9/26 indystar

[JAFF]

Doyel: Indianapolis Colts have a rising star, and his name is Shane Steichen

Doyel: Indianapolis Colts have a rising star, and his name is Shane Steichen
Gregg Doyel
Indianapolis Star







Do you remember where you were, when you fell in love? I do. It was Sunday afternoon, roughly 2 p.m. – OK, it was 2:03 p.m. on the dot – and I was watching the Indianapolis Colts play the Baltimore Ravens.

Colts ball, fourth-and-goal from the 7. Indianapolis coach Shane Steichen does that thing he does, sending out his field-goal team and then changing his mind and rushing his quarterback back onto the field. He did it last week against Houston, forcing the Texans to use one of their timeouts, then nodded and gave a thumb’s up – his work here done – and returned the kicking team for a field goal.

He was doing it again Sunday at Baltimore, fourth-and-goal from the 7, Colts kicker Matt Gay preparing to kick a 26-yard field goal, when quarterback Gardner Minshew II comes hurrying back onto the field – forcing Ravens coach John Harbaugh to call a timeout.

Shane Steichen, Colts head coach, on Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023, at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
Follow me, because it’s about to get really weird.

Baltimore calls timeout, as I’ve said, so Steichen gives up the charade and puts his kicking team back onto the field. He’s achieved what he wanted to achieve, costing the Ravens one of their three timeouts, so here’s Gay again, lining up for his 26-yard WAIT A MINUTE WHAT’S HAPPENING NOW?


Minshew is leading the Colts offense back onto the field, and the kicking team is coming off, and it’s hilarious and the Baltimore crowd is murmuring and what on earth? That’s how it feels to you and me and 70,038 fans at M&T Bank Stadium and the announcers on CBS, but John Harbaugh’s been around the block a few times. He knows NFL rules allow him a counter-substitution here, so he summons the biggest, slowest player on his roster – 6-7, 309-pound defensive tackle Brent Urban – to enter the game.

Urban leaves the sideline, heads for the line of scrimmage, and he’s just … barely … moving.


Now the play clock is ticking below 10 seconds, below five, below 3-2-1 … flag. Delay of game on the Colts. Steichen’s subterfuge doesn’t work a second time, so he makes another line change – his third or fourth mass substitution of the play, not sure anymore, why are you asking – and pulls his offense off the field again. The kicking team returns, and Gay kicks what is now a 31-yard field goal.

That’s when it happens. Steichen is striding down the sideline, away from the line of scrimmage, away from the anarchy he has created, and he’s looking toward the Baltimore sideline. He makes eye contact with Ravens defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson, a friend from their days together on the Philadelphia coaching staff, and Steichen smiles.


Then he shrugs.

Almost immediately the Colts’ crack social media team edits that moment of national television magic into a five-second clip, and shares it on the team’s official Twitter site. The clip posts at 2:03 p.m., and I’m not afraid to say this: I was in love.

And so were you.


Inside a key team meeting and changes inFootball nerd Shane Steichen getting Colts to believe

Managing the Jonathan Taylor snakepit

He’s getting more comfortable here. Shane Steichen is, I’m saying. He’s growing into his role as head coach in the NFL, and you can imagine what a shock that move must be at first. He goes from the shadows of Philadelphia, where he served as offensive coordinator – quick, what do you know about Colts OC Jim Bob Cooter other than his giggly name? – to the spotlight in Indianapolis, one of 32 NFL head coaches in the world, the centerpiece of a multiple press conferences weekly.

Steichen goes from doing whatever Eagles coach Nick Sirianni wants to doing what he wants, and having a say over any damn thing he likes. Steichen takes it seriously, helping with details as small as the pictures on the wall around the team’s facility on 56th Street to details as large as hiring a staff. He spent days just on the hire of Tony Sparano Jr. as his offensive line coach, and there were close to two dozen more hires.


The Shane Steichen who showed up here was stiff, guarded, robotic – and again, this is me shouting: I understand! That Shane Steichen, bless his heart, walked into a rattlesnake pit of Jonathan Taylor’s creation, facing questions that grew louder and angrier about the immediate fate of one of the best players on his team.

That version of Shane Steichen, bless him, tried to have it both ways.

