The Colts finally snagged a W on Sunday, but let’s be real, it was an ugly one. This wasn’t some sloppy win against a cupcake opponent, either. This was an ugly victory against a legitimate good team, a type of win the Colts haven’t pulled off in a long time. Yeah, the Anthony Richardson era had its rough wins, like against Chicago and Miami back in 2024, but those were different. Never before have they battled through an ugly one like this against a genuinely strong squad. They used to get hot starts but crumble late. Not Sunday. This time, they actually made the plays when it counted most.
Houston’s 0-3 Defense Forced the Colts to Earn Every Yard
Forget their 0-3 record, because that Houston defense is something to fear. Seriously, those guys absolutely came to play. It felt like the Colts had to fight tooth and nail for every single yard they gained. Up front, they were just better, wrecking havoc in the backfield and really forcing the Colts to play a certain way, especially without Alec Pierce on the field. They run a lot of vision zone defense, or spot drop. They aren’t trying to match routes or pass guys off; they are just dropping to their landmarks based on where the quarterback’s eyes are. It’s tough to crack.
Daniel Jones’ Rollercoaster Performance
Daniel Jones had a real mixed bag out there. One of the biggest issues is he’s been drifting backwards in the pocket, getting himself into trouble before he even throws the ball. Quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes have elite arm strength that lets them get away with some of those throws without hitching, but even he gets into trouble sometimes. When Jones drifts, his tackles don’t know where the launch point is, so they think they’re riding the defensive end “around the hump” but actually just leading him right to the QB. Yet, Jones was fantastic in this game, moving those hook defenders off their spot to create throwing windows, especially late in the game when it truly mattered. That’s a great example of how he can beat elite vision zone defense. Reed Blankenship was reading Jones’ eyes in Cover 3, taught to drift based on where the QB looks. Jones worked his eyes closer to the sideline, and Blankenship melted outside. If Jones looked right at him, Blankenship would hold his landmark. It’s a next-level chess match out there. Still, there were some super weird reps, like when the Colts ran Snag + Basic, a concept they’ve done a million times. It’s designed to horizontally stretch the curl-flat player. This was a clear read to get the ball to the running back in the flat, but Jones hung on the snag route and then got stripped sacked at a crucial point.
Josh Downs’ After-Catch Magic Is Already Setting New Angles for Defenders
Josh Downs was absolutely fantastic in this game. He’s schematically limited as a player, mainly because of his size, but man, he owns his role better than anyone in football. Downs is just unbelievable after the catch. The Colts are running a second-level RPO here, with a glance route to put the WILL linebacker in conflict. Downs, after the catch, works back the other way on a lot of these in-breaking routes. I’m telling you, I’m already wondering how teams are going to defend that going forward. It’s definitely going to affect how future players take their tackling angles. Sometimes it won’t matter because Downs just has a natural feel for space, but he’s put this move on tape, so you know teams are going to be thinking about it all week.
The defense had a bounce-back game, but let’s take it with a grain of salt. A Nico Collinsless Texans offense just isn’t explosive. Other than CJ Stroud being very accurate, they really don’t do much else, which helped the Colts D look good. The Colts found a way to win, but they’ve got some real things to clean up if they want to build on this gritty victory. And everyone better be watching how Downs keeps making defenders look silly after the catch.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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