Another terrible news hit the Colts head coach as Shane Steichen has sorrowfully announced…
The Indianapolis Colts had a great chance to seize control of the AFC wild card race on Sunday afternoon.
Rather, the Colts gave up one of their worst games of the year, losing 29-10 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium to the Atlanta Falcons. Indianapolis struggled to execute in every phase and had serious problems on both sides of the ball. The defeat ought to act as a wake-up call for a team that has playoff hopes directly ahead of them.
Head coach Shane Steichen stated following the defeat, “After a loss like that, we have to look at ourselves hard in the mirror, starting with myself, to get those things corrected.” “You go do what we did today after having a huge victory the week before. It is not ours to have. We need to clean it up quickly because we only have two guaranteed left.”
Following a thrilling victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers one week prior, the Colts appeared to be a team merely going through the motions when facing the Falcons. The Colts were dominated offensively from the outset since the offensive line was unable to provide any push during the run game or provide protection during the passing game. During the day, Indianapolis gave up six sacks and only managed to rush for 92 yards on 25 carries (3.7 ypc).
Gardner Minshew was expected to shoulder the burden. However, the lack of strong coverage, a running game, and the absence of his wide receiver, Michael Pittman Jr., proved to be too much for the backup quarterback to handle. Minshew completed with 201 yards and an interception on 20 of 37 passes (or 54%).
During the second half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew (10) passes under pressure from Atlanta Falcons linebacker Kaden Elliss (55).
Mercer, John David; USA TODAY Sports
Minshew went on, “You got to take what you can out of this and learn from it.” “There is a wealth of useful information available. It’s a game, you know, and I’m not sure if we tackled it with the appropriate zeal. You know, I believe it’s important for us to examine ourselves, become more focused, and decide how to take advantage of this opportunity that has been presented to us.”
The Colts’ defensive performance was equally poor. Before Sunday’s game, Taylor Heinicke, the starting quarterback for the Falcons in Atlanta, had a 0-2 record. Indy gave up 406 yards of total offense to that team. Of those 406 yards, Bijan Robinson accounted for 122, making him too much for the Colts to handle on multiple occasions.
The Colts’ defense was beset by missed tackles as Robinson and other players seemed to shake off defenders on every play. The Colts were not helped by coverage lapses either, as the Falcons took advantage of their errors. For his unit, Gus Bradley had no answers.
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“We didn’t reveal the juice,” said DeForest Buckner. “We went outside and gave each other a whooping. Warm regards to the Falcons. They won because they played hard and followed a great game plan today. We must improve for our own sake. It’s the minor elements. Missed tackles, for example. We committed too many defensive blunders. We just need to learn from our mistakes. I believe there were times when we could have taken them out and been in a strong defensive position.
In one of the Colts’ most significant games of the season, poor execution was the name of the game. It’s possible that this young team mistreated the Falcons all week based on the leaders’ remarks in the Colts locker room following the game. In exchange, they received a kick in the mouth and the realization that any NFL team can win on any given Sunday.
“I believe you began examining opportunities such as these, and you began to tally victories, perform schedule calculations, and take stock of your surroundings,” Minshew clarified. “They were defeated by Carolina, and we triumphed over the Steelers.” You have to go and earn it now; you know that. It’s important to treat this incident lightly because you might not get another one.
“It doesn’t work like that; everyone believes they have endless time and opportunities to make deep runs in the playoffs. We must make the most of them while we have them, and I’m looking forward to seeing how we react and present it the following week.
In the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson (7) goes up against Indianapolis Colts safety Nick Cross (20).
© USA TODAY Sports/John David Mercer
“Gardner said it so well, in my opinion: don’t take it for granted.”Zaire Franklin said it again. “Don’t take for granted the opportunity to play meaningful football and compete for a postseason berth in December. Just because you all think you’re better than a team doesn’t mean you should feel like you beat them on paper.
In this league, victory is elusive, and sadly, today was not one of those days. We still have two games to go, so on Wednesday we’ll get back to work in hopes of winning on Sunday.
In the end, the Colts’ lead in the AFC playoff race was not significantly diminished. Due to Sunday’s losses by the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans, the top three teams in the AFC South are still tied. With Sunday’s slate, the Colts are also the seventh seed in the conference.
However, the Colts won’t be in the postseason for very long if they keep playing softball against their opponents. For this team to qualify for the postseason, they cannot repeat the kind of performance they put on against the Falcons. Steichen is confident his team will recover despite their humiliation on the field.
Steichen acknowledged, “I feel really confident about the guys playing at home.” “We need to learn from this game and prepare for our big game against the Raiders next week, after which we must move on. There are two major ones approaching.
For the remainder of the game, the Colts have zero margin for error. Indianapolis will make the playoffs if they perform as they did against the Steelers. If they continue to play as they did against the Falcons, their season will end in just two weeks.
