1 reason Indianapolis Colts can upset next 4 tough opponents

How Colts can beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Jonathan Taylor deflates the ball

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are obviously a really good team. They are currently 6-3, and although they have dropped their last two games, there isn’t much panic surrounding the defending champs.

When they come to visit Indianapolis in Week 12, the Colts hope to induce some panic and send them back to Florida with a loss. It will be a tall task because, if the star-studded roster wasn’t enough, the current losing streak will definitely have them fired up in the coming weeks.

The way the Colts can extinguish that fire is by leaning on their workhorse running back, Jonathan Taylor. Now, that may sound foolish considering how the Buccaneers defense has dominated opposing run games over the last two seasons, but a closer look shows that they are losing their juice.

Tampa Bay still has the second-ranked run defense with 79.8 yards allowed a game, but in the team’s last four games, they have allowed 100, 143, 152, and 94 rushing yards— a trend that could benefit Indianapolis.

Meanwhile, the Colts boast the sixth-best rushing attack, averaging 136.3 yards a game. They have run for 100 or more yards in 8-of-10 outings and are 5-0 whenever Taylor, specifically, eclipses the century mark.

With Taylor strengthening as the year progresses while the Buccaneers run defense is declining, this matchup may be coming at the perfect time for Indianapolis. On the legs of Taylor, the Colts should be able to control the clock and put together lengthy scoring drives. If Indianapolis does that successfully, the team has a chance at beating Tampa Bay.