The Colts' Defense, 2024 Season
 

o


(vs. TEXANS, 9/08)


On the Texans' first possession of the game, they took over near midfield because the Colts turned the ball over on downs. This led to a Texans 51-yard field goal.

One of the Texans' 2 punts was blocked, which led to a Colts touchdown.

The Colts' defense was very fortunate that the Texans blew it with their lack of competent time-management on their final drive of the 2nd half ...... that drive started at their own 7-yardline with only 2:39 left to play, and the Colts' defense allowed them to maneuver into field goal-range prior to the fiasco that ended the half.

After an overall mediocre game, I believe that the defense played well on the Texans' final drive of the 4th quarter ....... the Texans' receiver just made an outstanding catch in spite of the fact that the Colts' defender had him covered like a blanket.



Possessions: llllllllll.... 10

Punts: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllt 2 l (1 Blocked)

Clock Ran Out: llllllllt) 2

TD's: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 3

FG's: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 3

o

I think you're being too generous in saying they played a "mediocre" game. They gave up over 400 yards and 40:00 of the clock while forcing no turnovers. If they continue to play this way they may very well finish 0-17, far from mediocre.

the defense was absolute garbage

Yeah, the defense was garbage.

They let Stroud do whatever he wanted but that’s not the disappointing part.

What’s disappointing is they allowed 213 yards rushing.

Absolutely inexcusable. Against a team that was AWFUL running the ball last year.

Thats gonna be a problem all year.

Also, I’ll say the Texans aren’t that good.

They won today but the Colts were really REALLY bad.

Especially on defense.

Couldn’t run the ball.

Couldn’t stop the run.

I have a slightly different take than most. The Texans were holding all game long, and not one call. Several of the third and long conversions were aided by holding our DLine. If not for that, the defense would have gotten off the field much earlier, gotten rest, and changed the TOP greatly.

Are you fine with a defense that gives up points on 60% of the opponents drives?

If that trend continues there will be a lot of people looking for jobs.

o


Nowhere in my OP did I say, or even insinuate, that I was fine with that.

o

Hence why I asked the question. Then, would you agree that the stat of giving up points on 60% of the opponents drives is worse than mediocre?

o


A) ) First of all, it would depend on what the scores were. 6 FG's ceded is a lot different than 6 TD's ceded. In this case of today's game, is was a mix of both (3 FG's, and 3 TD's.)

B) ) I would not use that stat solely to be based the overall defense's performance. For example, I stated specifically why I thought the the defense was lucky because of the Texans' clock mismanagement on the final drive of the first half, and why l thought that they were unlucky on the final drive of the game.

C) ) It would also depend on how many times the team's offense put the defense in a bad position to begin with ...... and today that only happened once, when the Colts' offense gave the ball to the Texans near midfield when they turned the ball over on downs on the opening drive of the game. And that drive ended with a field goal. Giving up a field goal when the other team starts the drive near midfield is not great, but it's also not horrible. If I recall correctly, we did this dance last year when you refused to budge after a game in which the Colts' offense put the defense in numerous bad situations, and you stubbornly put all of the blame on the defense for giving up points for drives that started deep in their own territory. You referenced Mike Curtis and the old Colts teams from the 1967, 1968, and 1971 seasons who set records for the least amount of points ceded in a 14-game season as a comparison, and said something along the lines of "good defenses don't give up points, no matter what" ...... and it appears that you are trying to do this again by narrowing down the criteria of a defense's performance to a single fact/statistic. If you want to do that fine, but anybody who is trying to use some objectivity takes into account all of the factors that occur during a game when judging a defense. I believe that the defense was mediocre today, and I partially explained why in my OP. Thorgrim, Omaha, and Hoopsdoc all thought that the defense was flat-out bad, and Racehorse leaned more towards my view. I think that an argument can be made for both (mediocre, and bad.)

Also, I never said that I was OK with mediocrity in the first place.....I'm not. Mediocrity will generally lead to an overall record of somewhere between 6-11 and 9-8, and I'm not OK with that. Today's game could have been won with a better performance by the Colts' defense, and it also could have been won with better run-blocking from the Colts' offensive line.

o

The constant holding (including on Stroud's miracle 3rd and 14 in Q3, Paye was held by Tunsil which was why he was a half step too slow), the two called back INTs (Brents got both feet in, Idc that he was not moving forward, his toe was in before his heel touched), and the final blown call to let Collins convert the 3rd down right after the 2 minute warning we're all backbreakers that gave Houston at least 10 points. Add the 10-14 points Richardson left on the field and this game could've been a blowout Colts win. They'll just have to get that game back in Houston now. But first, they need to beat the Packers next week.

