After holding the once-explosive Miami Dolphins’ offense to just 211 total yards and eight points in their Week 1 opener, it might not seem as if the Indianapolis Colts need much help on defense. Maybe they don’t … provided they could play the out-of-gas Dolphins every week.
But the Denver Broncos are coming to town this Sunday, and the Broncos just ran the ball down the throat of the Tennessee Titans to the tune of 151 yards on 30 carries in their Week 1 victory. Rookie R.J. Harvey, a little powerhouse with 4.4 speed, carried the ball just six times but gained 70 yards, including a fourth quarter 50-yard jaunt that helped break open a tight game.
On that run, Tennessee’s linebackers get sucked to the left where the play was headed. But Harvey cut back to the right, broke a tackle by the safety, and was off. If there was one area of concern on defense against Miami, it came from the second level, where Zaire Franklin didn’t have his typical dominant game, and Cameron McGrone was mostly invisible.
However, there is an ideal answer for this potential problem still waiting for a call.
Former Patriots star should be ready for a return to action for the Indianapolis Colts
Ja’whaun Bentley joined the New England Patriots in 2018 as a fifth-round draft pick out of Purdue. That’s back when the Patriots were still perennial Super Bowl contenders. That rookie season, he played a few games for the last Pats team to claim the Lombardi Trophy.
It was mostly downhill for New England from that point, but Bentley thrived. By his third season, he was in the starting lineup, eventually becoming a team captain. Between 2021 and 2023, he started 49 games and averaged 116 tackles per season.
He could drop into coverage and was an adequate pass rusher, but his best asset was making tackles in the middle of the field. A solid, all-around professional linebacker.
That is exactly what the Colts need to pair with Franklin. With Jaylon Carlies out for a while, Indy is relying primarily on career special teamer Joe Bachie and a very green Cameron McGrone to log serious snaps. Everyone has praised Bachie, who played under new defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo in Cincinnati and is more familiar with his defense, but he remains a limited player.
Bentley is available because early last season, the veteran suffered a torn pec, which knocked him out for the year. With a new regime taking over in New England this offseason, the Pats chose to get younger across the board and therefore released Bentley over the Summer.
The fact that he has not signed to this point may be a red flag, and obviously, any team bringing him in would need to make sure he is fit to play. But he also may have been enjoying a veteran’s prerogative to wait for the most attractive situation. Before last week, Indy may not have seemed attractive, but now things are looking up.
Bentley would be an ideal match with Franklin. At 250 pounds, he’s a bigger presence in the middle, but he has always run well. Physically, he is very reminiscent of Germaine Pratt, the linebacker who started for Anarumo in Cincinnati for the last five seasons, and is now playing for the Raiders.
If and when Carlies returns, Anarumo would have good flexibility with Bentley able to play early downs. Carlies could come in between downs. And on obvious passing situations, Indy could match up with a bigger or a quicker linebacker, or with six defensive backs. Franklin would remain on the field, but he would have better, more flexible support.
The Colts looked awfully good against Miami, but it’s a long season, and they can’t stop improving or else they will squander this fast start. Ja’whaun Bentley would be one nice step in the direction of a rapidly improving defense.