Steichen’s a nice guy. Don’t be fooled by his Ichabod Crane look, all long limbs and dark features and severe facial expressions. Steichen can still be that guy – more on that in a minute, and Jonathan Taylor, I’d suggest you pay attention when we get there – but a coach like Steichen, one without name recognition when he enters the profession, doesn’t rise the NFL ranks this far, this fast, without an abundance of brains and charisma.

So Steichen steps into the JT nightmare, and he steps in it and he steps in it, because he’s trying to have it both ways. He probably doesn’t understand what on earth Taylor is thinking, and he definitely doesn’t want to share what little he does know with the world, so he tells reporters unhelpful things like, “Right now he’s on this football team” and “when the medical staff clears him he should be out there.”



That was training camp, when Steichen was still settling in. Now? These are his news conferences, and he’ll say what he wants, and we can deal with it. A few days ago, tired of being asked after every game if Taylor was somewhere in attendance, he said he wouldn’t take any more questions on the subject until Taylor comes off the Physically Unable to Perform List.

But there was a reporter on Monday, doing what we do – wasn’t me, but I’m not clowning the reporter for trying – and asking if Taylor was in Baltimore for the game.

“Like I said,” Steichen said, “I’m going to refrain from getting into that stuff about J.T. He’ll be off PUP in (a few) weeks and I’ll take questions then.”

He didn’t smile. Didn’t even give us a shrug.

Loved it anyway.

He's a goofball, and he's dead serious

Steichen can be a goofball. You hear the story from The Price is Right? Steichen and some high school buddies from Sacramento went to the studios in Los Angeles about 20 years ago to see if they could get onto the show. And Steichen did! They’re in the audience with nametags on their shirt when the show’s announcer bellows:

Shane Steichen, come on down!

Steichen’s bounding down there to contestant row and making bids on whatever’s for sale. He never makes a winning bid to advance onto the stage with Bob Barker, but can you imagine? Shane Steichen, contestant, The Price is Right?

Whatever Colts owner Jim Irsay paid for the guy, he got a bargain. That’s the only way to look at this, three games into the season. The Colts are 2-1, in first place in the AFC South after stunning Baltimore in Baltimore, and I wasn’t wrong during the preseason when I called this roster the worst I’ve seen since getting here in 2014.

Steichen has maximized what he has. This is like watching a game of blackjack, seeing some poor sap draw an eight and a seven, and win with 15 anyway. Twice in three hands!

And the players already love the guy. He gave everyone in the locker room a game ball after the win last week at Houston, their first win of the season, but the room came unglued when DeForest Buckner gave Steichen a game ball to commemorate his first win as an NFL coach.



Players aren’t so different from sports writers. We love charm, yes, and we love discipline. We love straight shooters who speak their truth with sincerity, and Steichen’s doing it. It’s little things like saying no to any more Jonathan Taylor questions, and bigger things like replacing starting cornerback Darrell Baker Jr. – not just benching him, but de-activating him – with rookie JuJu Brents, and enormous things like cutting unproductive running back Deon Jackson after two games.

(Technically Colts general manager Chris Ballard cut Jackson, but Steichen’s fingerprints were on that move as well.)

He’s not fooling around, Steichen, and this is where I’m suggesting Jonathan Taylor pay close attention. This man does not care what you did two years ago, Taylor, nor should he. Two years ago he was helping prepare the Eagles for a Super Bowl run. Two years ago Taylor was leading the NFL in rushing but not leading the Colts into the playoffs. And the thrift-store discovery the Colts are playing at running back, Zack Moss, just ran for 122 yards on 30 carries against Baltimore.



If I’m Taylor’s agent – that moron – I’m urging Taylor to get back into the building daily, back on the sideline for games, and back into the good graces of a head coach who’s getting more and more comfortable in his surroundings. Steichen is stealing timeouts from a rookie coach like DeMeco Ryans of Houston and a Super Bowl winner like John Harbaugh of Baltimore. He’s redecorating the Colts’ facility, answering only the questions he wants to answer, and taking zero grief from any of us.

Colts fans are falling in love – check the response to that Colts’ tweet of his Sunday shrug – and I must say, they have exquisite taste.

[JAFF]

Insider: Why beating Lamar Jackson is a sign of how far Colts pass rush has come

BALTIMORE — The Colts defensive line faced a measuring stick on Sunday: Lamar Jackson.

The most electric running quarterback in the league. A darting, dashing devil of a target in the pocket. A nightmare for defensive linemen to corral, much less bring down for a sack.

