Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Philip Rivers silences critics in 31-27 comeback victory over Bengals

Episode Date: October 20, 2020

On today's episode, Evan is joined by Anthony Smith of Coast To Scouting to discuss the Colts' 31-27 win over the Bengals. After trailing 21-0, Indy went on a 31-6 run to close this one out. What were the key ingredients to pulling it off? First, Philip Rivers played like a star quarterback. Especially in the second quarter when Indy scored 21 points, he was absolutely on fire.Outside of Rivers, what else was working? Julian Blackmon looks like a blossoming star safety, while DeForest Buckner continues to wreck havoc. How will this defense look once Darius Leonard and Kemoko Turay return after the bye week?Closing out the show, what's the assessment of the 2020 Colts through six weeks? Sitting at 4-2, this November stretch will prove whether Indy is a contender or pretender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello everybody, welcome back into your latest episode of Locked on Colts, part of the Locked on Podcast Network. Today's audience is Evan Setter, joined by Anthony Smith of Coast to Coast Scouting. As we're here to talk through the Colts' miraculous comeback victory over the lowly Bengals. We talked through it all last week as well, Anthony. We thought this game might be a similar outcome to what we might have expected from the Jets game.

But anything but that to start this game off there, the Colts actually trailed 21-0 at the beginning of the second quarter after the Bengals scored on another touchdown drive to open up this game. What was your immediate assessment, Anthony, when the Colts were trailing 21-0 to start the second quarter? I mean, from my point of view, I just thought this might be one, if not the worst loss of the Frank Wright era, if not the worst, it's one of them. And somehow, some way to fall back into this one.

But what was your thoughts when they were – that horrible, just like first 20 minutes of that game, what was your thoughts going through that? Yeah, yeah. It was obviously really, really discouraging to start the game. I mean, they had that nice screen pass to start with Jonathan Taylor. And then as soon as Doyle fumbled, you kind of got the feeling that, you know, this is going to be one of those games. That's a little bit ugly, a little bit sloppy.

So definitely don't, you know, want to get down 21-0, especially at home against, you know, a rookie quarterback and a team that only has one win. So a little bit disappointing to start, but I mean, they closed strong and got the W, so that's what matters. Yeah, absolutely. That 31-6 win they closed out the game with being the Bengals 31-27 and a win where Phillip Rivers really proved a lot of doubters wrong.

And I know many on our show have talked about this. I've been talking about this, how Rivers really hasn't proven so far that he can win a game with his arm just yet. We saw in Jacksonville he tried to do that. But those two key terms he had in week one cost him that game as well. Cleveland, the same thing, where nine points went directly from Rivers' turnovers there. But in this one, Anthony, they put the ball in Rivers' hands.

Frank Reich said it's time for you to go win us this game down 21. And he absolutely did that. 371 yards passing, three touchdowns. Absolutely magnificent in the second quarter there. I think he had 232 yards passing and three touchdowns in the second quarter alone there. What was your assessment of really the first true break I can filter so far? Yeah, this was a fun one to watch.

I mean, I think, you know, the old rivers is not done, you know, that's the at I am. It's clear that the arm strength, you know, isn't, you know, in the top tier, maybe in the top couple tiers of passers. But, I mean, still has enough, you know, to get the job done, some really nice passes. And I think this showed, you know, that the team should really be looking to throw in order to run, not run in order to throw. I mean, I don't know if I love the 44 attempt from Rivers, maybe

40 or a little would be great. But when they're seeming to throw in and opening up that offense, we've seen what Rivers can do, you know, when when he's given some time, and obviously, the offense was keeping him up, right. So it was really impressive from Rivers to see good to see, you know, him silence the naysayers a little bit after a pretty poor game. Yeah, it really was a rough few weeks for Phillip Rivers, but he definitely went and had a massive bounce back game for the bye week, where it was very much necessary. We heard actually talks from fans about whether they should bench Phillip Rivers or not.