I appreciate your view. Also, I'm not insinuating that you are saying this, but I do not ever want to hear TOP as an excuse for poor defense. The defenses job, and especially the DC is to get off the fucking field ASAP and then there is no argument for a TOP discussion. Three and outs solve a lot of problems. How many of those did we have yesterday? Could not have been many, since the Texicans only punted once and had zero turnovers.

I understand there is such a thing as situational football and there are times that allowing the opponent to use long time consuming drives is a benefit. But, does Bradley understand how this works? I don't think so. If the defense suddenly is in a TOP deficit then IMO it's better to take some chances and get them off the field quickly, rather than let them die a slow death that they will never be able to fight back from.

For a former HC and experienced DC, he sure looks like a rookie out of his league.

o


Time-of-possession is not strictly the responsibility of the defense. A defense could force 5 consecutive punts in the first half, and if the team's offense is consistently going 3-and-out or 4-and-out, then that defense, which is consistently doing their job by forcing punts, is going to be on the field a lot more than if they have an offense that is at least reasonably doing a decent job on their part. And when the 4th quarter rolls around, being on the field that much because of an incompetent offense is very likely to be a factor in the defense's play ...... and in that particular case, a lopsided time-of-possession in favor of the opposition would be more the offense's fault than the defense's.

You may not want to hear that, but it's a fact of life in football. Whether a fan is judging a team's offense or a team's defense, there are very few across-the-board, blanket statements that can be made without scrutinizing the entire situation of the game that is played on the field, which is the point that I made in my previous post.

o

Without going too deep down this rabbit hole, of course it's imperative that each unit do its part. At the same time, it's a team game, and when one unit is not doing it's part, then you would expect the other unit to pick up the slack.

For me this is more an indictment on Bradley than individual players. Although we still have some interior DL depth issues and I feel that Zaire Franklin is overrated in general by most Colts fans.

As far as TOP with the offense goes... we only had two drives the entire game that were more than 4 plays.

Only one real sustained drive. 11 plays, 5:50 that ended in an interception.
Beyond that, our first drive was 3:20 and everything else was 1:30-2:30.

Four of those really short drives were TDs. So it's not like it's always a negative, but certainly has an effect.

I said in the other thread, this was like the Dolphins game in '09.

There have been times where I've been willing to blame the offense for a poor defensive showing.
Times when turnovers would give the other team a short field and put the defense in a tough spot. Or repeated 3 and outs that don't give the defense any rest.

But not this time. We did not have any 3 and outs, though we did have some short drives that didn't use up clock because there was no real threat of a run game.

But the run defense was terrible from the opening drive, so this is not a case of a worn down defense getting run over in the 4th quarter. It was a full game of shit.

o


My post was not an assertion of what happened on the field on Sunday, but rather a hypothetical of what could happen in response to YDFL Commish's assertion that he never wants to hear about TOP being an excuse for poor play by the defense.

o

o


Speaking of the Dolphins, the Killer B's defenses of the early 1980's led them to 2 Super Bowl appearances in 3 years, in 1982 in 1984. The late David Woodley was the quarterback for the 1982 team that lost to the Redskins, and Dan Marino was the quarterback for the 1984 team that lost to the 49ers.

Those "Killer B" defenses eventually wound up being affected both positively and negatively by some who would argue was the greatest quarterback of all-time, Dan Marino. Marino and the Marx Brothers (Duper and Clayton) would often put up points in a hurry, the antithesis of Darrel Royal's long-sustained drives when he coached for the University of Texas. That was great for the defense, because they knew that they were never out of the game with the magician (Dan Marino) and his cohorts on the other side of the ball ...... but it would also drain them, because those great offenses scoring as quickly as they did meant that that the defense would often find themselves on the field a lot, whether they started the early portion of a game playing well or not.

The quintessential example of the double-edged sword that Marino and company laid out for their team's defenses was a 1986 game against the Jets. The Jets won that game in overtime by a score of 51-45, on a 43-yard bomb from Ken O'Brien to Wesley Walker. Years later, Dan Marino quipped l "Man, I threw 6 touchdown passes in that game, and we still lost."




