Thoughts and Review of Colts vs Saints

[Caleb3502]

I took notes during the game for the first time so maybe it will help me review the game better.  

 

Offense

 

Our offense did not look very good last night.  Red Zone woes continue.  Luck could not score a TD on the two minute drill towards the end of the first half. There is good news though, Reggie Wayne is back.  Reggie was out there for about ten plays and caught 2 passes.  Did not seem like he is slowing down at all.  I expect him to still play at a high level this season.  Dwayne Allen seems like he is getting back to 2012 form, catching a few passes and caught one for a third down conversion.  Luck was able to hook up with Fleener for a 21-yard touchdown.  On the next drive, Luck was intercepted by Kenny Vaccaro due to an under-throw to Fleener.  Luck was having trouble connecting with his receivers most of the game.  He missed T.Y. and Fleener towards the side and back of the end zone.  Luck overthrew Griff and T.Y. when they were open and T.Y. had a drop.  Luck tried to hit Hilton with a long pass but was nearly intercepted.  Offensive line was very porous.  Pocket was crashing down on Luck at times.  Luck stayed strong in the pocket and only endured one sack and one big hit which resulted in a penalty.  Moncrief looked good yesterday.  Had a nice catch and run to get decent yardage and had a 11-yard end-around run.  Griff was hauling every catch-able pass and had a nice grab for a first down on 3rd down.  He also had a nice long gain on a pass from Luck during the 2 minute drill.  Hakeem Nicks had a very nice catch in traffic by the goal line.  He is a big WR and should help our Red Zone issues this season (I know he had 0 TDs last year, but he is going to be a big help this year at WR).  Ahmad Bradshaw also had a nice pass towards the goal line.  But in both situations, the Colts could not capitalize and score a TD.  Da'Rick had a nice catch and juke move to gain 9 yards on the play.  Jack Doyle had a nice catch for a first down and Swoope also had a reception to move the chains.  Hasselbeck was intercepted on a throw to the end zone where he was targeting Josh Lenz.  But credit to the DB, he had very good positioning on the play.  Lenz caught a 22-yard pass over the shoulder from Chandler Harnish.  Tipton also caught a screen pass and was able to pick up a first down.  Harnish was sacked on 4th down towards the end of the game which ended the Colts chances of getting the go-ahead TD.   

 

Trent Richardson started off the game with two carries for 13 yards.  Both those carries came without using the Jumbo set.  Richardson was not able to gain many yards on other carries due to poor run blocking.  Trent did have a great 5-yard run where he had to juke and spin his way for 5 yards when he had basically no blockers.  Herron had a great game.  Had some nice carries early on.  Only negative from Herron was a -4 yard screen pass, which wasn't his fault, and he was stopped at the goal line on 4th & Goal.  Herron broke loose for a 43-yard scamper in the third quarter.  He displayed very good speed, explosiveness, and vision to see defenders and know where to run the ball.  Zurlon Tipton had a nice run for a first down and did a decent job carrying the ball.  

 

Defense

 

Our defense was not very good either.  Landry, Toler, and Butler played good defense for the starters, but they were about the only starters that performed well.  Not many passes thrown Vontae's way.  He did have a missed tackle, but so did many other Colts players.  D'Quell Jackson was not efficient in pass coverage and can not match up with athletic TEs that can run down the field and haul in passes.  Toler was allowing almost nothing thrown his way.  A lot of pass deflection and breakups and had good tackles and a hard hit.  Butler almost allowed a long gain but was able to break up the catch at the last second.  Landry had a nice diving pass deflection early on in the game.  Josh Gordy had an interception on a long pass from Ryan Griffin.  He should be a decent #4 CB.  The Colts could not stop the Saints on third down, they had a hard time getting them off the field.  Marcus Burley was decent, was able to deny a long pass to WR Nick Toon.  Jonathan Newsome and Andy Studebaker had great pass rush on a play that forced an Intentional Grounding.  Zach Kerr was also very good on defense, tackling HBs for a loss and also recorded a sack.  Henoc Muamba had a strip sack but was recovered by the Saint HB Travaris Cadet. Erik Walden also had a sack which brought up a long third down for the Saints where they had to settle for a FG.  Arthur Jones sustained a rib injury and Darius Butler sustained an ankle injury, but I don't think either injury is serious.  

