5 Goals the Colts Must Accomplish Against the Bears

The Indianapolis Colts’ first preseason game against the Buffalo Bills had ups and downs. However, the focus will be on areas to improve as they defend their home turf against the Chicago Bears on Saturday.

The first game of the preseason is in the books for the Indianapolis Colts and rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson. Despite the dynamic QB struggling at times, he overall showcased good pocket presence, nice accuracy deep, and solid mental strength to overcome turnovers.

The first-team offensive line didn’t fare too poorly either, getting a significant push up-front and creating lanes for the running game. Also, rookies outside of Richardson made waves against the Buffalo Bills. Names like cornerback Darius Rush, defensive end Titus Leo, and wide receiver Josh Downs stood out, among others.

There are positive things to take from the 23-19 loss.

But, the more important side is what should improve, which will be covered here. With the Chicago Bears joining the Colts for both practices and playing against them for the second preseason game, Indianapolis should look to accomplish these five areas in their goal to develop such a young squad. Let’s start defensively.

Better Pass Defense

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This is more of a reflection of the Colts’ second-team defense than an overall performance from the start of the game to the conclusion.

Bills quarterback Kyle Allen struggled, tallying 8-of-15 passing (53.3%) for 122 yards and an interception (Darius Rush pick-six). Instead, Buffalo leaned more on the ground game. It was the next man up, Matt Barkley, who torched Indianapolis. He’d round up 172 yards on 14-of-15 completions (93.3%) for 2 touchdowns and a blistering 154.0 passer rating.

It’s a young secondary from top to bottom for the Colts (outside of Kenny Moore II and Ronnie Harrison Jr.) in Indianapolis, which means issues will happen as they develop and adjust. But, it’s a bit of a rough start for the corners and safeties. However, Indianapolis’ second and third-team defenses will have another shot to bounce back against the Bears’ typically run-heavy offensive approach.

Pass Rush Needs to Improve

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The Colts were able to grab three sacks on Saturday against Buffalo but against mostly immobile QBs. This isn’t the case with either Justin Fields or P.J. Walker for Chicago. Both quarterbacks can be mobile (especially in the case of Fields) and, again in the case of Fields, can hit necessary throws if given the time needed.

Also, it’s more concerning for the first team than anything, as the sacks came from Al-Quadin Muhammad, Dayo Odeyingbo, and Khalid Kareem. Starters like Samson Ebukam and Kwity Paye may have had fewer snaps but didn’t seem to push the Bills from a pass-rushing perspective.

It’s merely the first preseason game for Indianapolis, so there’s a good amount of time to improve. But, this was an area lacking in 2022, as well.

Now, the offensive side.

Top Wide Receivers Need to Adjust Better

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This could be a bit of a “nit-pick” type of situation, but it’s also the NFL, and the details are key. For this entry, two plays will be briefly highlighted, involving a duo of Colts starting wideouts and QB Richardson.

The first was slot receiver Isaiah McKenzie. On the fifth play of the game, after dropping back, Richardson had pressure immediately on his right side barreling down on him. He would bail out, and instead of continuing to bootleg and throw the ball away, trusted his arm and threw the ball to McKenzie, who miscommunicated with Richardson, and an interception ensued due to an overthrown ball.

McKenzie took the blame, and so did head coach Shane Steichen, but Richardson still could have avoided forcing the throw. However, McKenzie could have also run the correct route. It’s a two-sided mistake, but McKenzie is the veteran teaching Richardson, not the other way around.

The second play was a dime throw from Richardson to Alec Pierce, which would have been a touchdown. From Buffalo’s 34-yard line, Richardson dropped in a deep pass to Pierce near the bottom right portion of the end zone. However, Pierce wouldn’t haul it in, and that drive ultimately ended with a Matt Gay missed field goal. Pierce needs to make this play happen, given the high potential he and Richardson pose as a duo.

However, there is a lot more to be played, and Pierce has shown consistency in making big catches. This is likely an error due to the lack of reps together between Richardson and Pierce.

Both receivers will look to have bounce-back performances should they get targeted in the passing game.

Anthony Richardson Needs to Fine Tune Shorter/Intermediate Throws

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While there isn’t a mountain to negatively critique from Richardson’s first career NFL game, the short/intermediate throws are still showing to be the depth of passing he needs to focus on improving.

A pass over the middle to tight end Kylen Granson flew past him when he was open, and the aforementioned interception to McKenzie was a big overthrow. Both of these weren’t considered the deeper passes, which Richardson excels at without much issue.

Look for Steichen to focus on these throws and Richardson’s touch with them. Due to his incredible arm strength and ability to throw with power from any body position, Richardson will have to temper things that hit those shorter targets.

Depth Offensive Linemen Must Block Better

Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

I need to reiterate this; it’s the preseason, and the beginning at that, there will be mistakes from rookies and even veterans alike. However, the Colts displayed some inefficient blocking from the second and third-stringers that put backup QB Gardner Minshew on the ground with back-to-back dropbacks.

Minshew would still go on to be perfect, completing 6-of-6 passes. However, swing tackle Blake Freeland was filling in for full-time starting right tackle Braden Smith and was bullied by pass rushers. Along with Freeland, center Danny Pinter allowed two sacks, per Pro Football Focus. Lastly, recently signed tackle Dan Skipper posted a miserable pass-blocking grade of 19.5, eleventh out of a possible twelve offensive linemen eligible for the grade against Buffalo.

Simply put, it’s early, but the depth blocking and protection must improve. Should one or multiple starters go down and those players haven’t improved their efficiency, it could make life difficult for Richardson, which Indianapolis doesn’t want.

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