The Indianapolis Colts' defense is a bit of a riddle. Its sins have been covered up by an Indy offense that is ridiculously efficient. Part of the issue with defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo's group has been injuries, so the DC has been somewhat limited.
Thankfully, certain parts of the unit have been particularly good. Laiatu Latu has had a good second season, for instance. Safeties Nick Cross and Cam Bynum have done well. One player is trending toward having a third-year breakout, though, just when the team needed it most.
Adetomiwa Adebawore still has a couple of major issues that need to be corrected. One is his tackling acumen. Over two-plus seasons, he has missed a third of his tackle attempts. That's awful, and could be one reason he doesn't get more reps. But more reps from Adebawore is something Indy needs.
Indianapolis Colts defensive lineman Adetomiwa Adebawore could have a huge game in Week 8
His pass-rush ability is good, and could get even better. He has a 17 percent pressure rate, second-best on the Colts after Latu. His 2.73 seconds to pressure is also second on the team, just behind Tyquan Lewis.
He has just one sack on the season, but 10 pressures on 107 passing downs. While Indy has somewhat struggled to get to the quarterback quickly, Adebawore hasn't. The risk in playing him more is that he isn't very good against the run and has his tackling issue, but Indianapolis has been blowing so many teams out that those teams have to pass more.
Will the Indianapolis Colts continue to blow teams out? While expecting that might be expecting too much (from any team), Week 8, for one, shouldn't be close. Indy plays the bad Tennessee Titans at Lucas Oil Stadium. Indy should jump out to a quick lead, forcing the Titans to pass more.
While Adetomiwa Adebawore is winning his pass-rush snaps, his raw production could take a big leap in Week 8. The defensive tackle should be able to get a lot of pressure, especially if he lines up a bit more over tackle. He did so a bit more in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Chargers and had three pressures.
To be sure, Adebawore is purely a rotational piece for the Indianapolis Colts at this point. He is capable of good production as a pass rusher, though. He could wreak havoc against quarterback Cam Ward and the Tennessee Titans in Week 8.