The Indianapolis Colts (0-1) were defeated 27-20 by the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-0) on Sunday at TIAA Bank Field in what turned out to be a Week 1 upset in the AFC South.
The Colts have now lost their last seven opening week games. From a rock performance given by quarterback Philip Rivers to the defense being non-existent, it wasn’t an encouraging showing from the Colts.
>>>Studs and Duds in Week 1<<<
Here are five takeaways from the Week 1 loss:
Shaky start from Rivers
The Colts entered this game not wanting to put too much on the shoulders of their new quarterback. But when it came down to it, that’s exactly what they did. Rivers wound up attempting 46 passes while the Colts ran the ball 22 times. The split shouldn’t look like that, and that’s not how the Colts want to run their offense.
But even with the game on Rivers’ shoulders, he was shaky in his Colts debut. His line doesn’t look terrible. He completed 78.3% of his passes for 346 yards. But he threw just one touchdown pass while committing two interceptions. The offense was just 2-of-5 in the red zone and 4-of-12 on third downs.
Things will get better for Rivers, especially once the ground game gets going. But Sunday was pretty shaky from the 38-year-old and they weren’t able to overcome it despite playing the team projected for the No. 1 pick in 2021.
>>>Everything we know from Week 1<<<
Run game never got going
The Colts seemed to be moving the ball well on their first drive but the run game never really got going. Despite the Colts never being down by more than seven points at any moment in the game, the rushing attack never got going.
The Colts finished with 21 carries for 85 carries on players not named Philip Rivers. Mack seemed to be pretty efficient before his injury. Jonathan Taylor wasn’t very productive with his nine carries as he went for just 22 yards (2.4 average). This isn’t to cast doubt on Taylor at all, but it is an observation.
After Mack’s injury, the Colts couldn’t really get the ground game going, and it forced Rivers to do more than he should have. Against the Vikings in Week 2, they have to get the rushing attack going.
Secondary struggled
The Colts secondary did not get the job done whatsoever on Sunday. In their zone scheme, they were playing soft way too often and rarely were they in press to disrupt the timing of the routes by the wide receivers.
They blew coverage far too often. Whether it was the cornerbacks not knowing the coverage or Malik Hooker simply getting shaken by a wide receiver over the middle for a touchdown, the secondary did not do their jobs on Sunday.
Not to mention, Gardner Minshew had just one incompletion on the entire day.
Marlon Mack’s season cloudy
One of the big storylines from the Colts’ Week 1 loss was the Achilles injury that Mack suffered during the second quarter of the game. A non-contact injury, Mack went to the ground after catching a short pass from Rivers and limped off the field with help from the trainers.
Mack was then carted to the locker room and quickly ruled out for the rest of the game. Head coach Frank Reich confirmed that the injury is to the Achilles and that Mack will undergo an MRI scan on Monday. There is a report that the Colts fear it is a torn Achilles. If it is, Mack’s season is most likely over.
The Colts have Jonathan Taylor to take his role, but Mack was primed for a big season and now may be entering free agency without the benefit of a 2020 season.
Parris Campbell leads the passing game
The Colts have raved about what Campbell brings to the offense, and he put some of that on display Sunday. Campbell had six receptions on nine targets for 71 yards. He also added a nine-yard carry to his game.
Rivers showed that he likes to spread the ball around—nine different players caught at least one pass—but Campbell is already showing off a rapport with the veteran quarterback and after a rookie season filled with injuries, the Ohio State product is primed for a breakout.
It will be interesting to see how his targets shift if the Colts are able to run the ball more, but Campbell was very active in the passing game.
