The Indianapolis Colts (1-1) are set to host the Atlanta Falcons (1-1) on Sunday for a Week 3 matchup at Lucas Oil Stadium.
While there are reasons to be optimistic about the Colts walking away with a win in their home opener, there are also causes for concern in Week 3 as Indy hosts the Falcons.
Here are three causes for concern in Week 3:
Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley
The Colts defense has been steadily improving over the last few seasons, which has included an addition of significant depth to the secondary. Players like Kenny Moore, Pierre Desir and Rock Ya-Sin have emerged or are emerging as solid players in the secondary.
However, they will have their hands full with the dup of Jones and Ridley—both of which are off to hot starts for the 2019 season. The Colts were torched by Keenan Allen in Week 1, and Jones looks as spry as ever. Ridley is also continuing his ascension into the upper echelon of wide receivers.
The Colts should have their secondary at full force in Week 3, but the duo staring back at them on the other side of the ball is cause for concern enough.
Darius Leonard is out
Facing an offense like the Falcons is trouble enough but when factoring in that the Colts’ All-Pro linebacker has already been ruled out with a concussion, the worry grows.
The Colts will be without Leonard, who was ruled out on Friday. He suffered a concussion during the Week 2 win over the Tennessee Titans. Rookie third-round pick Bobby Okereke will be the one to replace Leonard in the middle of the defense.
The Colts will need all the help they can get going against the stout Falcons offense, and the unit will be down its best player.
Can the Colts offense keep up?
While the Falcons offense hasn’t yet shown to be the formidable unit they were in 2018, the parts are still there for an explosion. The Colts have shown they can control the line of scrimmage with the run—something they will have to do Sunday—but can they keep up if they need to?
The Colts haven’t opened up the passing playbook very much over the first two weeks of the season. Most of it is likely by design, but the Falcons are notorious for high-scoring games. If the Colts go down a few touchdowns early, it could be trouble should they be forced to go one dimensional.
It will be interesting to see if the Colts can keep the Falcons offense in check and if they can keep up in a shootout.
