The Indianapolis Colts (3-2) went into Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday night and proved to the football world that they can take down even the best of teams, which just so happened to be the high-powered Kansas City Chiefs (4-1).
The Colts defense stepped up in an unprecedented way in primetime to limit the Chiefs to 13 points—the fewest since Mahomes took over as the starter at the beginning of the 2018 season.
Here is the stock up, stock down from the Colts’ upset win over the Chiefs:
Stock Up: S George Odum
The Colts were without two of their starting safeties in Malik Hooker and Clayton Geathers—both of which were dealing with injuries. This forced Odum into a bigger role than anticipated, but the second-year safety did well with his opportunities.
One of just three Colts to play all 100% of the defensive snaps, Odum was solid limiting big plays down the field. His biggest play, though, came in the second quarter on a screen to LeSean McCoy. The veteran running back was gaining yardage before Odum had a beautiful punch out to force a fumble.
The Colts wound up punting, but it was a huge play to help turn the momentum early in the game.
Stock Down: TE Eric Ebron
This really isn’t to pick on Ebron, but he’s struggled the past two weeks. His role was diminished greatly on Sunday night thanks to the rushing attack carving up the Chiefs defense. Ebron saw 33% of the snaps, which was third-most among Colts tight ends.
As Marlon Mack was working his way to the second level consistently, the Colts opted to go with their heavier, run-blocking packages that featured more two tight end sets with Jack Doyle and Mo Alie-Cox.
Ebron finished the night with one catch for eight yards on four targets. His role doesn’t appear to be as necessary for the offense in what the Colts want to do, which means his stock is falling.
Stock Up: CB Kenny Moore
The Colts secondary wasn’t playing up to expectations through the first four weeks and while Moore is the most talented of the bunch, he’s included in that group as well. That was until his spectacular performance on Sunday night.
Against the Chiefs offense, the Colts ran much more man coverage than they typically are used to. This put Moore in a position to bounce back in an area he’s struggled, and he did just that. Moore was strong in coverage throughout the whole and was responsible for many incompletions.
His biggest moment came on a nickel blitz in which Moore gave the left tackle a ghost shoulder, dipped below the block and sacked Patrick Mahomes. It was truly a strong night for Moore.
Stock Down: DE Ben Banogu
With Jabaal Sheard fully back into the mix and Kemoko Turay emerging as a speed rusher off the edge, Banogu’s time was severely limited Sunday night. The rookie didn’t see any snaps on defense while logging just four special teams snaps.
That being said, Banogu will get the chance to make his mark. Turay, unfortunately, suffered a broken ankle in the fourth quarter of the win—ending his season effective immediately. This will give opportunities to a few players, but Banogu will certainly be one of them.
The rookie hasn’t made much of an impact through the first five games of his career. That’s expected as sometimes pass rushers take time to develop, but Banogu must take advantage of the opportunity he gets with Turay out.
Stock Up: LB Bobby Okereke
The Colts were without linebacker Darius Leonard for the third consecutive game on Sunday night as the All-Pro failed to clear the league’s concussion protocol before the game. This gave the rookie Okereke another shot at starting.
The Stanford product was better, especially in coverage, throughout the night. He had a notable coverage play where he was assigned to running back Damien Williams in the end zone. He had solid coverage on the running back and wound up forcing an incompletion.
He also should have had his first career interception, but the call was somehow overturned by the refs. It was a strong outing for the third-round pick.
Stock Down: DT Margus Hunt
In a game where the front seven dominated the Chiefs offense, the veteran Hunt was nearly nowhere to be found. He played on just 24% of snaps on defense as defensive tackle Grover Stewart saw more time at the one-technique.
Given the recent struggles the Colts have had against the run, it doesn’t come as a surprise that Hunt might be phased out to give way for guys like Stewart or Trevon Coley, who are more fit to plug the gaps and stop the run.
It isn’t clear if Hunt will see his role increase or not, but this was the first time the Colts controlled the run game on defense.
Stock Up: DT Grover Stewart
As Hunt struggled to make an impact on reduced snaps, Stewart was a stud on Sunday night. The third-year defensive tackle finished with a sack and a tackle for loss while playing on 70% of the defensive snaps.
The plan the Colts had for the Chiefs offense was working as running back Damien Williams took nine carries for just 23 yards. It was a strong performance for Stewart, who was constantly collapsing the top of the pocket and making an impact against the run.
