an offensive line that's already given up 11 sacks as well. They're not running the ball that great either. So if the Colts defensive line is looking for a tune-up game, this might be it for them. Also, wide receiver Bryce Oliver is not participating. I've got to imagine that's a special team guy. Legery Snee didn't practice today with the back injury. They're kind of ramping up his involvement, though.

Starting point is 00:07:32 I believe last week was his first action since going on IR last year, or they're getting him along slowly, whatever it is. He played a couple snaps in week one. I think it was only like 10 snaps or something, and then they ramped it up a good bit in week two. So I'm expecting he'll log like a limited tomorrow and then a full on Friday. and then play on Sunday. But either way, it hasn't been great for Sneed so far this year.

Starting point is 00:07:55 He has struggled a lot. So we'll see if maybe that's because he's still dealing with some of those injuries. Yeah, I'm sure he does not want to come back and face Michael Pittman Jr. And then limited participants for them. You got running back Kelle Mollings, who again, I'm sure is probably a special teamer. And then defensive tackle to Vondre Sweat, who that's a formidable force in the middle there next to Jeffrey Simmons. He was out last week. So we'll see him being a limited participant.

Starting point is 00:08:21 Obviously, some progress might be out there against the Colts on Sunday. And then Kevin Winston, a pretty heavy contributor on defense for them at safety. He was limited with a hamstring. So you've got to keep an eye on that. I believe he was out last week. So both sides are a little banged up. Some pretty vital players on both sides that we got to keep an eye on throughout the week. Yeah, the big thing for the Titans is just looking at the trenches

Starting point is 00:08:46 and seeing how that develops throughout the week. If they're down two offensive line starters on already what's been one of the worst offensive lines on football this year, then this Colts pass rush has no excuse to not be productive after having just a dreadful performance against the Denver Broncos, where they logged only five pressures and allowed like, what, six yards of carry in that game, it felt like, then they need to bounce back against a Titans team that might be down backups when the starters aren't even performing well. And then to Vandre Sweat on the other side of the ball, you know, that he is a big, big part of what want to do on run defense. He clogs up the middle, especially against the guy like Tanner Bordellini on the interior who kind of struggles to get guys like that out of the hole.

Starting point is 00:09:26 So if he doesn't play, the Colts run game gets a massive boost. Like you said, I don't think he played this past week in the Rams. They're able to run the ball pretty effectively. So, yeah, these are big ones here in the trenches for the Titans. Both teams dealing with potential big losses going into this weekend. It's only the first injury report, so we don't really know exactly what this means for Sunday, but come tomorrow, we'll have a pretty clear picture, I think. Yeah, Tyler Rowland and I discussed this matchup in the crossover for Thursday that'll come out, but Zach and I will be able to touch way more on the injuries when we have a better look

Starting point is 00:09:59 at this after a couple days on Friday. So, all right, guys, coming up, we're going to start getting into our factor fiction. I'm going to toss some things Zach's way. See if these things are legit, are they fools gold? What's going to be what by the end of the season? and we'll get started with the offense in just a moment. This episode is brought to you by Mazda's moving the game forward. For those who believe it's not just about playing the game, it's about redefining it.

Starting point is 00:10:26 There are moments that do more than put points on the board. They move crowds, move culture, and keep moving the game forward. This week's moment that moved the game forward is, drum roll please, Zach. It could only be one option for the Colts. Obviously, they're game-winning field goal against the Denver Broncos. So they get the ball with just over three minutes left. They get down to they get down to the 40-yard line. And then, of course, there's the missed 60-yard kick.

Starting point is 00:10:55 We're not going to debate the play calling at the moment. Leverage penalty gives them new life. Move up 15-yard Spencer Schrader. You are the man. He sends the Colts home with a victory. And you know what? That is exactly what we're talking about here with Mazda. When you follow what moves you, the unexpected is only the beginning.

Starting point is 00:11:14 And just like there's more to every highlight, there's more to a Mazda vehicle. Mazda, move and be moved. And you guys know this NFL season is back. It's obviously bringing a lot of intrigue. And there is really nothing better than being in the stadium surrounded by fans, cheering on your team. I mean, I was in the stadium at Lucas Oil, you know, on Sunday. I wasn't in there. We can't hear things bull-bore when we're in the press box.