It's been just a rough couple weeks there, but I think Rivers definitely silenced those critics and put together arguably his best game of the year so far as the Colts quarterback. But let's hit on, as well, another key to this offense so far, one that came out of nowhere, really, and he's consistently made a couple big plays here and there all the last couple weeks, Anthony. And he actually finally got a 53-man

roster spot, earning that role. And Phillip, who's trust, I believe, he probably really levied for him to be promoted to the 53-man roster. That's Marcus Johnson, who had another great game yesterday. Led the team in targets with eight targets. He had five receptions for 108 yards because he had a 55-yard bomb that almost got a touchdown in the early part of that game

to kick off that momentum for the Colts' offense, and they're down 21-0. What can you say about Marcus Johnson? Is he the 2020 version of Zach Paschal now? Will we call Paschal this past year, Anthony, really break out in this game? Yeah, can't say enough about Marcus Johnson and the role that he's played seems like in every single game i mean he has a play that goes for 25 30 yards minimum i mean just his speed his route running he has really sure hands um and in his ability to stretch

the ball deep i remember he had i believe it was against tampa bay last year he had another similar really really deep pass from Dobie. And kind of a similar thing we saw in that long bomb from Rivers. Just, you know, he's fast enough to beat some of these guys, you know, on the outside. And I think he's a guy that we'll see with the injuries especially. But even without injuries, you know, we might be getting Michael Pittman Jr. back soon. He's a guy that should factor into this offense with his reliability, and I think Rivers trusts him. Let's hit on another guy, and unfortunately for those out there, we saw number 12

in the field for the Colts, but it was DeMichael Harris instead of, of course, Andrew Lucknow, the former Colts quarterback. But I have to say, Anthony, getting promoted from the practice squad this week and seeing the way he kind of played that Paris Campbell role, I think DeMichael Harris might be the best bet to be the Paris Campbell White of this Colts team if Campbell is signed for the rest of the year. What do you think about DeMichael Harris and his debut where he had three receptions for 29 yards, caught all of his targets, really seemed like he was a very valuable piece as far as really reliable as well.

Yeah, he, you know, of course, first things first, it's obviously weird to see a wide receiver wearing number 12 or anybody wearing number 12, you know. So that was weird to see for sure. I mean, he's a great athlete. You could see it from, you know, his first or second touch. He almost broke one real quick for a touchdown, just barely got caught from behind before he broke through the hole. And, I mean, it's great to have fast athletes on the field. When you see guys like Mo'Ali Cox and Doyle doing some things over the middle, having a guy like DeMichael Harris that's so fast

and you can see that game-breaking speed, he seems like a guy that if you manufacture a couple touches per game, he should be able to break one for a big play every now and then. What do you think about Trey Burton's usage to the front of his offense, Anthony? Since he came back against the Browns, he was very heavily fed in that game. I think he had five receptions on six targets. This game against the Bengals,

he has four for 58 and a touchdown on five targets. He also had that wildcat run in from the one-yard line for a touchdown. It seems apparent at this point. We heard about all throughout the preseason, throughout that time for the season started, that the staff loves Trey Burton and Phil Burrus really loves Trey Burton too. And it's kind of really showing itself the last couple weeks with him back now

where he really is a focal point of this tight end room. Yeah, I think we're seeing why Frank Reich was so excited to have him on board. I mean, we're seeing kind of the plan, I think, that Reich and Sirian and when they signed him and that's, you know, some manufactured play some creative plays love the wildcat play, you know, in the goal line on package. It's a guy that, you know, similar to Eric Ebron, you know, the last couple years is a dynamic athlete, a bit of a mismatch at tight end. So as long as he stays healthy, you know, he was a backer, of course, with Mo Alley-Cox out.

If he can stay healthy and stay on the field, I think he should be a factor for sure for the rest of the season. Last thing on the offense here, Anthony, before we go on to the defense, how worried are you about this rushing attack? Another poor game. I know they were down 21-0, so they really had to abandon the run a little bit to get back in this game and fill up his arm. But I'm getting a little bit worried about this offensive line, the run blocking

so far this year because Jonathan Taylor is getting the runs when he can. For some reason, his offensive line has regressed this year as far as being in that category of being an elite rushing attack. Yeah, there's things as far as the rushing tech that is a little concerning. Like you mentioned,

the offensive line, they're not quite dominating like they were. It seems like the best plays are, you know, when you get the guards out in space, when you have Quentin Nelson, you know, pulling and demolishing guys out in open space. But in between the tackles, it hasn't been as great, you know, as we like to see.

