The Real Issue...

[Restored]

The Colts running game hasn’t been able to consistently produce for four weeks now and the pass protection has been spotty at times as well. And against one of the worst defenses in the league this week, it came to a head.

 

In my opinion, this is attributed mostly to the offensive line while Mack has left some decent runs on the field as well.

 

This team’s offensive identity is tied to its offensive line and the ability to the run the ball, which has been lacking as of late. Brissett coming back won’t change that either.

 

It’s really starting to look like they made a mistake in letting DeGugliemo go.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

We had over 100 yards tonight. The issue today was Reich giving hoyer to much flexibility and throwing it 40 times with no WR.

[Smonroe]

When you know the opposing QB can’t throw an accurate pass more than ten yards, it’s easy to stop the running game.  

[MPStack]

11 minutes ago, Restored said:

The Colts running game hasn’t been able to consistently produce for four weeks now and the pass protection has been spotty at times as well. And against one of the worst defenses in the league this week, it came to a head.

 

In my opinion, this is attributed mostly to the offensive line while Mack has left some decent runs on the field as well.

 

This team’s offensive identity is tied to its offensive line and the ability to the run the ball, which has been lacking as of late. Brissett coming back won’t change that either.

 

It’s really starting to look like they made a mistake in letting DeGugliemo go.

 

Nice post and I agree.

 

Also, two QB’s lost (Luck, Brissett), WR’s out and the O-Line has somewhat regressed. 
 

On a positive note, the defense has played reasonably well. 
 

I’m actually not worked up about the loss or season, because 6-10 is about where I thought the Colts end up. They should exceed that. Still another year or two from being contender status.

 

 

[shasta519]

MIA was crowding the box and bringing pressure....which is why they took deep shots. Unfortunately, Hoyer is not a good QB...so it didn't have the desired effect.

[GoColts8818]

30 minutes ago, Restored said:

The Colts running game hasn’t been able to consistently produce for four weeks now and the pass protection has been spotty at times as well. And against one of the worst defenses in the league this week, it came to a head.

 

In my opinion, this is attributed mostly to the offensive line while Mack has left some decent runs on the field as well.

 

This team’s offensive identity is tied to its offensive line and the ability to the run the ball, which has been lacking as of late. Brissett coming back won’t change that either.

 

It’s really starting to look like they made a mistake in letting DeGugliemo go.

The line seemed to turn things around in the second half.

 

They had 80 yards rushing and I don’t think Hoyer was sacked in the second half (could be wrong on that).  

 

Hopefully that means they are coming out of their funk.  

 

Also teams are playing the Colts with 8 or 9 guys in the box just about every week and that’s more than the line can block.  I am noticing a lot of the problems are from guys who are involved in protection (RBs and tight ends) and they are just missing their assignments badly. 

 

Id like the see the Colts using more screens or fast dump offs to take advantage of the 8 or 9 in the box.

[bhougland]

8 hours ago, Smonroe said:

When you know the opposing QB can’t throw an accurate pass more than ten yards, it’s easy to stop the running game.  

 

This is the real reason for our offensive issues.  In the beginning of the season no one knew if our run game was legit, but now teams go out and play stop the run and challenge our QB.  Neither of our two QBs to this point strike any fear into opposing defenses, but at least JB won't turn it over.

 

We take forever to score, our opponets take forever to score....yea, we are going to have low scoring close games.  We have to get better QB and WR play or we are effectively a one dimensional team.

[coltfaninnewyork]

Right guard needs to be upgraded or add a right tackle next year and kick smith inside to guard 

[throwing BBZ]

 

 We definitely are not seeing that WALL of protection our last QB so often had last season.
Where are Baldy's breakdowns with Q destroying the opposition?

[richard pallo]

25 minutes ago, throwing BBZ said:

 

 We definitely are not seeing that WALL of protection our last QB so often had last season.
Where are Baldy's breakdowns with Q destroying the opposition?

I think our new OL coach could be in trouble.  He needs his OL to finish strong.  Coaching matters.

[RollerColt]

Injuries are once again taking their toll on our team. Our star QB retires due to injuries, our starter QB is sidelined due to injuries.

