Colts need young defensive linemen to step up,

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https://www.indystar.com/story/sport...k/69495250007/

INDIANAPOLIS — DeForest Buckner has always been an iron man.

Buckner has missed only one game in his seven-year career due to injury, has played more than 77% of his team’s defensive snaps in every season despite going through injuries.

Only a few defensive tackles in the NFL can handle that kind of workload. The explosive bursts on every play, the constant wrestling and pulling and fighting puts an enormous strain on big bodies.

Even a guy like Buckner, who did not practice on Wednesday because of a hip injury, can use a blow every now and then.

“I feel like I have some of my more efficient games when there’s a little bit more of a rotation and I can feel fresh throughout the game,” Buckner said.


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Defensive coordinator Gus Bradley spent most of the offseason and training camp talking about the need for young pass rushers to emerge in order to build the kind of rotation that could send waves of rushers at opposing quarterbacks.

The Colts did the opposite in the opener against the Texans.

Buckner (86%), Yannick Ngakoue (81) and Kwity Paye (79) all played more than 79% of the 70 defensive snaps, and only five defensive linemen saw more than 20% — Grover Stewart (56) and Tyquan Lewis (46).


Backup nose tackle Byron Cowart saw 14 snaps, defensive end Ifeadi Odenigbo played 11, Eric Johnson and Dayo Odeyingbo played four and Ben Banogu was given two.

“We’d like to see more of a rotation, see some guys getting in there,” Bradley said. “You want to strive to get eight guys, where can play eight guys at any time.”

The Colts do not appear to be close to reaching that ideal in Week 2.


And the part that’s potentially more concerning is the reason for the heavy workloads.

“We’re looking at guys and trying to earn their trust so we can give them more reps,” Bradley said. “We’re still getting a feel for them, the combinations that are best in the game. The practice, how well they practice and earning the right to get reps on the field, the consistency where guys trusted them.”


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The Colts’ starters up front need the reserves to raise their level of play.

A handful of snaps on the sideline might be the key to unleashing a pass rush that didn’t produce a sack until the fourth quarter on Sunday and recorded just five quarterback hits.


“In certain situations, it’s obviously good for guys to catch their breath,” Buckner said. “All those plays accumulate, especially in the tail end, in the fourth quarter, overtime.”

A pass rusher can try to stay focused as long as possible.

The reality is that the toll all those snaps take on the body affects their effectiveness.

That’s why NFL teams typically rotate defensive linemen more than any other position, save for maybe running back or tight end, two more positions where the explosiveness and physicality wear down a player’s body quickly.

“If you’re not fresh, if your body’s extremely tired, you kind of do stuff, not out of the ordinary, but you go back to ‘Oh, I’m just going to long-arm this guy until the next snap so I can catch my breath,’” Lewis said. “You do things you wouldn’t normally do.”

The heat and humidity in Jacksonville will make playing a heavy percentage of the snaps more difficult.

The Colts’ young defensive linemen are going to have to play a bigger role.

“We’re going to try to lean more towards that this week to get them more reps,” Bradley said.

Buckner, Ngakoue and Paye need the backups to be ready.