What Can Colts Accomplish In Last Two Games?
INDIANAPOLIS — Their exclusion from the playoffs now reality, the Indianapolis Colts had to return to work this week with a different mindset about playing two more games before calling it a season.
Second-year head coach Frank Reich has to tell players something, so of course he emphasized that these games aren’t “meaningless.” His passionate plea focused on how the Colts (6-8) could still salvage some semblance of momentum by winning Sunday at home against Carolina (5-9) and then in the season finale a week later at Jacksonville (5-9).
He astutely acknowledged that the character and professionalism of his players will be under the proverbial microscope because his guys are paid to do a job regardless of the circumstances. Reich doesn’t anticipate seeing anybody “let down” because the Colts can no longer achieve their original goals of making the playoffs and competing for a championship.
But let’s be honest about what these final two games mean: Not much.
That’s a sobering bottom line to the position this team finds itself in, but it’s the truth. Should the Colts win both games to finish 8-8, it’s a positive finish to a roller coaster year, but it’s not going to make anyone forget the shortcomings that led to this season falling short.
If quarterback Jacoby Brissett finally plays better after several weeks of missing open targets and failing to make clutch plays, should fans be more encouraged about him moving forward?
That’s an unequivocal no. Brissett defined himself in the games that mattered most. We’ve seen what we need to see from him and it would be a mistake to suggest that these last two games could be a referendum on whether Brissett should remain the starter entering 2020.
The Colts will probably stick by him because they gave Brissett a two-year extension after Andrew Luck retired, which means general manager Chris Ballard and Reich want nothing more than for Brissett to prove that faith isn’t misplaced.
But again, momentum doesn’t carry over from one season to the next if this team wins or loses these last two games. The epitaph has been written, like it or not, and it reads quite simply: “The Colts weren’t good enough.”
It’s not all because of Brissett, of course. As New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees showed a primetime audience in Monday night’s 34-7 rout, the Colts defense still needs work, too.
The secondary couldn’t defend anyone, which is a rather disturbing truth this late in the season. That Brees was able to set a league record by completing 29 of 30 passes, whether he faced blitzes, man-to-man looks or zone coverages, magnifies the significance of the Colts’ shortcoming. Admit it, the Colts look lost and hopeless just as much on defense as offense.
Reich tried to take the blame for the one-sided showing, as NFL coaches often do, saying he didn’t do his job well enough to have his players properly prepared. But blaming this all on coaching would be unfair because it suggests that if they did their jobs better this ugly loss could have been avoided.
Again, that’s too much of a reach.
Injuries took their toll, including Brissett’s play taking a nose dive after he suffered a left MCL knee sprain at Pittsburgh, a 26-24 loss on Nov. 3. That’s when this season turned irreversibly bad. That’s when the Colts started this late-season fade with six losses in seven games.
But the reality is the Colts still could have won that game, one of 11 one-score outcomes that saw them go 5-6 in these close calls. Adam Vinatieri was playing hurt with a left knee injury that will require surgery and ultimately landed him on injured reserve. Again, it’s unfair to blame it all on kicking, although Vinatieri’s career-worst 14 misses played a significant factor in how this season played out.
What we’re left with in these final two weeks is a lot of looking forward, regardless of these outcomes, with several questions that need to be answered in the offseason.
The verdict on Brissett is still worth debating, although as stated, the Colts likely stick by him, which could sentence the 2020 team to another season of mediocrity. But aside from that question, what about the secondary? The Colts have some promising, young players on defense, but they still need guys who can cover. Without them, as Brees showed, it doesn’t matter what scheme the defense is trying to play.
The Colts also were reminded late in the year that they couldn’t just rely on a strong rushing game to get the job done. Because opposing defenses stacked the box to take away that ground game late in the season, the Colts have dropped to ninth in rushing offense at 127.1 yards per game. Still a respectable number, but it underscores how a 27th-ranked passing attack must improve.
To that end, the Colts are also in dire need of play-making pass catchers. Four-time Pro Bowl wide receiver T.Y. Hilton is still a solid player, but he’s been hurt in each of the past two years and the loss of other targets proved costly.
Ballard tried to shore up those ranks by signing wide receiver Devin Funchess to a one-year deal and drafting wide receiver Parris Campbell in the second round. But, as we all know, Funchess was lost for the season late in the opening game to a broken collarbone and Campbell endured a sports hernia, fractured hand and then fractured foot before landing on IR.
So it’s back to the drawing board at that position, which also likely means finding another tight end to replace Eric Ebron, who ended up on IR with ankle injuries after falling far short of his 2018 Pro Bowl season.
Before forgetting the numbers, it’s worth noting the Colts ranked ninth in rushing defense but 21st in passing defense. So Ballard must juggle trying to find more talent on defense with needing to bolster that pass-catching group.
What happens next is a question not to be asked as it pertains to two more regular-season games. It’s a lingering question that will last throughout the offseason as everyone wonders if the Colts can find enough pieces to at least show some modest form of improvement in 2020.