 

Run defense was good at times, but also allowed big runs.  Luke McCown was able to run for 28 yards with a missed tackle by Butler.  Cam Johnson had a nice pursuit tackle where he ran from one side of the O-line to the other to record a tackle for no gain.  Kelvin Sheppard had a decent game and was making tackles.  Mike Adams picked up Mark Ingram on a 7-yard run and threw him to the ground.  He is still an aggressive safety even at his age.  Sergio Brown also had a nice hit but didn't show much else.    

 

Special Teams

 

Adam Vinatieri made his only field goal attempt of the game.  McAfee had two great punts in the first half.  One was a long punt with great hang time and another one landed inside the 10-yard line.  Dan Herron had one kick return the whole game and could only bring it out to the 15-yard line.  Not any punt returns except for one by Purifoy for no gain.   Josh Lenz also had a muffed punt, which was recovered by the Saints.    

 

Overall Performance

 

I think we can all agree this wasn't a very good game for the Colts.  But it's preseason and they still have time to work out mistakes.  

 

Offense MVP: HB Dan Herron - Very good game running the ball and solidified his spot on the 53 man roster 

Defense MVP: DL Zach Kerr - Very good defense and also earned a spot on the 53-man roster 

 

    

[Everyone]

Lucks dancing in this video, maybe that will cheer you up.

[OLD FAN MAN]

I took notes during the game for the first time so maybe it will help me review the game better.  

 

Offense

 

Our offense did not look very good last night.  Red Zone woes continue.  Luck could not score a TD on the two minute drill towards the end of the first half. There is good news though, Reggie Wayne is back.  Reggie was out there for about ten plays and caught 2 passes.  Did not seem like he is slowing down at all.  I expect him to still play at a high level this season.  Dwayne Allen seems like he is getting back to 2012 form, catching a few passes and caught one for a third down conversion.  Luck was able to hook up with Fleener for a 21-yard touchdown.  On the next drive, Luck was intercepted by Kenny Vaccaro due to an under-throw to Fleener.  Luck was having trouble connecting with his receivers most of the game.  He missed T.Y. and Fleener towards the side and back of the end zone.  Luck overthrew Griff and T.Y. when they were open and T.Y. had a drop.  Luck tried to hit Hilton with a long pass but was nearly intercepted.  Offensive line was very porous.  Pocket was crashing down on Luck at times.  Luck stayed strong in the pocket and only endured one sack and one big hit which resulted in a penalty.  Moncrief looked good yesterday.  Had a nice catch and run to get decent yardage and had a 11-yard end-around run.  Griff was hauling every catch-able pass and had a nice grab for a first down on 3rd down.  He also had a nice long gain on a pass from Luck during the 2 minute drill.  Hakeem Nicks had a very nice catch in traffic by the goal line.  He is a big WR and should help our Red Zone issues this season (I know he had 0 TDs last year, but he is going to be a big help this year at WR).  Ahmad Bradshaw also had a nice pass towards the goal line.  But in both situations, the Colts could not capitalize and score a TD.  Da'Rick had a nice catch and juke move to gain 9 yards on the play.  Jack Doyle had a nice catch for a first down and Swoope also had a reception to move the chains.  Hasselbeck was intercepted on a throw to the end zone where he was targeting Josh Lenz.  But credit to the DB, he had very good positioning on the play.  Lenz caught a 22-yard pass over the shoulder from Chandler Harnish.  Tipton also caught a screen pass and was able to pick up a first down.  Harnish was sacked on 4th down towards the end of the game which ended the Colts chances of getting the go-ahead TD.   

 

Trent Richardson started off the game with two carries for 13 yards.  Both those carries came without using the Jumbo set.  Richardson was not able to gain many yards on other carries due to poor run blocking.  Trent did have a great 5-yard run where he had to juke and spin his way for 5 yards when he had basically no blockers.  Herron had a great game.  Had some nice carries early on.  Only negative from Herron was a -4 yard screen pass, which wasn't his fault, and he was stopped at the goal line on 4th & Goal.  Herron broke loose for a 43-yard scamper in the third quarter.  He displayed very good speed, explosiveness, and vision to see defenders and know where to run the ball.  Zurlon Tipton had a nice run for a first down and did a decent job carrying the ball.  