Starting point is 00:11:40 I absolutely know the atmosphere in there was electric. But let's be honest, the whole process of getting tickets can be a hassle. Between waiting in queues, the login screens, and the prices jumping at checkout, it's just frustrating. But that's why I use GameTime, the app that gives the advantage back to fans. Game time is fast, easy, and it's backed by the game time guarantee. You'll always get 100% authentic tickets delivered on time and at the best price. Plus, all the fees are included. So the price to see is the price you pay at the end.

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Starting point is 00:12:32 We'll get the best seats for you and you save big bucks. Honestly, it's faster, cheaper, and it's less stressful than any other way that I bought. tickets. So download the GameTime app, create an account, and use code locked on NFL for 20 bucks off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again, that's promo code, L-O-C-K-E-D-O-N-N-FL-N-FL-N-FL-N-FL-E-L-N-FL-E-L-N-FL-E-L-FICTION here. Welcome, back every day. There's welcome Matt Colts fans. Now we're going into our little game show mode. We're going fact or fiction here. We're going to start with the offensive side of the ball. I'm going to get, I'm going to go in increasing recklessness here, Zach. Okay, so I'll throw

Starting point is 00:13:14 the big ones at the end. So let's just start here. You know, the Colts right now of the number two offense in the league. They have scored 33 points and then 29 points. They have gone over 400 yards of offense in both games, almost went 500 against one of the best defenses in the league last week against the Broncos. I think only allowed one sack to a team that led the league in sacks last year. It's like the offense is legit. It's not just the passing game. It's not just the run game. It's not just the offensive line. It's everything is clicking right now. So factor fiction, the Colts have a legitimate top 10 offense, you know, throughout the season. By the time this thing is said and done, the Colts do have a top 10 offense. As long as they avoid major

Starting point is 00:13:57 injuries on that side of the ball, then yeah, you know what, I'm going to buy it. And I'll use this opportunity to put out my formal apology today. jones because some people have complained that i haven't put out a formal apology i think you and i were both wait like we're not waiting for the other shoe to drop but like we're waiting beyond week to do it yeah but like i will say regardless of what it is just giving the first two weeks that we got out of him i'm i've clearly been wrong on daniel jones so this is my formal apology here he's been much better than i ever could have anticipated and you guys could tell yesterday when i had ben boris on how much we were just raving about how well he's played in this offense and i think when you have

Starting point is 00:14:36 a quarterback who has the command and the pre-snap awareness that he's playing with right now plus all the weapons the Colts have plus an offensive line that is playing really well and meshing really well together and a top two top three running back in football heck Jake's early prediction the hot take from the offseason I got on him a lot about leading the league in rushing I am killing it with my bold takes so far you're killing it right now yeah Daniel Jones looks like he might be the the comeback player the year too like Jake is killing it with his full predictions And yeah, like, I believe in this offense to the degree where they can be a top 10 offense this season by the end of the year as long as they avoid the major injury. Like it definitely changes if a Ryman goes down or, I mean, Tyler Warren's dealing with an injury right now.

Starting point is 00:15:20 That could change a lot of things here. But I think as long as they avoid the major injuries and this offense stays relatively healthy, I just don't know how you really stop it. Like the one question I have left for them is how do they perform against a defense that, rushes for effectively or like relatively effectively and drops into a seven man zone and dares jones and do more checkdown stuff and and just get the ball out quick can these playmakers make plays just in the short plane and and after the catch and can the offense still be productive that way because we've seen them beat man coverage we've seen them beat bad defense like the dolphins and we've seen them beat the blitz a lot these first two weeks that's the last question i have to

Starting point is 00:15:59 have answered and i think their easy answer is just let's just run jonathan taylor in those games so I think this offense is a well-oiled machine. I think they have a quarterback that's operating it the way that Shane Seichen wants. And I think they have a ton of talent across the board from O-line to running back to past catchers. I mean, they can rotate four to five receivers at ease. And these guys are all making plays.

