While the team didn’t have many bright spots in Sunday’s loss, Indianapolis Colts starting right tackle Jack Mewhort was seemingly one of them.
Making just his 2nd career NFL start at right tackle, Mewhort was impressive for the Colts, as held his own against some formidable Buffalo Bills pass rushers including the likes of Mario Williams and Jerry Hughes. It’s worth noting that both pass rushers were held sackless on the afternoon, as they were limited by Mewhort’s strong pass blocking.
According to ProFootballFocus (subscription), Mewhort received a +2.6 grade overall in the team’s regular season opener, including an exceptional +3.6 grade in pass blocking.
For comparison purposes, the Colts stalwart Anthony Castonzo left tackle received a +2.1 grade overall, providing testament that both of the team’s offensive tackles were clearly on their “A-Game” on Sunday:
On Monday, head coach Chuck Pagano had high praise for his new starting right tackle, saying he was “outstanding” in his performance on Sunday:
"“I thought he was outstanding,” said Pagano on Mewhort. “It wasn’t too big for him. He had a great look in his eye. Think he competed his tail off, and for the first outing out there, I think everybody but us was worried about how he was going to hold up.”“But, he did a really good job, and it’s never going to be perfect, but he played well,” added Pagano. “He’ll be better like everybody else this week, but great start for him.”"
While there remain legitimate concerns about the Colts blocking–specifically along the interior, the offensive line otherwise appears to be in pretty solid shape right now at least as it relates to Castonzo and Mewhort on the outside.
In fact, it might be the first time since Tarik Glenn and Ryan Diem donned horseshoe blue way back when, that the Colts have had two bookend tackles anchoring their offensive line.
For Andrew Luck and the offense, that’s certainly great news.
Next: Colts at Bills: Next Day Analysis
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