But I think it's important to remember, of course, that Marlon Mack, you know, is out for the season. And he's a guy that, you know, understands, you know, as we like to see, but I think it's important to remember, of course, that Marlon Mack, you know, is out for the season, and he's a guy that, you know, understands, you know, run fits and how to, you know, break down the defense a little bit better than a guy like Jonathan Taylor does in his rookie season, so it's definitely been a little bit concerning. I think they need to, Frank Reich and the offensive staff needs to work on their versatility and their creativity a little bit. Feels like, you know, whenever Jonathan Taylor's in the game,

you know, he's going to run, you know, on third down, he might be catching the ball. So I liked those passes that they had with, with the running backs. I think that's going to help in the long term.

They get them involved there a little bit more, but I think we should be seeing some big plays coming down the puck sooner or later, but definitely a little bit of a concern. But as long as this passing stays as impressive as it was, I think the game should improve. Let's tell them this defense, Nathan. Before we get into the overall individual assessments of some guys in this defense, a rough start again in the first half for this Colts defense, allowing 21 points in the first 16 minutes of this game.

Really buckled down after that point, only landing six the rest of the way, though. What was your overall opinion of how this Colts defense played on Sunday against Joe Burrow and the Bengals? It can be awkward or embarrassing to talk about erectile dysfunction. Usually we brush it off or blame ourselves. But Roman is here to give you the advice you want and the help you need with no shame. With Roman, you can get a free online evaluation of ongoing care for ED all from the comfort and privacy of your own home. brush it off or blame ourselves. But Roman is here to give you the advice you want and the help you need with no shame. With Roman, you can get a free online evaluation of ongoing care for ED all from the comfort and privacy of your own home.

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and a free online visit and free two-day shipping. That's GetRoman.com slash LockedOn for the $50 off your first month of ED treatment. GetRoman.com slash locked on. Yeah, it was, I mean, again, a tale of two halves. I mean, that first half when they're down so big, you see that Joe Burrow is just absolutely shredding that zone defense. And I feel like we've seen that, you know, ever since Matt Eberfluss took over this defense coordinator position is when you have quarterbacks, you know, they're really talented, really accurate and can get

the ball out quick. They do tend to eat up the defense a little bit in that zone coverage. I'd love to see more blitzes though. I mean, Joe Burrow had been hit a ton coming into this game. And even though, you know, guys like Justin Houston and DeForest Buckner, of course, can get pressure. I would love to see some more blitzing, a little bit more creativity on the defensive side, as far as getting to the quarterback. Julian Blackman, our guy, Anthony, he closed this game out for the Colts on Sunday, getting that interception when the Bengals were

driving on the field. If the Bengals got a touchdown there, of course, they would have beat this Colts team and really sent them maybe into a tailspin at three and three under their bye week. But Julian Blackman, the playmaker, closes the deal there with his interception, jumps in front of the route, and closes that game out. What can you say about Julian Blackman at this point, Anthony? If it's him making an interception, making a pass deflection,

or making an elite tackle in space all by himself, this guy looks like the real deal in PFF. I think it has him as the number one safety in the NFL right now, top 10 greatest safety in the NFL as well. I think Chrisris bauer we hit on this a couple weeks ago as well too anthony when he really had that break out he went to bears that i think you might have a star safety on our answer in indianapolis yeah julian blackman is absolutely fantastic he's looking like a home run pick um and this is something i tweeted out uh on sund is that, you know, this safety duo really of Blackman and Kari Wills is fantastic. You know, you lose Clayton Gethers and then, of course, Malik Hooker.

Excellent, really talented safety goes down with injury. It feels like this secondary group is still belling. You know, they're still making plays, you know, great tackles in the open field. And it's impressive what Julian Blackman is doing for such a young guy coming off injury, you know, no training camp and all of that, to see how quickly he's picked up, you know, this defense and his reads and things.

