After eking out a much-needed win in Week 3, the Indianapolis Colts will now travel to London to face the Washington Commanders. The Colts are hoping to make up ground in the AFC South race with a second-straight victory.
While Indianapolis will be the favorite for the first time this season, the Commanders will not be an easy opponent. This is a franchise less than two years removed from an NFC Championship appearance. Just last week, Washington handed the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle their first loss of the year despite playing without starting quarterback Jayden Daniels.
The Commanders were impressive against the Seahawks, but this is far from a perfect team. There are clear weaknesses the Colts can and must exploit. With so much at stake in Week 4, here is the blueprint Indianapolis should follow to beat Washington.
How the Indianapolis Colts can take down the Washington Commanders in Week 4
Attack the Washington secondary in the middle of the field
The Commanders have struggled in pass defense to start 2026, allowing the second-most passing yards in the league through the first few weeks. First-year Washington defensive coordinator Daronte Jones uses a complex, positionless scheme that requires everyone — linebackers, cornerbacks, and safeties — to be on the same page all the time.
The learning curve has been rough, with plenty of busted coverages in the Washington secondary, leading to easy completions and explosive plays. They’ve looked especially vulnerable between the hashes where perfect defensive rotations are necessary but hard to execute.
That’s exactly where Jaxon Smith-Njigba (128 yards, 2 TDs), CeeDee Lamb (153 yards, 2 TDs), and Dallas Goedert (77 yards, 2 TDs) did the most damage to Washington this season.
Coincidentally, the Colts have multiple elite weapons to target in the middle of the field including slot wide receiver Josh Downs and tight end Tyler Warren. If both Downs and Warren can consistently find pockets of space in the middle hole between the linebackers and safeties, then Daniel Jones should have a field day.
Get creative with Jonathan Taylor
Coming off his worst game so far this year, star running back Jonathan Taylor now faces one of the NFL’s most-improved run defenses. The Commanders have allowed the third-least rushing yards and zero scores on the ground. No one — not even All-Pro Saquon Barkley — has been able to crack them.
Head coach Shane Steichen can do Taylor a favor by using him in creative ways: pitches, screens, and in motion. Running Taylor to the outside edge or targeting him more in the passing game could help neutralize Washington’s rock-solid front seven.
Avoid turnovers and don’t give up easy points
In Week 3, the Commanders worked some magic, pulling 33 points out of their hat on just 258 yards of total offense. It was their highest-scoring game yet despite their worst offensive numbers. The trick was an opportunistic defense forcing three Seattle turnovers that each led to a Washington touchdown.
The Colts cannot afford to gift free points to the Commanders, especially when the Indianapolis defense is already floundering and the offense is still not firing on all cylinders. After committing six turnovers in three games, Daniel Jones and the rest of the team need to do a better job of taking care of the football in London.
Lock down star wideout Terry McLaurin
Two-time Pro Bowler Terry McLaurin remains Washington’s best and most important weapon on an offense that otherwise lacks starpower at the skill positions. It’s no surprise that McLaurin’s best game of the campaign so far — six catches, 77 yards, and a touchdown last week — coincided with Washington’s first win.
McLaurin is a true X receiver who usually lines up outside on the left, where he will go head-to-head with Indianapolis All-Pro cornerback Sauce Gardner. The last time these two matched up, in a 2023 Commanders-Jets game, Gardner completely shut McLaurin down. The Colts need him to replicate that performance in Week 4.
Make Marcus Mariota or Jayden Daniels uncomfortable
Jayden Daniels might miss his second straight game, once again thrusting Washington journeyman QB Marcus Mariota into the spotlight. Mariota was good, but not great, against Seattle, and his stat line was pedestrian at best. That said, either Daniels or Mariota could present challenges.
Indianapolis needs to make life as difficult as possible for Washington's quarterback. Strong run defense, disciplined pass coverage, and good ball security on offense take away the easy plays and drives. That would force the QB out of his comfort zone, putting the pressure on him to make game-winning throws.
Daniels nor Mariota have ever been able to do that consistently in the NFL, and the Colts have no reason to believe anything is going to change in Week 4.
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