Week 3 ...... The Marino vs. O’Brien Duel

(Pro Football History)

https://www.nfl.com/100/originals/10...d%20touchdowns.

o

o


(vs. PACKERS, 9/15)



Possessions: lllllllllllll, 10

Punts: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 3 l

Fumbles: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllt 1

Clock Ran Out: llllllll,) 1

Missed FG's: lllllllllllllllll 1

TD's: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllt 1

FG's: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllt 3 ) (1 Off of a Turnover on Downs)

o

o


In my worthless opinion, the results were much better than the defense's actual play ...... I thought that the Colts' defense was horrible in the 1st half, and decent in the 2nd half.

5 stops in 10 possessions and 16 points ceded sounds good, but I believe that it's misleading for anyone who didn't actually watch the game.

o

When I read the title to this "The Colts' Defense 2024 Season -

I expected to open the thread and find absolutely no posts whatsoever.

Colts have allowed 474 yards rushing through two games. Thats 75 yards more than the next worst team, the Carolina Panthers.

Thats with guys like Buckner, Stewart, Franklin, and Moore getting huge contracts.

It’s sickening.

o


(vs. BEARS, 9/22)



Possessions: lllllllllllllllllllllllll) 12

Punts: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllttt,, 3 l

INT's: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 2

Fumble Recoveries: lllllllltt 1

Clock Ran Out: lllllllllllllllllllll) 1

Missed FG's: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 1

Turnover on Downs: llllllllll, 1

TD's: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll))) 2

FG's: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll,,,,tt 1 ) Off of a turnover

o

o


(vs. STEELERS, 9/29)



Possessions: lllllllllllllllllllllllll, 11

Punts: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll)))) 3 l

Fumble: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 2

Turnover on Downs: llllllll,, 2

TD: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll ll) 3

FG: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll llll 1

o

o


(vs. JAGUARS, 10/06)


I missed almost the entire game. I only saw the 2 late TD bombs which turned a 34-20 deficit into a 34-34 tie, and the 3-and-out that the Colts' defense got in between ...... the 2nd-half numbers don't look good.


************************************


Possessions: llllllllllllllllllllllll) 12

Punts: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll))tt 2 l

INT: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll)) 1

Fumble: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll,, 1

Turnover on Downs: llllllll., 1

TD: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll llt 4

FG: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll llt 3

o

Well, the Jets just canned Robert Saleh. He had a pretty damn good defense in San Francisco before becoming NY's head coach.

I don't suppose the Colts will dump Gus and grab Saleh?

Watch Bradley's Tuesday presser.

He states that the defense got beat for big plays whether they played: cover-1, m2m, two deep and pressure (wtf pressure is I don't know, because it's not a coverage.

He states that the tackling was very poor.

Basically to me, he is blaming position coaches and or players for the defensive issues. Just because the defense was beaten in every coverage that he dialed up doesn't necessarily mean that was the correct coverage for the situation.

I'm not saying that there wasn't plenty of subpar play form the position players, with both tackling and coverage, but damn this guy is throwing everyone under the bus and not really taking any accountability.

I'm done with Bradley!

I don't know if you had a chance to watch the film, but he's mostly right. Whether he's throwing guys under the bus... I don't know, whatever. If he does coach-speak, we hate that. If he tells us what's what, we hate that, too.

-But Thomas's bomb was either Cross or Flowers (95% sure it was Flowers) not taking their deep-third and sitting on the out pattern. That's a mental fuck-up, not the call.

-Same with Kirk's bomb. If I remember right, Jones looked liked he had man but thought he had help over top. But Blackmon got caught looking at a crosser and and Kirk blew by.

-Both runs were fucking embarrassing. On the 19 yarder, which was set up by a 50-something yard punt return... JAX blocked it well, but Cross had a clean shot and tried to tackle him at the sternum and fell off, same thing with Womack, then Blackmon tried to help and whiffed or knocked Womack off.

-The long run, we had 9 in the fucking box. The front side gobbled up the fake to the full-back. The weakside, Cross crashed in and sealed the edge, so Bigsby had to cut upfield... Latu overpursues and slips a little, EJ Speed does the exact same thing... So now you have Cross, Latu, and Speed all stacked like dominos with one giant hole opened up. Bigsby stiff-arms the fuck out of Blackmon (another missed tackle) and he's gone.

