New QB, Same Story as Colts Fall to Commanders

The Colts continued to make too many critical errors in Sam Ehlinger’s first start.

All of the focus for the past week has been on the quarterback position.

Out was Matt Ryan, who had nine touchdowns, nine interceptions, and 11 fumbles in seven games. In was Sam Ehlinger, the second-year, former sixth-round pick who would be making his first start.

For all the talk about what Ehlinger would bring to the team and how the offense would change with him under center, it did not matter. The story stayed the same.

The Indianapolis Colts fell to the Washington Commanders Sunday evening at Lucas Oil Stadium by a score of 17-16. Throughout the afternoon, the Colts had plenty of chances to win the game. But instead, costly turnovers and poor execution were the names of the game, bringing the Colts’ record to 3-4-1.

“Got to find a way to eliminate critical mistakes,” head coach Frank Reich said after the game. “Offensively in the high red zone just had a few too many critical mistakes where we meet the ball down in there, we have to find a way to eliminate the turnovers. You know, defensively I thought we hung in there, and then obviously they had those last two drives. Got to find a way to figure it out.”

Turnovers have killed this Colts team all season, and Sunday was no different. With the Colts driving in the second quarter and just outside the red zone, Ehlinger tried to take off as defenders were closing in. The quarterback simply could not handle the ball, fumbling it right to Commanders defender Daron Payne. Down 7-3 at the time, the Colts squandered a huge opportunity.

The second turnover came in a very similar fashion. In the middle of the third quarter, just a few plays after Ehlinger hit Alec Pierce on a 47-yard bomb, Jonathan Taylor took the ball up the middle to get the Colts to the red zone. But after six yards, Taylor fumbled the football, and defensive end Casey Toohill recovered.

“We just shot ourselves in the foot,” Ehlinger admitted. “We got down on the other side of the 50 multiple times and didn't come away with points. Two turnovers. Got down to the inch yard line and came away with three points, and that's not good enough in this league. Had some penalties we've got to clean up. So, it's frustrating.”

© Jenna Watson/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

Ehlinger did give a spark to the Colts’ offense. He was able to get outside the pocket and make plays with his arm and his legs. The moment wasn’t too big for him, and Ehlinger showed poise throughout the evening.

Ehlinger also showed he could take and make the shots necessary down the field. Outside of the deep ball to Pierce, Ehlinger dropped a beautiful ball over the shoulder to Nyheim Hines for a 22-yard gain. He showed good velocity on his throws, one of the biggest question marks surrounding the young quarterback’s ability.

Altogether Ehlinger finished the day 17-of-23 (74%) for 201 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions. While Ehlinger was solid in his NFL debut, he knows that more points need to be put on the board. The Colts averaged 16.1 points per game heading into Sunday, and 16 points is what they got once again.

“I think that there's a lot of potential for growth, which I'm excited about,” Ehlinger said. “There's a lot of things to clean up and things to do better. There's a lot of opportunities out there to be had. I'm looking forward to continuing to grow and improve.”

Because the Colts only scored 16 points on the afternoon, with ten coming in the fourth quarter, it was up to the defense to keep them in the game. The Colts’ defense did just that, holding the Commanders to just seven points and 191 total yards through the first three quarters. However, when the game was on the line, the Colts’ defense was too gassed to close out.

The Commanders scored ten points and had 171 yards in the fourth quarter alone. The pass rush became non-existent, with Commanders’ quarterback Taylor Heinicke having all day to throw. It does not matter how good the players are in the secondary, guys cannot cover forever.

Heinicke was able to sit back in the pocket and deliver a strike deep to wide receiver Terry McLaurin, an Indy native, for 33 yards. McLaurin high-pointed the ball and ripped it out of the grasp of Stephon Gilmore, taking the Commanders down to the 1-yard line. Heinicke sneaked it in for a touchdown on the next play, and Joey Slye’s extra point gave the Commanders the lead for good with 22 seconds remaining.

SCARY FREAKING TERRY

📺 #WASvsIND FOX pic.twitter.com/TN4rK6K7ko

— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) October 30, 2022

Some on the outside wondered how Gilmore could give up such a big play, let alone allow McLaurin to get so wide open. Gilmore was the hero in two of the Colts’ three wins this season, coming away with game-sealing pass breakups and interceptions. The Colts’ defenders are not letting Gilmore take the blame for this one.

“You can’t ask a DB to cover for 10 seconds,” Shaquille Leonard explained. “You can’t ask that. It sucks that it happened, but you can’t put that on Gilly. There’s no way you can put that on Gilly when you’ve got 10 seconds to throw the football. We just have to find a way to get some pressure and get the quarterback down, then we won’t be in that position again.”

Leonard himself was not on the field during the final Commanders’ drive. Reich had said before the game that Leonard would be on a pitch count, which ended up being 24 snaps for the linebacker. Leonard finished with four tackles and an interception in those 24 snaps, having an immediate impact in his return.

But one can’t help but wonder if things might have gone a little differently if #53 was on the field for the final drive.

“My job is to do what the coach tells me to do and play as many plays as the coach allows me to play,” Leonard said. “And if I’m not in, my job is to encourage everybody who’s in there.”

“If Shaq was ready to be the best player on the field, we probably would have started him,” Reich explained when asked why Leonard was not in on the final drive. “But, like I said, we kind of were working him back in knowing that he is not quite all the way back. So that was just part of the planned rotation.”

With half the season now in the books, it is hard to see the Colts changing who they are. Ehlinger gives them a shot to be interesting, and his development over the final nine games will be something to keep a close eye on. But even with a change at the quarterback position, the Colts still made too many crucial mistakes and could not overcome them in the end.

The saying goes, “you are what your record says you are.” For the Colts, that means a mistake-prone, below-average football team. It’s time to start accepting that.

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