He seems like a guy that's going to be a factor and really be a captain for that defense, along with, you know, some of the other really talented players there. How fun is it to watch Julian Blackman play football? I know it's just like a simple question there, but I feel like already he's becoming one of the biggest fan favorites already through five career games so far on the defensive

side. Of course, you have Darius Leonard, Kenny Moore out there, DeForest Buckner via trade, you just acquired him. I think Julian Blackman already through five games is proven to be maybe a really cornerstone piece of this defense with guys like Leonard, Moore, Buckner, Okereke. Maybe you can add Julian Blackman to that list now. Yeah, absolutely.

He's so fun to watch. I mean, he just – he plays the right way, honestly. He doesn't make, you know, boneheaded plays. He's a great, excellent tackler on the field, you know, very, very similar to Kenny Moore, which you love to see when some of these guys get out in the openings, this defense. And so he, I have it, you know, he's still learning this, this game and,

you know, acclimating to the pros. And so to see that he's playing so well, you know, under all of these circumstances, it's absolutely excellent to see. And I think he's only going to continue to improve. He seemed like potentially even the best pick in the draft for the Colts. Let's go to DeForest Buckner, who now every single weekend I think is making an impact one way or another. He had four quarterback hits against Joe Burrow yesterday.

He chipped in as well a couple of impressive tackles in space. I think Giovanni Bernard on that screen pass, he really ran him down. It shows the freak athlete he is at 6'7", 300-plus pounds. For a guy like Defoe now, I mean, I just looked at his stats compared to Aaron Donald so far throughout the year. Defoe and Aaron Donald have the exact same amount of quarterback hits so far. That really shows the impact he's making outside of San Francisco. I mean, you question if Buckner could be that true guy without Bosa next to him,

Armstead, and the rest of those guys in San Francisco. But Buckner's proven Chris Bauer right so far, Anthony. This guy is a true superstar in the middle of that defense. Absolutely. Well worth the 13th pick overall. I mean, you can see he just toys with these offensive linemen, you know, almost on every single play. It looks like, you know, he's absolutely demolishing guys with his blend of speed and power. It's incredible to see. And he's really really changed you know this this defensive line we're seeing impacts all over the line because you know these offensive lines and coordinators are having a scheme to to cover DeForest Buckner and so you know his play only elevates the play of everybody

else on the that defensive line and the linebackers and everything makes their job be absolutely excellent trade you know through the first few games of this season. And he's still just 26 years old, I believe. So the fact that he's going to be a Colt, you know, for a long time to come is really exciting. After the bye week, Anthony, the Colts expect to get back Darius Leonard from his groin injury. He was listed as doubtful this week,

even though Leonard said he could be able to go on Sunday. I think for more indications there, he is going to be back for the Colts after the bye week. Kamoka Ture is still up in the air at this point, but if he will start against Detroit or not, but how impactful those two guys will be, especially Leonard and Ture once they're back from injury, if they both are back in Detroit for that tough stretch in November. Yeah, this is going to be honestly one of the biggest factors going into the second half of the season it feels like. We know, we know, you know, Leonard coming back,

he's immediately going to step in and contribute, you know, like you will. But if Trey can get back, you know, to those flashes that we saw, you know, before the injury last season, he was, he was absolutely demolishing. He looked like he had really blossomed and finally put everything, everything together, you know, training with Robert Mathis and the offseason and all of that. So if Ture can come back especially and contribute in a rotational role with these other pass rushers, Justin Houston and everybody,

I think it's going to be a dangerous piece to add to an already really talented and impressive defense so far. This is, I think, a small factor in the Colts' success so far. I don't know. I wouldn't even say small. That's probably the wrong way to put it. But the difference between the kicking game from 2019 to 2020, going from Adam Vinatieri to Rodrigo Blankenship,

all throughout last year, Anthony, you had to worry about if that kick was going to go in, whether it would be an extra point or even a chip shot with Vinatieri on his last legs in 2019. But in 2020, outside of that rough week in week one where he missed that 40-yard kick, Rodrigo Blank has just been darn near perfect, Anthony. What's been your assessment of the rookie so far at Georgia where he seems like he could really be a stud kicker

