This offseason, the Indianapolis Colts stated they wanted to get younger and more athletic, especially defensively. In Week 1 against the Baltimore Ravens, that gamble didn't pay off. The young guys were awful.
Heading into the season, the common perspective on the Colts was that the offense would be productive, the special teams would be decent, and the defense would be a major question mark. In their first game of the 2026 season, all three of those impressions proved false. The offense sputtered. The special teams were poor, and the defense was virtually non-existent.
We’ll focus these takeaways on several specific young players because in the end, the veterans performed pretty much as expected. That doesn’t mean they were good. I think really only Laiatu Latu, Jonathan Taylor, and Keenan Allen had games that could be called “good.” But some of the poorer performances by veterans are understandable and not cause for alarm.
Indianapolis Colts youngsters look totally overmatched in a blowout loss to Baltimore
Daviel Jones and Alec Pierce looked rusty. No surprise there. Both are coming off injuries and did not play all preseason. Both showed glimpses of what they should eventually be, but neither was very effective against the Ravens on Sunday. But the younger players, on whom Indy hopes to build, are absolutely cause for alarm.
The linebackers remain a huge concern
This has been such an obvious problem dating back to last season that it is difficult to understand why general manager Chris Ballard and defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo have not done more to address it. 2025 starters Zaire Franklin and Germaine Pratt are gone, but the players on the field on Sunday were no better. In fact, throughout most of the game, they were worse.
Bryce Boettcher was credited with seven combined tackles but they were very quiet ones. Most came five yards or more downfield, especially if Derrick Henry was the ball carrier.
Jaylon Carlies got on the field briefly when the Colts' linebackers struggled in coverage but was invisible during his plays. And of course, prize rookie CJ Allen was literally invisible. If he was on the field, and I suspect he was because he was active for the game, I never saw him.
Veteran Akeem Davis-Gaither looked slightly better but was a major liability against the pass. This is the single biggest concern going forward.
The secondary was supposed to be a strength but…
Except, maybe the secondary is an even bigger worry. We knew the linebackers would struggle. The secondary – especially the cornerbacks – were supposed to provide a defensive anchor. Veterans Sauce Gardner and Charvarius Ward were not very good, and second-year slot corner Justin Walley was torched.
Ward let the ancient Chris Moore run away from him on one big second-half play. But it was Walley who will be having nightmares. Zay Flowers made him look like a high schooler playing against pros. Flowers' injury may have been the only thing that prevented an even worse blowout.
The linebackers and corners were just the leading edge of a very poor defensive performance overall. For the game, Lou Anarumo’s men were credited with zero tackles for loss and zero passes defended. That is atrocious. In comparison, the Ravens had six TFLs and four PDs.
Seth McGowan is not yet the answer at RB2
McGowan didn’t play much. He had zero carries and one target. He caught that target but gained no yards. Therefore, in his debut, McGowan contributed zero yards on offense. (He did have one very encouraging kickoff return for those looking for a silver lining.
I don’t care much about the lack of production running or catching. I care very much about the fact that he looked entirely overwhelmed in pass protection. He seemed willing to get in front of blitzers, but they simply overpowered him.
Whether this is a technique problem or a physical issue, he can’t be on the field if he cannot keep blitzers away from Daniel Jones. That has to come before he can hope to make a contribution on offense.
The Colts did several things very well on Sunday. There were things that they can build on. But overall, they turned in an uninspired performance in which they were clearly overmatched. And theinability of the younger members of the team to show up was the most worrisome part of the day.
Add us as a preferred source on Google