The Indianapolis Colts (6-5) had to turn around on a short week for a road game against the Houston Texans (7-4) on Thursday night and came away with a disappointing 20-17 loss.
The loss knocked the Colts down a peg in the AFC South standings. Indy went from holding the tiebreaker and the top spot in the division to holding the second spot. Regardless of what happens with the Titans game, the Colts will hold the second spot entering Week 13.
Here are four things we learned about the Colts in Week 12:
Passing offense is being left for dead
There truly isn’t one specific play or group that has led to the fall of the Colts’ passing offense over the last month. It falls on Jacoby Brissett not taking chances. It falls on the wide receiver room being unable to create separation. It falls on Frank Reich for sticking with the run too much at times.
Against a suspect secondary in the Texans, the Colts couldn’t get anything going. Whether it was Brissett failing to force a ball into a tight window or the amount of first and second down runs the Colts ran, the passing offense had no rhythm.
Whatever the case may be, the Colts must figure out how to get the passing game going down the stretch.
The rushing attack can win with anyone
This isn’t to take away from what Marlon Mack brings to the table. The ceiling of the rushing attack isn’t the same when he’s not on the field. However, the Colts proved they truly do have a top-five run game and they furthered that notion with Jonathan Williams.
With Mack out due to a fractured hand, Williams ran hard throughout the game. It wasn’t all pretty—he was at 2.0 yards per carry at halftime. But Williams ended the day strong with 26 carries for 104 yards and a touchdown. Nyheim Hines even got in on the action taking nine carries for 51 yards.
The Colts won’t have Mack returning for a few weeks, which means they will need to continue relying on Williams, Hines and even Jordan Wilkins.
Pass rush needs more contributors
What Justin Houston has done this season is wonderful. He’s been the heart and soul of the Colts’ pass rush, but Indy needs more production from the players outside of the veteran.
While Jabaal Sheard is still consistent, the Colts haven’t gotten much from the rest of their pass-rushing group. That includes Al-Quadin Muhammad and rookie Ben Banogu—who had a sack in the game. It also includes the interior defenders in Denico Autry and Margus Hunt, both of which haven’t recorded a sack since Week 2.
The pass rush will always be prudent given the scheme the Colts run and while Houston has been a monster from the edge, they need to get more consistency.
Big plays: Uncharacteristic or a trend?
If there is one thing the Colts defense has prided itself on this season, it has been its ability to limit big plays. That couldn’t have been further from the truth during the Week 12 loss against the Texans.
Whether it was the two long touchdowns to DeAndre Hopkins or Will Fuller burning the Colts secondary, the defense didn’t have an answer for the Texans’ vertical passing game. The Colts allowed six plays of 20 yards or more.
This is more likely an uncharacteristic game for the Colts defense given the sample size, but it is something that they can’t let happen again moving forward.