The perfect test for this Colts defensive line, a group that is supposed to finally realize general manager Chris Ballard’s long-held, if never realized, vision for the Indianapolis pass rush.

“We’re eight, nine deep of guys that can rush the passer and play the run,” Colts middle linebacker Zaire Franklin said. “I definitely feel like we’ve got one of the best units in the league.”


Ballard has always talked about that goal, about wanting a defensive line deep enough to send eight or nine rushers in waves after quarterbacks, keeping everybody fresh deep into the closing moments of the game.

Two seasons ago, the Indianapolis general manager stripped the line down to his two studs, defensive tackles DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart, and used his first two picks on defensive ends Kwity Paye and Dayo Odeyingbo, the start of a vision he hoped the Colts would realize down the line.

But there was short-term pain from that decision.

Indianapolis Colts defensive tackle Taven Bryan (96) forces a fumble by bumping the ball out of the hand of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) that was recovered by Indianapolis Colts defensive end Kwity Paye (51) on Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023, at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
‘Anthony is our guy’:Richardson will start when ready but still in concussion protocol

None hurt worse than the last time Indianapolis traveled to Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium to take on Jackson and the Ravens. A Colts team with its back against the wall after a slow start hit the Ravens hard to start the game, only to allow Jackson to come roaring back in the second half and overtime, directing four consecutive touchdown drives to pull off a comeback for the ages.


The pass rush could have kept Jackson from pulling off his miracle that night. One sack, one stop in the second half likely would have sealed it for the Colts.

That night, the play never came.

“Finishing, that’s been our biggest thing,” Buckner said.


The truth is, the Colts didn’t have the horses to slow down Jackson that night. Buckner and Stewart, the defense’s two best players for the past couple of seasons, were there, but they had little help on the outside.

Paye, a rookie, was hurt. Odeyingbo was still recovering from an Achilles surgery. The LEO position played by Samson Ebukam, the role for a speed rusher off the edge, didn’t truly exist in former coordinator Matt Eberflus’ defense.


Al-Quadin Muhammad led Colts defensive ends with 60 snaps played in that 2021 game; he’s now on the practice squad. Tyquan Lewis played 59. The rest of the defensive end snaps went to Kemoko Turay (31) and Ben Banogu (12), a pair of speed rushers who never lived up to their second-round billing in Indianapolis due to injury (Turay) and ineffectiveness (Banogu).

Indianapolis couldn’t get any pressure on Jackson down the stretch that night. Even with Jackson rolling around, extending the play — the Ravens quarterback averaged 2.86 seconds from snap to throw that night, a number that indicates he was holding onto the ball a little longer than most NFL quarterbacks — the Colts didn’t record a single sack in the final four drives, failed to come up with any plays to stop Jackson’s momentum.

Fast-forward two seasons, to Sunday afternoon’s showdown in Baltimore, another underdog Indianapolis team trying to match Jackson blow-for-blow. The Ravens star made plays, to be sure — he rushed 14 times for 102 yards and two touchdowns, completed 22 of 31 passes for 202 yards, directed two go-ahead scoring drives in the middle of the second half.


But Indianapolis refused to let Jackson take over, to will his team to a win the way he’d done on that painful night two years ago, repeatedly giving a sluggish Colts offense chances to get back in the game after the Ravens staked a 17-16 lead.

Baltimore was driving again on the next series after that lead, facing a third-and-5 at its own 49, when Zaire Franklin came flying into a collapsing pocket and sacked Jackson, forcing a punt. The next series, the Ravens tried to run out the clock, only to send two runs into the waiting arms of Stewart, then seeing a short, creative play to Zay Flowers blown up by Paye.

Finally, Indianapolis tied the score, but there was time left on the clock for Jackson to work his usual magic.

And he almost did, firing enough strikes to set up a 61-yard field goal attempt for Justin Tucker. A kick that came up a couple of yards short.



Yards Tucker might not have needed if Paye hadn’t seen Jackson darting out of a collapsing pocket again, chased him down and dove to pull him down for a 10-yard sack with just 23 seconds left, placing Baltimore behind the sticks.

“You see him hit the ground and get frustrated,” Buckner said.

