The Colts are an elite third down team

Last season, the Colts were a monster on third down. They need to continue to be that elite force in 2019.

Third down is one of the most important downs in football. It usually decides whether or not a drive is going to continue. If a team doesn’t convert, they have to punt or kick a field goal. But if they do convert, it can break the defense’s will and demoralize them.

The Colts were an elite team on third down last season. They converted an absurd 48.6% of their third down attempts. That was best in the league. They converted a total of 104 third downs, which was tied for most in the league with the Ravens.

Having an offense that can convert on third down is key to any team’s success. In fact, only one team finished outside the top 16 in terms of third down percentage last season and still made the playoffs. That team was Houston, who got trounced by the Colts in the playoffs.

There’s no reason to suspect that the Colts can’t continue this sort of success on third down. Their offense is only getting more dangerous. A good way to have easy conversions on third down is to have good plays on first and second down. The Colts do a good job of that.

This is one area of the offense in which the Colts don’t need a lot of work. But they need to make sure they maintain their high level of play. That way they can be one of the most feared offenses in the league.