Is Matt Eberflus to Blame for Colts' Defensive Struggles?
The Indianapolis Colts are in trouble in 2021. They now sit at a 1-4 record through the first five weeks, as this young season appears to be on life support already. One of the major reasons for this drop-off in play has been the struggles of the defense.
The Colts' defense ranked in the top ten in most major metrics last season, but has taken a noticeable step back in 2021. They are currently the 22nd ranked scoring defense in the league (25.6 points against per game) and are the 21st ranked defense overall, according to Pro Football Focus.
This drop in play was never more evident than on Monday night, when Lamar Jackson torched the team for 442 yards and four touchdowns passing.
With this noticeable decline in play, I decided to look at what the main issues of the defense are and how much of the blame falls on Defensive Coordinator Matt Eberflus.
He Certainly Deserves Blame
While this article will paint the issues as being a bit more nuanced, I also believe it is fair to point some fingers at the defensive coordinator. Despite his strong reputation and success in the past, Eberflus has made some notable mistakes this year.
One of the more questionable calls that completely changed the direction of a game came in week one against the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks had a 2nd and long with under a minute left in the first half. Instead of sitting back in either quarters or two-high man coverage, Eberflus calls cover-six.
This call essentially leaves safety Khari Willis on an island deep with one of the better receivers in the league in Tyler Lockett. While Willis could have certainly played this better, this is a prime example of putting an over-matched player in a position to fail (and for no reason).
Hindsight bias is certainly an aspect here, but this is just never a call that should have been made given the situation and the down. The result was a huge, game-changing big play to end the first half.
Now, let's look at the defensive collapse on Monday. The Colts' were noticeably short-handed late in the game, so some of the issues are easily explainable.
My biggest concern, however, was the repeated pounding the head into a wall with zone-blitzes. Eberflus attempted to vary his pass rushes by dropping defensive linemen into coverage and blitzing linebackers. The problem was that it just didn't work, at all.
And. He. Just. Kept. Trying. It.
I counted nine times in the second half alone that the Colts tried this. The Ravens always knew when it was coming and smartly attacked the middle of the field for positive gains. I don't mind Eberflus attempting something different, but at some point the realization has to come that dropping defensive linemen in coverage was hurting more than it was helping.
Then on top of these game issues, there's the broader issue of development. This doesn't directly fall on Eberflus, but it certainly reflects on his staff.
Chris Ballard spent three notable draft picks on edge rushers in the 2018 and 2019 NFL Drafts. The result is an adequate run stuffing defensive end (Tyquan Lewis), a flashy yet never consistent pass rusher (Kemoko Turay), and a bottom of the roster bench player (Ben Banogu).
While these are all misses at this stage of their careers, the Colts' defensive staff rightfully deserves some blame for the lack of development of these players. These were talented draft prospects that look exactly the same as they did coming out of college.
This is a problem area that is shared equally among the players, coaches, and front office. These three misses are a major reason why the Colts' boast one of the worst pass rushes in the league through five games.
Point Some Fingers at the Players
With much of the fan base pointing fingers at the coaching, I believe that there needs to be more fault assigned to the players. In a lot of these coverage breakdowns/miscues, the play-call was perfectly fine. It was just the defensive players failing to make a play.
The best example of this is the most egregious touchdown allowed by the team this year. The Colts forced a third and goal from the 10 late against the Tennessee Titans in week three. Eberflus called a cover-two zone, which should have been a fine call to stop what the Titans were doing.
Instead of executing his assignment, linebacker Darius Leonard opens to the inside and brings himself out of position as the flat defender. He is responsible for the running back in the flat, but he carries the deep route too far inside to make a play.
The result is a dump-off to the flats to the back, who easily beats Leonard to the goal line. Perfectly fine call, just terrible execution by a star player.
Another example of this came in the Titans' game. The Colts are in another third and goal situation, but this time they call man across the board. This coverage call leaves star corner Kenny Moore II one on one with Chester Rogers.
A call that should have been an easy win for the Colts on paper, ends up being a really bad touchdown allowed. Moore II gets cleanly beat by a receiver that he should have no problem with in man coverage.
It is hard to blame the defensive coordinator for either one of these touchdowns. These are simple coverages where star players on the defense are simply not getting it done.
The Final Answer Deserves Nuance
So, to answer the question above, Eberflus definitely deserves some blame for the Colts' defensive struggles. The blame isn't just his to own, though. This is a collective effort all around.
For the players, are there any defenders that are playing above their expected level thus far? Maybe Rock Ya-Sin (whom has been hurt the last two weeks)? The star players are simply not getting it done and not making the plays that they need to make.
From a coaching standpoint, there are definitely some things that can change in play-calling. The continual desire to put players in exploitable match-ups this year has certainly hurt the team. The many miscommunications and coverage breakdowns also have to fall back on the coaches as well.
The front office also deserves some blame too. The edge group is reliant on young players that either aren't ready or players who offer next to nothing as pass rushers. The lack of spending at that position, and at cornerback, deserve blame for this defensive pitfall.
Overall, the Colts' defense is simply not good enough right now. If the Colts have any hope in making the playoffs this year, something drastic has to change on that side of the ball. At the moment though, this is a major failure from the players all the way up to the front office.
Follow Zach on Twitter @ZachHicks2.
