Colts' Biggest Underachievers - Latest NFL Power Rankings
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The Indianapolis Colts dropped a tight 17-16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, that might have also dropped them out of playoff contention.
Despite losing a one-point game to their No. 2 ranked team, ESPN saw fit to move the Colts down one spot to No. 22 in their latest power rankings.
Power rankings are relatively meaningless in the NFL, but the theme this week from ESPN was to identify the underachievers for each team.
At 4-6-1 this year, the Colts on the whole can be considered underachievers, but ESPN's Stephen Holder dug a little deeper.
The Colts relied too heavily on the theory that having three solid players on the offensive line could make up for weaknesses at left tackle and right guard. It turns out they were not only wrong about that, but they also overestimated the performance they'd get from their returning veterans.
The Colts have had a revolving door at left tackle, which is a recipe for disaster, as well as right guard. Add to that the stunning regression of Pro Bowl center Ryan Kelly and one of this team's perceived weaknesses has become a detriment to the entire offense.
The cascading effect can be seen in the drop in production by the Colts' top skill players, with running back Jonathan Taylor and wideout Michael Pittman Jr. experiencing respective career lows in yards per rush and yards per catch. -- Stephen Holder, ESPN
The Colts hope to have found an answer at left tackle in rookie Bernhard Raimann, but interim coach Jeff Saturday admitted earlier this week Raimann would still have plenty of rookie mistakes.
Right guard Will Fries was graded as the Colts' worst offensive player against the Eagles by Pro Football Focus with a lowly 41.9. His pass-blocking grade has been especially poor including a 23.5 against the Las Vegas Raiders last week.
Saturday said earlier this week that he has no plans to make a change to the starting five.
The offensive line more than any unit in football can be considered as strong as its weakest link. The Colts' offensive line has underachieved this season, but they're going to be counted on the last six games of the season to continue to develop and improve under former Colts center
