The Indianapolis Colts got their best win of the season on Sunday, going on the road and beating the Baltimore Ravens 22-19 in overtime. The final quarter and overtime were an absolute roller coaster but no win in this league is easy, and Indianapolis showed some great resiliency. Indy dealt with adversity with two key starters out in Anthony Richardson and Ryan Kelly.
Before the game, we found out the team made starting cornerback Darrell Baker Jr. a healthy scratch to pave the way for local product, rookie JuJu Brents to make his debut. The Colts now lead the AFC South in the early season at 2-1 and will host the Los Angeles Rams next week in another key matchup as they look to get their first home win of the season.
Where the Colts excelled against Baltimore
Zack Moss (again)
Another lunch-pail day at the office for Zack Moss. While he did not have the full workload, it was nearly the same as last week. Moss finished with 30 carries for 122 yards and one major touchdown catch on a lob from Minshew. Moss is slowly becoming not only a workhorse back but also a complete three-down back.
Trey Sermon did see some action, as Deon Jackson was released on Saturday prior to the game roster decisions. Don’t forget, Moss is in a contract year and with Jonathan Taylor potentially returning in Week 5, Moss will continue to show off his talents until Taylor is fully integrated back into the system. If not for an extension with Indianapolis but for someone else next season in what looks to be a deep RB free agent class.
JuJu Brents Debut
The long-awaited debut of JuJu Brents finally came to fruition on Sunday, after Darrell Baker Jr. was a surprise healthy scratch for this week’s contest. We saw the slow integration of Brents as he missed most of training camp and the preseason with a couple of nagging injuries. When Baker struggled, it seemed to accelerate his debut and he did not disappoint.
The Indianapolis native and 2023 second-round pick completely shifted the momentum of the game when he forced and recovered a fumble on Ravens running back Kenyan Drake. Brents finished with four tackles as well, and while he needs to clean up some coverage issues, overall, it was a solid debut for him.
Where the Colts excelled against Baltimore (continued)
Gardner Minshew
Gardner Minshew was far from perfect, but he showed why he is one of the best backups in this league. Minshew came into this game a winless 0-5 against teams with an over .500 record and he was able to snap that streak. Minshew finished completing 27-of-44 passes for 227 yards and one touchdown. While he was sacked five times, he did not commit a turnover. He did step out of bounds and cause a safety, you can pin that on other factors as well. Minshew never got rattled and showed immense resiliency in the fourth quarter and overtime, leading Indy on a drive that set up the game-winning field goal.
Colts pass rush continues to exceed expectations
Another solid effort from the Indianapolis pass rush this week. Kwity Paye is earning his upcoming extension this season with another productive outing. He recorded another key sack and was disruptive again. We also saw Samson Ebukam and Grover Stewart deliver sacks as well. While it’s hard to stop Lamar Jackson, they made an impact on his production. While they struggled to stop him on the ground, they did keep him to about 200 yards passing and were constantly applying pressure.
Kicker Matt Gay
Without question, the player of the game for Week 3. Matt Gay finished connecting on 5-of-5 field goals, hitting three field goals from 53 yards and had a 31 and 54-yarder as well. This past offseason Colts GM Chris Ballard signed Matt Gay to the largest free agency contract in NFL History for a kicker. That contract was a four-year deal valued at $22.5 Million. Many fans in Indianapolis ripped Ballard for this decision and thought it was too expensive for a kicker and too much money to spend on a non-skill position.
Those critics should be silenced after this performance. The Colts struggled in the kicking department the past few years with the decline of Hall of Famer Adam Vinatieri and the Colts parted ways with the inconsistent Rodrigo Blankenship. Ballard wanted the reliability of a veteran and tested kicker, and it paid off this week and will in the future if Indy happens to continue its winning ways.
Where the Colts struggled against Baltimore
Secondary still needs work
Did we see improvements this week? Without question. The two main drives (first drive and third-quarter drive) were the two scoring drives for the Ravens. The secondary was absolutely picked apart in those drives. They essentially traded out JuJu Brents for Darrell Baker Jr. this week and most likely permanently. As Brents continues to get more reps in real time, he will continue to improve. Safety Julian Blackmon had another good week but would love to see the coverage get a little more sticky going forward.
Pass catchers (not named Michael Pittman Jr. or Josh Downs)
Michael Pittman Jr. and Josh Downs accounted for 23 targets of the 44 total passes thrown by Minshew on Sunday. We did see an uptick in targets for Alec Pierce but no one else really was impactful. Pittman had a terrific game and was able to make a huge catch in overtime to help seal the game but eventually, defenses will catch up and not allow Pittman and Downs to control the games. Minshew did look at Pierce on a deep pass play near the endzone that was nearly completed but the coverage by Baltimore was fantastic on it.
Dayo Odeyingbo
Dayo continues to struggle this year while the rest of the unit shines. Dayo had another lackluster performance this week with only two tackles. Fans were hopeful this could finally be his breakout season, but it appears that fellow teammate Kwity Paye will be doing that this season. The season is still developing but Dayo appears to be behind the curve so far this year.
Where the Colts struggled against Baltimore (continued)
Interior defensive line play
While this unit didn’t have a terrible game by any means, they were unable to contain the designed runs by Lamar Jackson and the committee of running backs with Gus Edwards and Melvin Gordon. They allowed 186 yards on the ground and DeForest Buckner struggled against an offensive line that was down two starters. While I have zero concern about Buckner, I am concerned about this becoming a pattern down the road.
Offensive line play
The offensive line play has been stout this season and while they didn’t break this week, they showed some bend. While I don’t completely put the performance of Ravens’ safety Kyle Hamilton on the offensive line, I think this was their worst performance of the season. They were without center Ryan Kelly and right guard Will Fries was out for part of the second half with cramps.
Minshew was hit seven times and sacked five times. Wesley French was OK in his first start, but he did miss some protections but some of that is on the quarterback as well. Minshew had to do a lot of quick passing but that was because of Indy’s inability to stop Kyle Hamilton. The run blocking, for the most part, was above average but the pass protection will need to be a focus next week as the Colts host Los Angeles to take on the Rams.