Starting point is 00:16:20 Their tight end room is clearly defined with a legit star on top. Like, I think this is a very, very good offense. And, you know, if you told me, like, buy or sell top five or top three, then I probably would have said sell. but since you're telling me factor fiction on top 10 yeah I think this can be a top 10 offense

Starting point is 00:16:38 I think we're looking at like that 8 to 12 range by the end of the season once regression hits in a little bit I still think they're going to be in that 8 to 12 range by the end of the year completely agree I think at some point like they're not going to be getting 450 yards of offense a game essentially but I do think they're going to maintain being a top in offense throughout throughout the year and I'll lump scoring this was on yardage but like a lump scoring in there too. Like I think they'll be able to score points and produce yards most

Starting point is 00:17:06 weeks. It's just they're like you said, there aren't really many questions left. The offensive line is done really well. Like Daniel Jones, I don't care if he is producing as a system quarterback. He is excelling in that role. Like who cares? Like it's resulting in a great offense. The passing weapons have been great. So what do you look at is the weak point of this offense right now? You have to pick your poison if you're a defense. So they have options every single week to be able to attack it even so i totally agree uh my next one tyler warren is going to he's going to be the engine of the passing game and be essentially the number one passing target throughout the year that doesn't necessarily mean that he's going to lead them and target so to speak

Starting point is 00:17:49 like a josh downs likely will it means like when then a play needs to be made it's tyler warren like the guy who's going to be the biggest playmaker week in week out like the guy who's the clear alpha dog of the passing game that we're going to see that it's Tyler Warren throughout the entire year, even as a rookie. I'm going to say fiction on that because I think the beauty of this Colts offense is like every one of these guys is vital to the operation. This is why I think on offense, they just got to stay healthy this year because every player serves such a specific role that it's hard to replace that specific role.

Starting point is 00:18:25 I think Tyler Warren is the most unique element to it and the hardest to replace when it comes to this offense. So in a sense, that's the fact of what you're saying here, Jake, but I think the fiction is that it just depends on the situation on who the biggest playmaker is. Third and six, my biggest playmaker is Josh Downs. First and 10 after a turnover, my biggest playmaker is Alec Pierce. I'm going deep on that. If I know that I'm getting man coverage, my biggest playmaker is A.D. Mitchell, throwing it over the middle, Michael Pittman, Jr. And then all my goofy stuff to get my big play is Tyler Warren. And then, you know, and then Jonathan Taylor on a down to down basis. So I think, you know, the beauty of this

Starting point is 00:19:00 offenses, everybody is just so essential to the process of it all that I can't really say Tyler Warren is going to be like the number one guy because I think it's like one A, one B, one C, one D, one E, one F. And I think that's how it's going to be this whole season. I guess if I had to pick one person though, I think it's Jonathan Taylor is the most important, especially with his just resurgence now in the past game as a past protector and a past catcher. So I think Taylor is just the number one overall piece of the offense, besides the quarterback, obviously. And then Warren is up there with, yeah, all these past catchers as being just the most important player in that offense. I like it.

Starting point is 00:19:40 You know, it feels like for a couple years now they've talked about the receiver room and the pass catchers as a whole, comparing them to a basketball team, like a starting five. And the way you described it just perfectly nails that. Like Zyri Franklin even used that analogy today. talking about the team in general is like a basketball team where everyone has such a specific role that they're trying to be elite at and you know different guys fit into that to form one one cohesive thing you know zyri compared them to the pacer's and how they were able to really succeed in that uh doing that accomplishing that we're going to run this segment long because i'm not bypassing this one for you zach so factor fiction at this rate daniel jones gets a new contract from the colts by the end of the year or like i mean When it comes time. Yeah, I mean, look, if they keep up this pace, they're going to be a playoff team, for sure. And we'll end up keeping Stuyken and Ballard. Again, it's only week two, so we can't really predict everything that's going to happen this year.

