5 Colts to blame for the devastating loss to the Packers in Week 2

The Indianapolis Colts lost to the Houston Texans in Week 1, but the news wasn't all bad. Quarterback Anthony Richardson, who spent most of the 2023 season injured, threw multiple 50+ yard passes, showing glimmers of brilliance that had many around the league applauding. And while the defense struggled to stop Houston's run game, they did a decent job on the pass, keeping consistent pressure on Texans QB C.J. Stroud throughout the game. The game ended up competitive to the very last second, with the Texans pulling ahead by just two points for the 29-27 victory.

There were clearly things the Colts needed to improve upon, but there was plenty for fans to be optimistic about heading into Week 2. The team traveled to Green Bay, Wisconsin to play the Packers at Lambeau Field, and they were favored to win by most NFL analysts.

Instead, the Colts completely crumbled. Even with Jordan Love out, the Packers dominated. Despite the deceptively close 16-10 score, the Colts were completely humiliated Sunday in one of the worst displays of football an NFL fan could ask for. And unfortunately, there's plenty of blame to go around.

5. Colts Run Defense

While the Colts didn't do well against the Texans on the run, when it came to the Packers, it was a given that they would be focusing on running the ball as much as possible. Malik Willis, playing in Love's place, is an untested, inexperienced quarterback. The Packers weren't going to gamble on him, and so the Colts should have been working hard to prepare the defense for that.

What the Colts spent the last week doing is anyone's guess, because judging by their performance, it wasn't bolstering their run defense. The Packers ran for an astounding 237 yards in the first half alone, and running back Josh Jacobs ended the game with 146 yards on 29 carries. The Colts managed to adjust in the second half, and kept the Packers to just 261 yards total, but the damage had been done. Furthermore, it showed that they could stop the run -- so what were they doing in the first half?

4. Adonai Mitchell, Michael Pittman Jr., and Kylen Granson

There is no doubting that Richardson was not the leader the Colts needed yesterday, but he is also far from the only one to blame for the disastrous display from the offense. Richardson's accuracy was shot, but when he did throw on target, he evidently couldn't find any receivers capable of catching the ball.

Multiple times, Richardson got the ball right where it needed to be, only for the ball to be dropped. Adonai Mitchell, Michael Pittman Jr., and Kylen Granson all dropped throws that should have been easy catches. At one point, Mitchell even stopped running mid-play, seemingly just giving up altogether. Alec Pierce has continued to be a standout for the Colts, but if Richardson is going to be successful, he's going to need to have more than one receiver he can rely on.

3. Anthony Richardson

Despite seeming so promising against the Texans, Richardson was a disaster against the Packers. He threw three interceptions, repeatedly threw bad passes, and altogether, displayed poor decision-making that the Colts cannot afford. Numerous times throughout the game, Richardson threw to receivers who were heavily covered, even as he had other players wide open.

Richardson finished the day with just a 50% completion rate, for 204 yards and one touchdown. Though he still may have a bright future in front of him, Sunday's game against the Packers was a stark reminder that Richardson is still inexperienced, and has a lot of growing to do before he can really be relied upon to lead this team.

2. Matt Gay

Colts Kicker Matt Gay missed Week 1 against the Texans after a hernia surgery, but his Week 2 showing left a lot to be desired. He missed a 50-yard field goal attempt in a worrisome echo from the preseason, where he had three field goal misses in two games.

Last season, Gay similarly struggled in his worst season since his 2019 rookie year. That could have presumably been blamed on a hip injury, but Gay is supposed to be healthy now. As one of the highest-paid kickers in the league, this kind of performance is not acceptable.

1. Shane Steichen and Gus Bradley

The bulk of the responsibility for the Colts' disaster can be laid at the feet of defensive coordinator Gus Bradley and head coach Shane Steichen. Fans have already begun calling for Bradley to be fired, as he seemed completely unprepared for what his defense was going to be facing... and made essentially the same mistakes he did against the Texans.

In Week 1, Bradley admitted that they stressed more on coverage than the run; that could have been understandable, had that mistake been adjusted for Week 2. Instead, while virtually everyone in the NFL knew the Packers were going to focus on running the ball with an untested QB at the helm, Bradley seemed content to move forward the same way he did on Week 1, and failed his defense miserably.

Yet the blame ultimately falls on Steichen as head coach. His play-calling often made no sense; in the fourth quarter, for example, the Colts were trying to rally to a come-from-behind victory. Steichen not only kept Jonathan Taylor - the best player on the field that day - on the bench, but had running back Trey Sermon attempt a 4th and one option run out of the shotgun, when Sermon has not yet proven that he can be relied upon for such high-pressure moments. That would have been a moment where the Colts needed Taylor, but repeatedly, Steichen baffingly chose to keep Taylor out of the game and run Sermon instead.

Steichen also made calls that failed his new quarterback, too; though Richardson has become the face of this franchise, he is still, for all intents and purposes, a rookie. Yet Richardson was still being told to drop back and attempt deep throws against the Packers' two-high shell defense and receivers who are as inexperienced as Richardson himself is. Richardson has also proved his athleticism and ability to run, including in Sunday's game against the Packers when he ran for 11 yards and a first down, and that ability could have been used to complement Taylor as well. But so far, Steichen seems intent on stifling Richardson's ability to run. The Colts pass game was clearly struggling, so why did Steichen choose not to use the weapons he had at his disposal?

The Colts have a lot of young talent on their roster, and the potential to be a formidable football team. But if that's going to happen, their coaches are going to need to stop utterly failing them at every turn.