The Indianapolis Colts have been one of the league’s more inconsistent teams, and a big reason why they’ve earned that designation has been their play on the defensive side of things. Matt Eberflus has come under fire for creating a defense that has been burned for explosive plays regularly.
However, despite the loss of Julian Blackmon due to injury and an underperforming pass rush, the Colts were able to take advantage of torrential rain in San Francisco and beat down the 49ers on the back of a cohesive, unified attack that befuddled Jimmy Garoppolo all night long.
The Colts have been making strides on offense, as Carson Wentz and Jonathan Taylor have started to really click. Indianapolis’ defense came under fire after getting cashed earlier in the season, but they’ve actually made some very impressive improvements despite all of the moving parts.
Indianapolis heads into their Week 8 matchup with the most forced turnovers in the league. Only the Buffalo Bills, who have played a very easy schedule and are one of the best teams in the league, can claim to have forced 16 turnovers in just seven games. Maybe Eberflus isn’t doing a terrible job.
On the hunt. pic.twitter.com/pG5tFIdHPN
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) October 28, 2021
The Colts are making plays on defense.
To the surprise of perhaps no one, Darius Leonard has been the main instigator for Indy’s defensive improvement, as he has intercepted two passes and forced three fumbles so far this season. With DeForest Buckner still effective on the defensive line and Leonard cleaning up the mess, the front seven might now be the problem.
They have quite a challenge ahead of them this week in Derrick Henry and the Titans. Before Elijah Mitchell took advantage of the rain, Henry was the only player to run for 100 yards against an Eberflus-led Colts defense, and he did so four times in four consecutive games. They’ll need a turnover or two to quell that offensive attack.
"We can be a dominant defense when we play great all four quarters.
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) October 18, 2021
Eberflus should not get a pass for this season, as the performance he authored in that Baltimore game was borderline disgraceful, but it is nice to see him get production out of players that were slated to be backups earlier in the season.
The Colts’ risky approach to defense can lead to them getting burned every now and again, but in order to keep pace with the rest of the AFC, Eberflus appears to be instructing his players to go all-out in the name of causing chaos. It’s worked over the last few weeks, but time will tell if it is sustainable.
Colts: 3 matchups vs. Titans that must be exploited
The Indianapolis Colts will host the Tennessee Titans at Lucas Oil Stadium in an AFC South showdown in Week 8. Here's what the Colts need to do to win.