Starting point is 00:20:36 Again, injuries can happen and regression can happen. But as of right now, everything is looking great. The hype is great. The team is riding high. Stuyken and Ballard look really good from a lot of their offseason stuff. So the way it's looking currently, and even with my projection of some regression, I think, of course, you give Daniel Jones a new. contract like i'm not stubborn enough to say like oh no because of my preseason opinion we can't reward

Starting point is 00:21:01 good play i look if he gets you to the playoffs and he's the comeback player the year and and he's really just showing this mastery of the offense all season long of course you extend him now you probably want to protect yourself a little bit and give like a three year extension if you can with an out after two years just because he's had the injury history and you don't want to put all your eggs in that basket but um yeah reward the guy with with you know the 30 plus 40 plus million dollar contract per year if he plays all year like this i absolutely pay him i'm with you i uh so we we've talked about like even with him not before the season when we weren't super confident that it was possible for them to get to the playoffs but that even so you were probably

Starting point is 00:21:42 still looking to replace him at the end of the year not like this like he again i i i said he was a system quarterback in here with Shane stuyken but if that system is working at like such a high rate you keep that ball rolling you bring him back again i don't just like you're saying i wouldn't throw four or five years at him but i'd lock him up for two three years like i i think when a guy is being such a difference maker like this and has proven to be so important and critical to the movement of the offense because now at this rate picture if it's been anthony in there and you're riding with the peaks and valleys in the roller coaster of anthony it wouldn't quite look like this no like there would be some high points but there there would be some

Starting point is 00:22:29 low points that daniel just hasn't had yet so i i agree i think at this rate if they keep if they keep it up looking like this really high level team let's say they win the afc south not only just make the playoffs but win the afc south i think you got to give him a new deal yeah i mean look jared golf with the detroit lions is a system quarterback you still pay him because he's a huge part of that system exactly like if we want to say system quarterback for jones he's not like he's a bad quarterback like he is a huge he's the most important piece of the system working because he's the distributor right rock yeah like whatever you want to call it like if he's in that tier of guys he's performing at a high level so yeah if he keeps this up and it doesn't even need to be at this same

Starting point is 00:23:08 level there can be a regression of this because i'm not of the mind that he's going to finish this year with 4,500 yards and 30 touchdowns you know and no picks like obviously there's going to be some fall off in some regard but yeah i think if it keeps this up and it leads you to the playoffs especially if you get you to the playoffs reward them for sure every player should be rewarded if they deserve it yeah no this looks much better than i anticipated it would even you know they're winning and it looks a lot better than i thought winning would look for them so yeah let's uh let's lock our opinions in there again opinions are fluid as new information comes about so bear with us like don't don't hold our feet to the fire on this come november december if things go south but yeah coming up we're

Starting point is 00:23:51 going to look at the defensive side of the ball, which has not been as high-powered as the offense, but we've seen, I don't want to say two extremes so far, but they were absolutely elite in week one. And we saw some of the things that they could, you know, some opportunities for growth, let's say, in week two. The NFL season is here and Fandle is making sure you're ready for kickoff with a can't-miss offer. 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. I personally love using Fanduel

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Starting point is 00:25:07 We are talking fact or fiction. We just talked offense. Now it's flipped to the defense. Now that since both the offensive defense are ranking so high right now, we're going to have a comparable start here with the defense. So the Colts currently ranked number five in defense. defense right now by the end of the year you know that we've seen the coaching can be really strong and we've seen the players executed at a really high level the game plan at least in week

Starting point is 00:25:32 one let's say by the end of the year are the Colts of top 10 defense so the way that you have it to have them at number five is yards allowed per game right I think they could be top five in yards allowed per game but like overall I don't think they're going to be a top 10 defense so I'll say fiction just in the overall course of it I think EPA per play that they're like 14th right now. DVOA, I think they just fell outside the top 10 as well. And I think we'll see some ebbs and flows where they probably settle in in that middle of the pack by the end of the season.

Starting point is 00:26:03 Now, again, the yards allowed per game. I think they still could be top 10 by the year, especially if the Colts offense keeps controlling the football the way they have through these first two weeks because you're just not going to be on the field very often to give up yards. But I think just in terms of like all the advanced metrics we look at, again, like DVOA, EPA per play, success. rate. I just think they're going to settle in around middle of the pack. I don't think they have

Starting point is 00:26:25 enough on the defensive line to really be a top 10 unit by the end of the year. But I believe in the secondary, as long as all four of Ward, Cross, Bynum, and Kenny are healthy for most of the season. It's going to be hard to throw on this team, I think most weeks, because those guys are just so formidable on the back end. So yeah, I think they'll settle in around middle of the pack. So I'll say fiction on this first one here. I'm with you. Pretty much for all. the same reasons. Like I do have concerns about the run defense. I have concerns about the pass rush, but I really like that secondary. I think, you know, there's a reason Louana Rumo and Jerome Henderson and them have really leaned into investing in that secondary. And it's looked

