The nightmares in Jacksonville continue for the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts haven’t been able to pick up a win on the road against the Jaguars since 2014, and that didn’t change on Sunday. Indianapolis suffered yet another embarrassing loss in Jacksonville, losing 37-20, and falling to 3-3.
The Week 6 matchup was a big game for both teams, because they both entered with a 3-2 record and the winner of the game would have sole possession of the AFC South lead. It was the Jaguars that left with that designation, as they completed a sweep over the Colts.
The first game back in Week 1 was competitive; Indy lost 31-21. This time around, the outcome was much more embarrassing for the Colts. Let’s take a look at three things that went wrong in this blowout loss.
3. Defense couldn’t keep it close for Colts
It’s fair to say that Indy’s defense didn’t get much help from the offense on Sunday, but the defense didn’t have their best day either. The Jaguars put up almost 40 points. Sure, Indy’s offense turned the ball over a lot, putting the defense in tough positions, but the defense didn’t offer too much resistance.
Jacksonville finished the game with 233 total yards, 148 passing and 85 rushing. The Jaguars’ stats aren’t as explosive as the score would suggest, and that speaks to the field position game determined by turnovers. Still, when an offense is struggling like the Colts did on Sunday, the defense has to be able to pick them up and give them a chance to figure things out. That means forcing teams to settle for three points and generating turnovers.
Indy didn’t really do either. The defense had just one takeaway, and on the two first-half turnovers that Indy’s offense had, the defense allowed the Jaguars to turn both into touchdowns. But the defense wasn’t Indianapolis’ biggest problem at all.