for the Colts for the next decade plus? Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it's always going to be tough to replace a guy like Adam Vinatieri, you know, a legend, probably the best kicker ever. But Hot Rod has really stepped in. You can see that his confidence is growing each and every week. He nailed another 40-yarder against the Bengals. And really, you can see that he's starting to feel like a guy that you can, you know, put out there with the game on the line, or if there's, you know, big conversions needed the kicking game has been impressive it's been you know great to not have to worry about losing you

know every game by just a couple points you know because of of missed field goals and things like that so um to be able to get an undrafted rookie like that you know they went out and sought him and got him in the locker room um i think it's just another great steal by chris ballard anthony let's close here on the Colts and their 4-2 record for the first three or six weeks. What would you give a letter grade to them so far? Factoring in the offense, the special teams improvement, the defense really taking a leap this year with Buckner on board. What's your overall opinion of what this Colts team is so far this season? Colts fans, Bilt Bar is back. It's the best

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Defense has been lights out and has been really impressive. There's still some shortcomings there. We've seen, you know, that the defense allows guys to get going and really carve them up, you know, here and then. But the offense has been pretty concerning. And if things can continue, you know, like they did against the Bengals, who have some talented players in their own right, if things continue along

that path, I think things will be fine, but I'm really hoping to see this run game pick up. Of course, with the injuries on offense to this wide receiver group, if we can get Michael Pittman Jr. back, Marcus Johnson continues to make plays, I think we'll see this offense start to rebound,

but I feel like I can't give them more than a B, and it's just because this offense is not going to be able to keep up with some of these teams in the playoffs, what we've seen on average through these first few weeks. But still, a long season to go, I think Reich has been holding back a little bit. It seems like his confidence is growing as well. So I'm optimistic for the future.

But right now I feel like they've achieved at least a little bit. I agree with you. I'd probably give them a solid B there. I think just that defense taking a leap had really helped out with the offense being a little inconsistent for the past month or plus. But finally seeing that Rivers breakout game really gave me some confidence as far as maybe the Colts are figuring this thing out on offense use a lot more tempo with rivers seems like he's a lot more comfortable in that setting and as well get john taylor more involved

like you mentioned there has to happen moving forward through the rest of the season the offensive line has to improve the special teams permit as well has been very notable from last year i can go from venetary to blankenship has been very awesome to see just the upgrade that even a rookie is providing over a legend like that from last year, Vinatieri to Blankenship. But let me ask you this, Anthony, before I let you go. This November stretch for this Colts team, the Colts, like I mentioned, are currently 4-2 heading into their bye week.

After that, though, their next five games, at the Lions, home against the Ravens, at the Titans on Thursday night football, short week, home against the Packers, and then home against the Titans again. That November stretch, Anthony, I feel like it's going to really tell us if this Colts team is a pretender or a contender. Titans on Thursday night football short week, home against the Packers and then home against the Titans again, that November stretching. I think it's going to really tell us this Colts team is a pretender or a contender. What do you think about that stretch?

Yeah. I mean, the schedule definitely gets harder. I mean, they've got to take care of business first and foremost, you know, can't go out and lay a dud against, you know, what has been a competitive Detroit Lions team. So definitely got to get that win. And then I don't know if anybody's necessarily going to go out on a limb and expect, you know, this Colts team to go out and beat the Ravens necessarily. So, you know, even if you want to chalk that one up as a loss,

I think they've got to split with the Titans. We've seen the Titans have looked really, really good. Derrick Henry is an absolute freight train and seems, you know, like he can't be stopped. So if they can stay, you know, competitive with the Titans in those two big games, in a few-game stretch, I think that's going to be really important. If they can split there, I think they'll be okay, as long as, like I said, this offense can continue to improve

and keep things clicking. We'll talk all throughout this Colts team throughout this bye week on the show on Locked on Colts, where 4-2, they really honestly should be 6-0 with the way they've played. Mistakes really have cost them in Week 1 against Jacksonville and Cleveland as well. Who knows how the ball bounces in the second half of the season, but it's going to be a very important November stretch coming up here. Anthony, I really appreciate you coming on, man.

You guys can go follow him on Twitter. Go now already at Ant underscore the Oreo, and go read his work as well over at Coast to Coast Scouting at CC Scouting on Twitter. Anthony, appreciate the time, man. Absolutely. Thanks for having me.