Starting point is 00:27:05 good. But you've also got a lot of older guys who there's going to be some injuries there as well. So all those things considered, like I think they're going to have their elite weeks like we saw at week one. They'll have probably a handful of those. But in general, there's going to be some games like Denver as well where maybe they win but it's because the defense stepped up at the end when they needed to and there's going to be some bumps in the road. So yeah, I would imagine they settle somewhere in the middle, you know, around 15, 16 or so probably not top 10, but good enough to win with. The pass rush is the Colts Achilles heel of the entire team, factor fiction. They're rushed with four or just the pass rush in general?

Starting point is 00:27:45 Pass route. I mean, because a coach would love to be able to get home with four. You don't want to have to manufacture a ton of pressure. I mean, he's lose going to anyways, but you're just your natural pass rush with your front four, that's their Achilles heel. I think by the end of the year, it won't feel like the Achilles heel, but like when we watch the games, it will be.

Starting point is 00:28:07 Like, I don't know. Like, I think rushing with four will be their Achilles heel this season because I just don't know if the edge room is going to be good enough, especially when now that you factor in that what we've been saying about Layatou Lachu with the handstring, those things linger, man.

Starting point is 00:28:19 they linger for a long time. And he was kind of the one saving grace of the edge room. Quitty Pays, just not a very effective rusher. JT2Malo is not ready yet. Ebukom is just not going to get back to what we wanted. Like, again, we talked about this all offseason. Ebukom's not going to get there. And he had his big moment to start on this past weekend.

Starting point is 00:28:39 It just wasn't good at all. I think he didn't even, I don't even think he was one of the five pressures that the Colts had in this past game. And he got most of snaps there in the edge room. So, yeah, I don't think that they're going to. going to be able to win effectively rushing with four but i think when you look at the division they're in they get six games against quarterbacks you take a lot of sacks in terms of ward in terms of stroud with that offensive line and then trevor lawrence as well i think they're going to they're going to just rack up the sacks in these divisional games and i think there's going to be a good

Starting point is 00:29:06 mix of sims pressures and blitzes that that get the sack numbers more middle of the road but i think just in terms of getting constant pressure with four i do agree that this might be their Achilles Hill this year because, I mean, it looked ugly this past weekend without Laotu Latu, and I know the Broncos have a really good offensive line, but I don't know if a lot to coming back from an injury that is probably going to be there all year is going to magically fix this pass rush. Yeah, I would say, like, I don't think it's going to ruin the season, but I do think it's arguably their biggest issue is not being able to generate much with just their four-man rush. I mean, it was five pressures last week, but it was also only five hurries.

Starting point is 00:29:49 They weren't hits. They weren't sacks. It was five hurries. Well, there was one hit, the one hit laid out of bounds that got them 15 yards against them. And I will say, the J.K. Dobbins thing where Dobbins thought someone jumped off. That should have been a sack. Oh, 100% was a sack. He didn't touch the ball.

Starting point is 00:30:06 Yeah. If a running back touches the ball, even on play action, that's when it gets ruled a run for the quarterback and not a sack. Dobbins, I don't think, touched it. So it should have been a sack for buck. I digress. But yeah, I, we are seeing that it's solely reliant on Laiatu, Latu. And again, I'm not disappointed in his production, but he has the hamstring right now. And in week one, he didn't show you that, like, elite pass rush yet.

Starting point is 00:30:31 I'm not going to say it's not coming this year, but, like, we don't have enough data to suggest that it's, it's a foregone conclusion. JT2 and Maloa was a healthy scratch of week one, got like five snaps a week two. outside of those guys you don't really have someone who bends the edge really you got power rushers to him allow can get around an edge a little bit but he can't really sniff the field yet so I don't know what to expect from this again there is creative ways to get pressure and they will lean on that but if there's an Achilles heel with this team outside of like the run defense I would say it's the four man rush here's my crazy hot take get more out of Tommy wall on the field he had four rush snaps this past week, had one

Starting point is 00:31:14 quarterback pressure in those four rush snaps. And here's one that you might like, Jake, because you liked them before the year. Get some Chad Mooma out there for some blitz concepts. Like, he can't cover, he couldn't cover me in the open field. I don't know that, yeah. I think I'm I would just

Starting point is 00:31:30 really prefer it to be Dyer Franklin and Joe Batchie is the linebackers that represent the defense. I'm saying just do what you did last year when never steward got on the field. It's like, hey, we can't put this guy in coverage. Just run with your head down right at an offensive lineman and generate some disruption back there because we just need some disruption right now in the pocket. I do agree though.

