3 Colts to thank for the offensive explosion in Sunday’s win against the Jaguars
1. Matt Ryan played like the QB the Colts were expecting
When Matt Ryan arrived this offseason, his presence brought a lot of expectations. He was compared to Peyton Manning, and everyone in the organization raved about him extensively. But, his play didn’t meet expectations through the first five weeks. He did have some promising moments but he also had inexcusable turnovers, especially for a veteran quarterback.
On Sunday, however, Ryan played like the quarterback that had everyone excited about his arrival. Offensively, the game was put in his hands and he delivered. Ryan completed 42-of-58 passes for 389 yards and three touchdowns. He didn’t fumble the ball, throw any interceptions, or take any unnecessary sacks.
He connected with eight different pass catchers, including Michael Pittman Jr. 13 times for 134 yards. He also found Parris Campbell, who has been quiet this year, seven times for 57 yards and a touchdown. Ryan even got the ball to his two rookie pass-catchers, Jelani Woods and Alec Pierce, for touchdowns.
It’s probably not sustainable to ask a 37-year-old quarterback in his 15th season to play like this every week and Indy likely won’t ask that of him weekly once Jonathan Taylor returns. However, it is good to know that Ryan can deliver this kind of game for the team when necessary. If the offense can build off this performance and play similarly moving forward, the rest of the season will be really promising for Indianapolis.