The Colts came up with two more stops in overtime, stops fueled by the pass rush and Jackson’s lack of comfort within the pocket, even though Baltimore’s game plan had its star quarterback getting the ball out of his hands in an average of 2.43 seconds Sunday, the kind of quick game that usually renders pass rushers ineffective.

Not this Indianapolis defensive line.

Not so far.

This time, the Colts gave 49 snaps at the defensive end position to Paye, a former first-round pick; 46 snaps to Ebukam, the team’s most expensive free-agent signing this offseason; 37 to Odeyingbo; 12 to Lewis; and eight to Jacob Martin, a veteran who has 17.5 sacks lifetime.



For once, Indianapolis didn’t have to ask Buckner and Stewart to make every single play up front.

“Grove and I were talking about it, we were kind of like, ‘Golly. … we kind of felt like we were just out there today,’’’ Buckner said. “Everybody else came alive.”

Ebukam strip-sacked Jackson in the first half to end one Ravens drive; veteran defensive tackle Taven Bryan was credited with another sack for pushing the pocket on a play where Jackson lost the ball for a key fumble deep in his own territory in the first half.

Bryan is in Indianapolis to keep Buckner fresh, something the Colts have long wanted to do.

“When you get 99, when you get Buck fresh in the middle of a drive … ain’t too many things scarier for an o-line than a fresh 99,” Franklin said.

The defensive line’s depth has kept the Colts attacking deep into games so far, the way Ballard always envisioned.



“We’re fresh, fresh as can be,” Ebukam said. “Everybody can just keep going.”

Indianapolis has 12 sacks now, tied for second in the NFL, even though the Colts have opened the season by playing Jacksonville and Baltimore, two of the league’s quickest-throwing offenses this season.

And the more the Indianapolis pass rush gets home, the harder it gets for opposing offenses to focus all of their attention on Buckner and Stewart, the go-to game plan for opposing offensive coordinators the past two seasons.

“The more guys keep doing it, the more confidence they start to gain, the more Grove and I will get freed up,” Buckner said. “They can’t just focus on us two in the middle.”

For the first time in a long time, the Colts look like they might finally have the depth to make the pass rush count this season.

To trade blows with a player like Jackson down the stretch.

[Oldcolt]

This article on the pass rush is why I believe we may not only have a shot at the playoffs but might do some damage. If you can pressure a QB you can win any game against anyone. It’s been freaking years but maybe Ballards investment in lineman is starting to finally pay off. Gotta keep improving

[Colts And Orioles]

Originally Posted by Oldcolt

This article on the pass rush is why I believe ) we may not only have a shot at the playoffs, but we might do some damage. ) If you can pressure a QB, you can win any game against anyone. It’s been freaking years, but maybe Ballard's investment in linemen is starting to finally pay off ...... gotta keep improving.

o


We've ALREADY done some damage ...... we beat the relocated Cleveland Browns and their extremely elusive quarterback.

I know that you were referring to doing so in the playoffs, but I couldn't resist that opportunity.

o

[CletusPyle]

Originally Posted by Colts And Orioles

o


We've ALREADY done some damage ...... we beat the relocated Cleveland Browns and their extremely elusive quarterback.

I know that you were referring to doing so in the playoffs, but I couldn't resist that opportunity.

o

Just because they changed the name doesn't mean they didn't steal a fucking franchise!

[Colts And Orioles]

Originally Posted by CletusPyle

Just because they changed the name, doesn't mean they didn't steal a fucking franchise !!! )

o


In fact, Art Modell had no intention of changing the name when they first moved to Baltimore ...... it wasn't until the city of Cleveland threatened to sue him and the NFL that he and Paul Tagliabue caved and took the path of least resistance, agreeing to the name-change.


This is a promo for Baltimore's new football team from the Baltimore Sun newspaper, in 1996.






o

[JAFF]

NFL power rankings: Colts move up as Rams visit in NFL Week

The Indianapolis Colts hold the AFC South lead as the Los Angeles Rams visit in NFL Week 4 action (1 p.m. ET Sunday, CBS).

The Colts (2-1) have won two straight road games, largely with Gardner Minshew at quarterback. Indianapolis scratched out a 22-19 overtime victory over the Baltimore Ravens one week after handling the Houston Texans.

The Rams (1-2) are coming off a 19-16 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night. Quarterback Matthew Stafford was under siege after his left tackle, Alaric Jackson, left the game with a thigh injury. Cincinnati teed off on substitute Zach Thomas. Guard Joe Noteboom also left the game with an injury.


