3 Colts players that need to redeem themselves after Week 1

The Indianapolis Colts had a disappointing start to their season and as a result, here are three players that need to redeem themselves in Week 2. 

The Indianapolis Colts had another slow start to the season struggling in the first three quarters of their season opener against the Houston Texans. That marks the ninth straight season where the Colts haven’t won in Week 1. At least it wasn’t a loss…cough, cough Titans.

Despite turning things around in the fourth quarter, it was almost too little too late. Indy had multiple chances to win the game but wasn’t able to convert in the end. There were several players to blame in every phase of the game. There were a lot of moving parts this offseason but the Colts had to be better in Week 1. Head coach Frank Reich made it an emphasis by playing his starters deep into the preseason in the hopes they would be ready and come out hot to start the season.

One way to look at this tie is that Indianapolis has things to work on in Week 2. Unfortunately, there are quite a few things. From the top down, the Colts need to improve tenfold before their Week 2 game. Here are three players specifically who need to redeem themselves after their Week 1 performance.

3. WR Alec Pierce

This is one where, although rookie wide receiver Alec Pierce didn’t do anything wrong, he didn’t do anything right either. Outside of Michael Pittman Jr., the rest of the wide receivers struggled to make plays and had a lot of drops. Pierce was targeted twice and dropped both passes and technically had a third drop but a penalty negated that. His most memorable drop came in the end zone when Indy really needed the score. There was tight coverage in the end zone but the Colts really needed Pierce to show something.

Let’s not forget he is a rookie and this was his first real action in the NFL playing against the opposing team’s best defensive unit. Fans will have to wait one more week to see if Pierce is worth the hype. He should rebound as he becomes more comfortable with Matt Ryan and playing against NFL defensive backs and the Colts really need him to.

The rest of the receiving core didn’t fare much better. Ashton Dulin caught three of six targets for 46 yards and had his moment during the comeback in the fourth quarter where Ryan seemed to single in on him. Parris Campbell caught three of four targets for 37 yards for a rather lackluster day. Indianapolis and its fans are expecting big things from Campbell but it just didn’t happen in the season opener.

All-in-all, we could say that the receiving core, excluding Pittman Jr, need to redeem themselves but specifically Pierce who didn’t register a catch. The receiving core is unproven and the front office put a lot of faith in them by not bringing in a veteran during the offseason or training camp. Pierce needs to restore the Colts’ faith in him in Week 2.