The Indianapolis Colts (0-1) suffered an overtime loss at the hands of the Los Angeles Chargers (1-0) on Sunday at Dignity Health Sports Park.
There were some solid performances in the Week 1 opener, even though the Colts wound up falling in overtime, 30-24. As there were players that lowered their stock, there were also a handful of Colts that raised their stock following Week 1.
Here are five Colts that raised their stock in the Week 1 loss to the Chargers:
QB Jacoby Brissett
The most obvious one, Brissett was solid in his debut as the Colts’ starter since Andrew Luck’s retirement. There were some questions entering the regular-season opener, but he silenced any doubts that he can be a competent quarterback to keep the team competitive against playoff-caliber opponents. Brissett was 21-of-27 for 190 yards, two touchdowns and a 120.7 passer rating. He made several impressive throws—one of which to Eric Ebron didn’t count—and his pocket mobility looks encouraging. The Colts don’t have as high of a ceiling without Luck, but Brissett showed there is still promise they can be competitive for the most part.
DE Kemoko Turay
The Colts are likely to be without veteran defensive end Jabaal Sheard for an indefinite amount of time, which means they will need some players to step up in his absence. Though he didn’t get the start on Sunday, second-year defensive end Kemoko Turay was up to the challenge. Turay continued to show his development as a pass rusher, especially when it comes to his hand usage. He officially recorded one sack, but he had another that was negated due to an offsides penalty by Justin Houston. The arrow is pointing up for Turay.
DE Al-Quadin Muhammad
As Turay showed his development is taking place as a pass rusher, Muhammad also had a solid day. He has been the one to get the start in place of Sheard, and that trend continued on Sunday. Muhammad recorded his first sack of the season on Philip Rivers while also recording a tackle for loss. The Colts need the pass rush to be impactful if the defense is to be successful in 2019.
RB Marlon Mack
Mack’s stock was already pretty high, admittedly, but he cemented himself as the Colts’ main option it the backfield. As he went on a tear in the second half, he wound up taking 25 carries when the game was over with. The next closest running back was Nyheim Hines, who had four carries. It is obvious the Colts believe Mack can be a three-down back. He showed what type of ceiling he has on Sunday with 174 rushing yards and a touchdown. He took over the game, and the Colts will need that moving forward.
WR Deon Cain
Cain’s stock improving has less to do with his performance—though he had a few nice catches—and more to do with his workload moving forward. With Devin Funchess likely to be sidelined for a while with a broken collarbone he suffered in the fourth quarter, Cain is in line to be the WR2 opposite T.Y. Hilton. he was in line to do so in 2018 before suffering a torn ACL and appeared to take the most snaps behind Hilton and Funchess on Sunday. If Cian is the one to fill in, his stock is already rising.