 

Defense

 

Our defense was not very good either.  Landry, Toler, and Butler played good defense for the starters, but they were about the only starters that performed well.  Not many passes thrown Vontae's way.  He did have a missed tackle, but so did many other Colts players.  D'Quell Jackson was not efficient in pass coverage and can not match up with athletic TEs that can run down the field and haul in passes.  Toler was allowing almost nothing thrown his way.  A lot of pass deflection and breakups and had good tackles and a hard hit.  Butler almost allowed a long gain but was able to break up the catch at the last second.  Landry had a nice diving pass deflection early on in the game.  Josh Gordy had an interception on a long pass from Ryan Griffin.  He should be a decent #4 CB.  The Colts could not stop the Saints on third down, they had a hard time getting them off the field.  Marcus Burley was decent, was able to deny a long pass to WR Nick Toon.  Jonathan Newsome and Andy Studebaker had great pass rush on a play that forced an Intentional Grounding.  Zach Kerr was also very good on defense, tackling HBs for a loss and also recorded a sack.  Henoc Muamba had a strip sack but was recovered by the Saint HB Travaris Cadet. Erik Walden also had a sack which brought up a long third down for the Saints where they had to settle for a FG.  Arthur Jones sustained a rib injury and Darius Butler sustained an ankle injury, but I don't think either injury is serious.  

 

Run defense was good at times, but also allowed big runs.  Luke McCown was able to run for 28 yards with a missed tackle by Butler.  Cam Johnson had a nice pursuit tackle where he ran from one side of the O-line to the other to record a tackle for no gain.  Kelvin Sheppard had a decent game and was making tackles.  Mike Adams picked up Mark Ingram on a 7-yard run and threw him to the ground.  He is still an aggressive safety even at his age.  Sergio Brown also had a nice hit but didn't show much else.    

 

Special Teams

 

Adam Vinatieri made his only field goal attempt of the game.  McAfee had two great punts in the first half.  One was a long punt with great hang time and another one landed inside the 10-yard line.  Dan Herron had one kick return the whole game and could only bring it out to the 15-yard line.  Not any punt returns except for one by Purifoy for no gain.   Josh Lenz also had a muffed punt, which was recovered by the Saints.    

 

Overall Performance

 

I think we can all agree this wasn't a very good game for the Colts.  But it's preseason and they still have time to work out mistakes.  

 

Offense MVP: HB Dan Herron - Very good game running the ball and solidified his spot on the 53 man roster 

Defense MVP: DL Zach Kerr - Very good defense and also earned a spot on the 53-man roster 

good post

[King Colt]

Practice, practice, practice. They just look out of sink, much  like the 49ers.  I am worried only about the offensive line so far as the regualr season goes. We sure do have a super threat of receivers if the OL can keep Luck standing.

[Smash Mouth]

Its Year 3 of the Grigson regime and I can't decide if fan expectations are too high. I still see a roster that lacks real depth for a team that has its sights on gong deep into the playoffs.  When Grigson took over the roster was awful. It was essentially Reggie, Mathis, Brown and Bethea.  The roster is stronger now thanks to the 2012 draft.  But in 2013 and 2014 we get excited over a couple of guys that might break through.  Why aren't we seeing players emerge that were middle to late round picks in 2012 and 2013? from what I saw against NO, the defense still lacks anyone who is dynamic up front - Mathis' absence looms bigger and bigger.   the defense looks just average  We are fortunate that the Colts don't face elite QBs in the AFC South.

 

The OLine still sucks.  Pep has no choice but to spread the field, play up tempo, and ride Andrew Luck and the WRs.  Sprinkle in TRich who does block well enough. Forget the power running game - the OLine just doesn't get any push.

 

The RB position is an issue.  At some point this season, the Colts might have to rely upon Boom?  I get worried when we have to look at a couple of 5 and 8 yard gains to feel good about TRIch. 

[Smonroe]

Practice, practice, practice. They just look out of sink, much  like the 49ers.  I am worried only about the offensive line so far as the regualr season goes. We sure do have a super threat of receivers if the OL can keep Luck standing.

 

That's the bottom line.  If the O line can be a little better than average, the offense can dictate the game.  With all the weapons around Luck we'd be really hard to stop.

 

The defense doesn't have to be great.  Heck, if they could tackle it would be a plus.