-Final drive was also multiple missed tackles setting up the field goal. Plus there was zero pass rush all game and a couple more 20+ yard plays. Players complaining about how hot and humid it was.

-------

Here's the sense I'm getting with Bradley. I think his X's and O's are fine, but maybe he's got the nice guy thing going on like Reich did. And guys aren't uncomfortable enough when they fuck up. I hope not and it gets better.

The injuries suck, yes. And it will help a ton to get some of them back. But a lot of these fuck-ups are from your vet guys, too, not just backups.

One thing I liked about Eberflus was his "loafs" that he kept track of. No one wanted to get a "loaf", so effort was high. His defenses were also much better at tackling.

I am normally a patient person but Gus Bradley should be embarrassed to cash his paycheck at this point.

Hire Saleh or any warm body at this point. Shit canning Gus at this point is at least addition through subtraction as it cannot get much worse methinks.

Just sayin from afar...:eek:

If every personality in the media, plus former QBs are saying it is the easiest system to beat, AND Bradley refuses to "get cute" by trying adjustments, then he is clueless and needs to go.

Thank you for watching the film. You've confirmed most of what I saw watching the live broadcast.

The players are fucking up big time. But the buck stops with the DC. Maybe his system is just too confusing for young players? He must have mentioned 5 different coverage's in his presser. Maybe that's too many for these guys?

So are the players trash and just not good enough?

I had a boss tell me once, when I told him a piece of equipment that I had to work with was a POS. He told me "Yeah it may be a POS, but it's your POS, so make it work"!

Didn't Shaq Leonard say as much 3 seasons ago (under Bradley) when asked if he corrected teammates who fuck up? Didn't he say something to the effect of; it doesn't do much good to tell them they fucked up, when the coaches are praising their play?

they just cut flowers so hopefully that sends the right message. still the whole plan for the secondary was fucking dumb

o


(vs. TITANS, 10/13)


In the first half, all 10 points that the Titans scored were aided by the Colts' offense (an INT deep in their own territory), and the referees (a phantom illegal hands call on 3rd down, which would have forced a punt.)

On the Titan's first drive of the 2nd half, the Colts' defense was absolutely disgraceful by giving up a TD on a draw play on 3rd-and-19 from the Colt's 24-yardline.


************************************


Possessions: llllllllllllllllllllllllll 10

Punts: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 5

INT: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll),,lll 1

Clock Ran Out: llllllllllllllllllllll 1

TD: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll llt 2 ) (1 off of an INT, deep in Colts territory)

FG: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll llt 1

o

o


(vs. DOLPHINS, 10/20)



The Colts were playing against 2nd-string and 3rd-string quarterbacks (Tyler Huntley and Tim Boyle, respectively.)



Possessions: lllllllllllllllllllllllll 12

Punts: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllt 6

Fumble: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll.. 2

Turnover on Downs: llllllllt 1

Missed FG: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll. 1

TD: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll t, 1

FG: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lll 1

o

o


(vs. TEXANS, 10/27)



I thought that the Colts' defense played pretty well today ....... the offense gave away 7 points in the final seconds of the 1st half, and the defense forced a huge fumble late in the 4th quarter after the refs gift-wrapped the Texans a crucial 1st down deep in Colts territory.



Possessions: lllllllllllllllllllllllll 12

Punts: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllt 6

Fumble: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll.. 1

TD: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll ., 2 ) (1 Off of a turnover deep in Colts territory)

FG: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll l) 3

o

o


(vs. VIKINGS, 11/03)



I thought that the Colts' defense had an excellent 1st half.

They had a sub-par start to the 2nd half ...... then got a big INT early in the 4th quarter, followed by a much-needed stop 5 minutes later.

The Vikings finished it off with a TD late in the 4th quarter to put the game away.




Possessions: lllllllllllllllllllllllll 10

Punts: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll. 2

Fumble: lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll.. 1 ) (Scoop-6 for a TD)

INT: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll,, 2

Missed FG's: lllllllllllllllllllll,t)) 2

TD: llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lt 3

o

Hard to blame the defense, the offense couldn't stay on the field, those guys had to be worn out in the 4th quarter!

37 to 23 TOP. 22 more plays.