Starting point is 00:31:50 Muma should not be covering anybody. I'm with you on that. And honestly, we saw this past weekend that McGrone shouldn't be out there either on defense. So yeah, like if you're going to do anything else, maybe get some Muma, some rush snaps because he might not be able to cover. But like he is a downhill like Grant Stewart type guy. You might be able to get a little bit of that pop into some offensive linemen and get some disruption that way. Yeah, there might be some packages where there's good use for them. But yeah, so far I am unimpressed by anyone not names Ira Franklin or Joe Bajie at linebacker. I got one more for you. Now, we know how Lou has his strong relationships and he has a hard reliance on his veterans. But 32-year-old Xavier and Howard

Starting point is 00:32:35 will not be a starting cornerback for the Colts by the end of the year. Yeah, I'm going to say fact on that. That he's not going to be a starter by the end of the year. Correct. Like he'll be replaced as a starter. Okay. You changed it from the outline. So I got to make sure I get it. You said we'll be starting in the outline. Well, that's fact or fiction. I'm going to say he's not going to be the starter by the end of the season. He might still have a role in this defense. But I think the one thing that kind of got me in a little bit was in week one, we saw a lot of Mackay Blackman in there for Howard. And then they didn't even like give anybody else snaps besides Blackman

Starting point is 00:33:06 this past week when Ward was out. I think they're going to slowly work Blackman. into being like that number two guy, especially by the end of the season. And Louana Rimo has spoken very high on Blackman every time he speaks about him. So part of me just thinks that they might want to just slowly get Blackman into that role. I don't think Howard's going to get phased out completely, but it might be like a two series on, one series off type thing like it was in week one, but the other way, I think Blackman might overtake just the more snaps there on the outside. But yeah, I think it's down to one of those two guys.

Starting point is 00:33:36 And I think just the way I've seen Lou talk about Blackman in a lot of ways, and Blackman honestly wasn't too bad this past week. I think he might be that guy that they're trying to get ready to be the other outside corner. Yeah, I still think there's stuff you could do with Howard. Like you could set him back as being almost like a spy in the secondary in certain looks. I wouldn't have been super opposed to see Jonathan Edwards get a little run, you know, on Sunday. I don't know what it's going to take for a rookie UDFA to unseat a guy that Lou has a strong relationship with. but I mean in the name of accountability that like accountability is one been one of the biggest things people said about lose since he got here that he is hard on everybody no matter who you are and it's it's one thing if Howard gives up the occasional touchdown or something or if he gets picked on by team but if the penalties are coming with it like that shines such a spotlight on the fact that it's like this is not working now I'm not going to I'm not saying that like it can't work.

Starting point is 00:34:37 this year it doesn't look great but like if it keeps rolling down this path then i think it's going to force their hand to have to make a move yeah no it's uh it can't it can't continue the way it was this past week i mean that was just not good enough there yeah i got you no it wasn't and i mean at the end of the day like they have preached accountability and they want to get the right guys in there i know some of these guys are young but macaille blackman is a guy that they traded for i mean a six round pick nonetheless but he's at least getting some playing time uh so i i mean that that's a realistic avenue for me i don't think it's going to take them all the convincing in the world that a 32 year old who hasn't played since 2023 maybe isn't it you know what i mean i think

Starting point is 00:35:23 it's a nice project they want to try and they hope it works but i don't think they're going to have to peel that out of lose cold dead figures you know yeah no i agree i think the we could certainly see a move coming there before the end of the season. But yeah, guys, that's all we have today. We're running a little bit late on this show, so we're going to wrap it up here. We want to thank you guys for making Lockdown Coach your first listen today and every day. The NFL season

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