Surprisingly, the Rams defense has forced just 1 turnover.

Inside IndyStar: Talking Colts football with reporters Nate and Joel

Insider:Why beating Lamar Jackson is a sign of how far Colts pass rush has come

NFL power rankings: Where the Colts stand

Eric Edholm, NFL.com: 28th, up 2 places from last week


It would have been easy to look at the Colts to start the season, especially after the Jonathan Taylor drama crested, and wonder if last season’s nightmare ever ended. But since the competitive loss in Week 1, the Colts have won impressively on the road in back-to-back games. The Utah duo of Zack Moss and Matt Gay were big heroes in the overtime win at Baltimore, but so was a defense that made big stops and cranked up the pressure. The big surprise Sunday was how much the Colts blitzed (40% blitz rate), something they typically do more selectively. But these are important victories for a club that has had to repeatedly lick its wounds in recent years. The Colts are growing thicker skin now.

Frank Schwab, Yahoo: 19th, up 8 spots


There was so much going on in the NFL on Sunday that the Colts' win might be overlooked. They went on the road against a 2-0 Ravens team, without quarterback Anthony Richardson and running back Jonathan Taylor, and got the first huge win of the Shane Steichen era. Is it possible this will be the 2023 AFC South champion?

Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News: 24th, up 2 positions


They are the first place team in the AFC South without Jonathan Taylor and Anthony Richardson, showing that Shane Steichen's offense can be special. Their defense is also compensating well for holes vs. the pass.

Conor Orr, Sports Illustrated: 19th

Just a beautifully designed offense in combination with a team that is seemingly unafraid. Shane Steichen, at every stop, has maximized his personnel. We’re seeing that now in Indy where a sort of patchwork group of players was smushed together and who now look like they have a purpose. Defensively, the Colts also stepped to the plate. Big tackles from the likes of E.J. Speed, among others, stifled critical drives.

Pete Prisco, CBS Sports: 14th, up 10 places

Beating the Ravens on the road is a good look for this team, which is in first place. Doing it with a backup quarterback in Gardner Minshew makes it even more impressive.


Will Anthony Richardson play?

Colts coach Shane Steichen says Anthony Richardson is the QB1 when he passes concussion protocol. The Colts won't know whether Richardson is available until later in the week. If he can't go, Gardner Minshew, who led the Colts in their overtime win over the Baltimore Ravens, gets another start.


Who is Puka Nacua?

The 5th-round NFL Draft pick out of BYU has become the Rams' go-to receiver with Cooper Kupp sidelined, and has 30 receptions for 338 yards. The 22-year-old from Las Vegas is the younger brother of former NFL safety Kai Nacua.

Colts key players

Gardner Minshew (66.7% completions, 398 yards, 2 TDs, sacked 5 times); Anthony Richardson (63.8% completions, 279 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, sacked 4 times; 75 rushing yards, 3 TDs); Zack Moss (210 rushing yards in 2 games, 4.4 yards per carry, 1 TD); Michael Pittman Jr. (25 catches, 230 yards, 1 TD); Josh Downs (15 catches, 124 yards); Zaire Franklin (45 tackles); Kwity Paye (3 sacks); Matt Gay (6-of-6 FGs, 4 from 50+ yards); Isaiah McKenzie (5 punt returns, 13.6 yards per).

Rams key players

Matthew Stafford (60.3% completions, 910 yards, 2 TDs, 4 INTs, sacked 7 times); Kyren Williams (142 rushing yards, 3.6 per carry, 3 TDs); Puka Nacua (30 catches, 338 yards), Tutu Atwell (17 catches, 246 yards, 1 TD); Ernest Jones (28 tackles, 4 for loss); Brett Maher (9-of-11 field goals, 1-of-3 from 50+ yards).

Colts, Rams injury report

Come back here for team practice reports starting Wednesday.

Colts vs. Rams betting odds

Via BetMGM

Favorite: Colts by 1 point

Over/under: 46.5 total points

Moneyline: Colts -120, Rams 100

Will the roof be open for the Colts game?

The Colts have not decided if the Lucas Oil Stadium roof will be open Sunday. The forecast is for sunny skies and a high of about 80 degrees. The roof was closed for the Colts' season opener under similar conditions.