An Interesting Stat Some Need To Take A Look At

[Jason_]

Yes it's still early but to this point (and clearly the Giants/Rams haven't played yet and the Eagles/Falcons stats haven't been included yet) the Colts' defense is tied with Green Bay at 11th in yards per rush allowed. Colts so far are giving up 3.6 yards per carry, which is better than the Steelers, Texans, Patriots, Lions, Bucs, Chargers, Bears and Eagles.

In total yards per game allowed we are much lower at #29 but this is going to be mostly due to how badly we're losing the time of possession battle.

[GoColts8818]

The defense has to get off the field on third down. That's what is killing us right now on both sides of the ball. The offense can't pick up a third down and the defense can't stop a third down.

[HitStick21]

The defense has to get off the field on third down. That's what is killing us right now on both sides of the ball. The offense can't pick up a third down and the defense can't stop a third down.

Ahem, Lacey.

[OLD FAN MAN]

Ahem, Lacey.

lacey is perfect for our "let them catch ,then tackle defense"

[chad72]

I started this observation 2 years ago stating that our pass D has regressed under Coyer even in 2009, our SB year. Previously, just our run D sucked with Ron Meeks but our pass D, even with Tim Jennings giving up an ungodly amount of completions (thanks to the cushion), did better overall. Still, our third down D percentage hasn't dramatically changed, unfortunately.

Nobody is afraid of any of the Colts corners now, even Powers, and they are of course picking on Jacob Lacey, our new Tim Jennings. When Ron Meeks had 2 quality DTs in the middle in Pitcock and Ed Johnson, our D was a top 5 D. We need play makers like Bob Sanders and Marlin Jackson in our secondary that bring a physical presence. Till that happens, we will still have issues getting off the field on 3rd downs with our current secondary.

[GoGoColts]

Yes it's still early but to this point (and clearly the Giants/Rams haven't played yet and the Eagles/Falcons stats haven't been included yet) the Colts' defense is tied with Green Bay at 11th in yards per rush allowed. Colts so far are giving up 3.6 yards per carry, which is better than the Steelers, Texans, Patriots, Lions, Bucs, Chargers, Bears and Eagles.

In total yards per game allowed we are much lower at #29 but this is going to be mostly due to how badly we're losing the time of possession battle.

The biggest problem with the defense right now is all the turnovers on offense. The defense is playing well in a lot of ways.

Coyer also does a bad job of making adjustments.

[Jason_]

Ahem, Lacey.

Between that and every time we ran the tampa 2 on 1st or 2nd down, we gave up on average over 8 yards per play. That led to a lot of 3rd and shorts and against a running back like Hillis, we're not going to win many of those. I will say they did a heck of a job on those 3rd and shorts but Hillis was simply too powerful. He's going to do that to a lot of teams though, not just us.

They need to play better on 1st and 2nd downs. Like I said in my other thread, when they didn't run Angerer deep into coverage they were only averaging about 4.5 yards per pass attempt. That alone is a huge improvement over the 8.6 yards per carry they allowed when they did run the tampa 2.

[GoColts8818]

Ahem, Lacey.

Sadly I think Lacey is our second best corner right now, Tryon got burned today too. I think corner might very well be our first pick next year. Lacey is a decent back up for an undrafted free agent and showed he can make a few tackles here and there and is good in run support. He's just not a starter on the outside. I noticed today several times we did play him up and he just can't cover guys. Someone pointed out on the radio today that every time a Browns WR lined up on Lacey they were putting their hand up to say hey I have a mismatch throw it my way. It's a long shot and I do mean long shot but maybe we should bring Marlin Jackson back to see if he has anything left after all those surgries. He knows the defense and if he can still play at all he would be an upgrade. With that said I don't think he has anything left because of all the work done on his knee.

[Jason_]

I started this observation 2 years ago stating that our pass D has regressed under Coyer even in 2009, our SB year. Previously, just our run D sucked with Ron Meeks but our pass D, even with Tim Jennings giving up an ungodly amount of completions (thanks to the cushion), did better overall. Still, our third down D percentage hasn't dramatically changed, unfortunately.

Nobody is afraid of any of the Colts corners now, even Powers, and they are of course picking on Jacob Lacey, our new Tim Jennings. When Ron Meeks had 2 quality DTs in the middle in Pitcock and Ed Johnson, our D was a top 5 D. We need play makers like Bob Sanders and Marlin Jackson in our secondary that bring a physical presence. Till that happens, we will still have issues getting off the field on 3rd downs with our current secondary.

I agree with the majority of this. I will say though that I think we're good at safety...not great mind you, I do think we could upgrade Bullitt or at least bring someone in to compete with him. Our biggest need in the secondary (and possibly overall...I still flip flop back and forth between CB and NT) is a #1 CB. I think bringing in an elite CB to be the #1 and move Powers to #2 and let Lacey, Tryon, Rucker and Thomas compete for the backup and nickel role(s).

[Jason_]

Sadly I think Lacey is our second best corner right now, Tryon got burned today too. I think corner might very well be our first pick next year. Lacey is a decent back up for an undrafted free agent and showed he can make a few tackles here and there and is good in run support. He's just not a starter on the outside. I noticed today several times we did play him up and he just can't cover guys. Someone pointed out on the radio today that every time a Browns WR lined up on Lacey they were putting their hand up to say hey I have a mismatch throw it my way. It's a long shot and I do mean long shot but maybe we should bring Marlin Jackson back to see if he has anything left after all those surgries. He knows the defense and if he can still play at all he would be an upgrade. With that said I don't think he has anything left because of all the work done on his knee.

I wouldn't see any reason not to consider a 1 year deal like they did with Brayton, Anderson, Sims and Harris. Not sure what jackson has left and even if he does have anything left, not sure it's going to help in the overall scheme of things this year.