The Indianapolis Colts' decision to hire Lou Anarumo as their defensive coordinator last season came with mixed reviews. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it also yielded mixed results, looking solid against the run but struggling in coverage.
Anarumo's seat might not be hot in Week 1 of year two, but it's definitely lukewarm. So, getting the season started by playing against one of his nemeses might not necessarily be what the doctor ordered.
Dating back to his days with the Cincinnati Bengals, Anarumo's defenses have struggled mightily against Lamar Jackson, going 1-9 against Jackson's Baltimore Ravens. However, for the first time, context may actually be in his favor.
The Indianapolis Colts should have an edge over Lamar Jackson's Ravens
Jackson has run circles — both literally and figuratively — against Anarumo's defenses. Nevertheless, he might not be able to do much damage with designed runs this time around, as the Ravens' new-look offensive line might not do him any favors.
The Ravens have a rookie guard and an unproven center, and they might struggle to give Jackson a clean pocket. Granted, he's the greatest scrambling quarterback ever, and he can turn broken plays into big gains, but he'll also have to go against stacked boxes over and over, facing a stout Colts' defensive front that can live in the backfield.
Also, head coach Shane Steichen owned Jesse Minter's predictable defense in their previous meeting, and while that doesn't have anything to do with Jackson directly, the whole coaching situation can also be a factor.
Minter is a first-year head coach making his official debut in a hostile road environment. On top of that, new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle — who doesn't share Todd Monken's or Greg Romans' offensive philosophy — has never called plays on offense and will likely look to establish his own identity and make tweaks to that unit.
All in all, the context finally favors Anarumo to get the best of Jackson. The Ravens' corps of offensive playmakers is unproven, and with all the lingering chatter about a contract extension, the former MVP will be under more pressure than ever to deliver in Week 1.
The Colts went to great lengths to give Anarumo the grocery list he needed to bounce back after a somewhat disappointing first season in charge of the defense, and even though there are still major doubts about the pass rush, everything else should be much better in 2026.
There's no such thing as stopping a player of Lamar Jackson's caliber; one can only hope to contain him. But after being on the wrong end of so many of his big plays, maybe Anarumo just needed a change of scenery to finally get the best of him.
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