 

Our top 3 receivers have spent more time on the sidelines injured than in the game. Leonard has been off an on injured. Our safeties and corner backs have been injured. Suddenly, we have even more holes on the team in need of fixing...

 

There is an absolute curse floating above this team, and I have no idea how to break it. Health and availability are the most important factors for how a team survives a full season. That's our real issue.

[Flash7]

There are numerous reason for the recent Colts struggles. They include:

 

1. Starting QB being out with an injury, and Brian Hoyer being a very limited QB.

2. T.Y. being out with an injury. This is actually huge. T.Y. is our only real deep threat. With him out of the game, the opposing teams know we will attack with short yardage plays. They can crowd the line and play the short game; stack the box and take away the run game.

3. The O-line has been overwhelmed with teams stacking the box and blitzing. They're bringing more people than we can block and we haven't adjusted with screens, draws, and hot-routes.

4. Vinny is consistently missing kicks, which takes away momentum from the Colts, and more importantly, leaving points on the field.

5. The injuries across the team make it difficult for the coaches to properly game plan. This results in more "vanilla" calls on offense, which are easy to defend, and more cover-2 calls on defense, which are easier to diagnose.

 

And there's plenty more to list out, but this is an overall picture.

[BigQungus]

18 minutes ago, Flash7 said:

There are numerous reason for the recent Colts struggles. They include:

 

1. Starting QB being out with an injury, and Brian Hoyer being a very limited QB.

2. T.Y. being out with an injury. This is actually huge. T.Y. is our only real deep threat. With him out of the game, the opposing teams know we will attack with short yardage plays. They can crowd the line and play the short game; stack the box and take away the run game.

3. The O-line has been overwhelmed with teams stacking the box and blitzing. They're bringing more people than we can block and we haven't adjusted with screens, draws, and hot-routes.

4. Vinny is consistently missing kicks, which takes away momentum from the Colts, and more importantly, leaving points on the field.

5. The injuries across the team make it difficult for the coaches to properly game plan. This results in more "vanilla" calls on offense, which are easy to defend, and more cover-2 calls on defense, which are easier to diagnose.

 

And there's plenty more to list out, but this is an overall picture.

 

This. This right here.

 

What a beautiful post. Completely agree

[John Waylon]

I’m not a big fan of the way we churn RBs in and out of the game. Mack is starting to feel less like a true starter and more like a member of the committee. I know Hines is the pass catching specialist, and other teams are figuring that out as well. If we want him to catch that much why not just make him a WR? It’s not exactly like we just couldn’t play him at the position... 

 

I think the shuffling (which has been happening a lot more since the Chiefs game) is keeping Mack from being able to get into a rhythm and it may even be affecting his confidence. Surely to god he could catch some passes... he’s not so inept that he just couldn’t catch anything thrown his way... 
 

I’ve grown tired of talking about it, but our predictable approach and play selection has become pretty obvious at this point in the season so we’re not exactly keeping defenses on their toes when we line up to run a play. Based on the situation you have a good idea what’s coming, and sometimes based on formation you know exactly what’s coming. 

[Smonroe]

2 minutes ago, John Waylon said:

I’m not a big fan of the way we churn RBs in and out of the game. Mack is starting to feel less like a true starter and more like a member of the committee. I know Hines is the pass catching specialist, and other teams are figuring that out as well. If we want him to catch that much why not just make him a WR? It’s not exactly like we just couldn’t play him at the position... 

 

I think the shuffling (which has been happening a lot more since the Chiefs game) is keeping Mack from being able to get into a rhythm and it may even be affecting his confidence. Surely to god he could catch some passes... he’s not so inept that he just couldn’t catch anything thrown his way... 
 

I’ve grown tired of talking about it, but our predictable approach and play selection has become pretty obvious at this point in the season so we’re not exactly keeping defenses on their toes when we line up to run a play. Based on the situation you have a good idea what’s coming, and sometimes based on formation you know exactly what’s coming. 

 

Mack is taking himself out.  They do try to rest him for series, but if you noticed yesterday, he was tapping out a lot.  He must still be banged up.

[yankeeclipper]

Hoyer's 3 picks and Vinny missing another XP says it all.   I was never sold on Hoyer as the back up