INDIANAPOLIS – Ten thoughts on the Colts’ 29-27 loss to the Texans in the season opener at Lucas Oil Stadium:
1. Another opening game ended winless. This has now happened every year since 2013, and this time it happened in predictable ways (secondary issues) and unpredictable ways (run defense issues, offensive line issues).
We’ve had a lot to digest about the starting quarterback, who is making his first start in nearly a calendar year; a pass rush that looks versatile, creative and entertaining; a secondary that is even thinner than I imagined at the start of the season; and much more.
How did Anthony Richardson play in the season opener?
2. This was the full Anthony Richardson experience.
We saw some smooth runs, both on designed sweeps to force good tackles from smaller defenders that often missed, and on scrambles when the Texans covered his receivers. His fourth-down touchdown scramble through multiple defenders was simply masterful.
We saw the absurd talent of the arm on the 55-yard postbomb to Alec Pierce, where Richardson slipped on his dropback, recovered, and threw a perfect rainbow into the end zone with his back foot.
The patchy accuracy was evident when he airmailed a potential touchdown to Adonai Mitchell in the red zone.
And we’ve seen risky decisions, like when he forced a pass up the middle late on a down and was lucky to have a linebacker drop him.
Anthony Richardson’s stats
3. Richardson finished 9 of 19 for 212 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception and a rating of 101.2. It was as up and down as that line suggests.
It’s a roller coaster, and one made of wood with some wobbly moments rather than a steel one that you ride for fun. The important thing is that despite taking some big hits on sacks and designed runs, he came out healthy. He’s created a lot to be excited about and a lot more to correct in the lab with the trainers.
It is notable that he is the youngest starting quarterback in the NFL for the second year in a row. This was his 18th.th since high school. So prepare for chaos. But that’s more fun than stopgap options that can’t create explosive plays or hope for the future, right?
4. The most fascinating thing about this game for me was seeing Anthony Richardson match up with Jonathan Taylor in the running game, in a scheme that Shane Steichen kept secret all preseason. The two didn’t share a single handoff last season, but they form one of the most physically imposing backfields the league has ever seen, with two players who weigh at least 225 pounds and can run a 40-yard dash in under 4.4 seconds.
I have to say it was underwhelming, not because of those two, but because the offensive line got so little movement, especially for Taylor. I thought Taylor had some smart and decisive cuts and starts and stops to create space where there was none, and yet he finished the game with 14 carries for 45 yards and a 3.2 yard average.
The Colts’ enthusiasm for running has brought a little more explosiveness to their passing game. They just never really got into the running game and stayed behind for far too long.
5. The Colts’ entire scheme was a bit of a mystery, and that was intentional. The Colts didn’t want to show what they could do this preseason, and they never had a chance to game plan for a healthy and fit Richardson and Taylor, and the Richardson they had last season was the rookie they wanted to isolate and put in easy-to-handle situations.
The script of the game was about setting a tone with the read option game between Richardson and Taylor and building explosive shots around that.
The 60-yard touchdown to Pierce was a great example of that tempo, with Steichen responding to a run-heavy early script by substituting Ashton Dulin and Drew Ogletree as obvious running personnel to draw the safety into the box, freeze the defensive backs with the play fake, and rely on Pierce to finish off the cornerback on his favorite route.
Texans running game dominates the Colts
6. One thing I didn’t expect at all in this game was that the Texans attacked the Colts like crazy. They managed 212 yards at 5.3 yards per carry, and they did that by running Joe Mixon up the middle and around the edges, by creating reverses, by running Stroud. They did what they wanted.
I think the Colts rotated too much up front and put players like Taven Bryan out there who aren’t suited to the running game. That kept their players out of rhythm and the Texans’ offensive line was always in a bind on their downhill runs and they just couldn’t recover.
That has to change, because if the only area Chris Ballard is investing in during the offseason is the defensive line, then it cannot be the weakness that causes the team to trail for long stretches of a game.
How did Laiatu Latu play in his Colts debut?
7. I was intrigued to see how Laiatu Latu would fare in his first NFL game after immediately and consistently looking like he belonged throughout a training camp and preseason. But the real games are always different, and the challenge against 300-pound, four-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil was daunting in every sense of the word.
His main task on his debut was to attack at 3rd– and 6 or more, with Tyquan Lewis starting and looking good on the run and pass. Latu forced Tunsil into two false starts on third downs and also beat him to a pressure on his first official run.
I wonder if this is a warm-up phase for him and if they will use him more and more as the season goes on.
8. The inactive players report was interesting this week as the Colts decided to leave Blake Freeland and Dallis Flowers off the roster. Both had a really rough preseason, but the Colts didn’t add any additional depth to those two premium positions. An injury today could have put some young players in really vulnerable positions.
That injury didn’t happen, but the Colts still could have used another cornerback when the Texans targeted Jaylon Jones. The position is inherently fickle and confidence can fluctuate. After allowing a completely free pass after the Colts’ pass rush took CJ Stroud out of the game on third down, Jones came back a few plays later with an illegal contact penalty to nullify Kenny Moore II’s tackle. That’s a panic play.
If Flowers isn’t physically ready to continue playing with his Achilles ailment (and he doesn’t appear to be), someone else will have to step in to save these young cornerbacks from themselves.
9. My impression is that the Colts’ coaches understood what we said here in the preseason: Flowers and Freeland don’t seem physically suited to this level right now. It’s just odd that they came to this conclusion and didn’t put anyone else on waivers, even though they were looking to sign a special teamer in Samuel Womack and released an experienced cornerback in Darrell Baker Jr.
This situation will be a constant throughout the season. The Colts have 16 games left and the odds of never having injuries at two tackle positions and two outside cornerback positions are fantastic.
10. This end of the first half was one of the most embarrassing refereeing moments I can remember. They initially ruled it a catch by Dalton Schultz when he fumbled the ball on the way down, but after a review, the spike that the Texans got to get a field goal attempt was negated. After messing up the clock, they reset it to 5 seconds and started the clock seemingly at random, and Houston didn’t get a play.
Given the way Ka’imi Fairbairn hit his kicks from over 50 yards, that sequence saved the Colts three points. And it was just one example of how much has become rusty and out of whack in Week 1, including among the referees.
See you next week in Green Bay, a suddenly important game for the Colts as they look to avoid an 0-2 start.
Contact Nate Atkins at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @NateAtkins_.
