Indianapolis Colts Snap Counts vs. Houston Texans: Week 1

The Indianapolis Colts' snap counts for Week 1 have been tallied, revealing interesting numbers for some players.

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson (5) talks to the team Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, during a game against the Houston Texans at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. / Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Indianapolis Colts suffered a disappointing loss to division rivals the Houston Texans during their Week 1 matchup on Sunday. Snap count totals have been released, providing some context to how the Colts utilized their personnel in their 2024 opener.

Offense

Player	Snaps	%
Anthony Richardson	45	100%
Bernhard Raimann	45	100%
Quenton Nelson	45	100%
Ryan Kelly	45	100%
Will Fries	45	100%
Braden Smith	45	100%
Jonathan Taylor	43	96%
Michael Pittman Jr.	40	89%
Alec Pierce	38	84%
Adonai Mitchell	29	64%
Kylen Granson	25	56%
Mo Alie-Cox	18	40%
Drew Ogletree	12	27%
Ashton Dulin	11	24%
Anthony Gould	7	16%
Trey Sermon	2	4%

Anthony Richardson and the five starters along the offensive line played 100% of the snaps on Sunday while running back Jonathan Taylor played 43 out of 45. Such a large percentage of snaps for a running back is unusual and will likely dip a bit as the season goes on, benefitting Trey Sermon and Tyler Goodson.

Michael Pittman Jr. and Alec Pierce led the way in snaps for the receivers with 40 and 38, respectively. Without Josh Downs in the lineup, Adonai Mitchell ranked third amongst Colts receivers with 29 snaps. Downs could potentially return to the lineup next Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, and with the impact Pierce had in Week 1, Mitchell, Ashton Dulin, and Anthony Gould are the ones most likely to see less playing time.

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Defense

Player	Snaps	%
Zaire Franklin	79	100%
Kenny Moore II	79	100%
Jaylon Jones	79	100%
Julian Blackmon	79	100%
Nick Cross	79	100%
E.J. Speed	77	97%
JuJu Brents	62	78%
DeForest Buckner	54	68%
Kwity Paye	52	66%
Tyquan Lewis	52	66%
Grover Stewart	47	59%
Laiatu Latu	31	39%
Dayo Odeyingbo	29	37%
Raekwon Davis	18	23%
Taven Bryan	17	22%
Adetomiwa Adebawore	15	19%
Jaylon Carlies	15	19%
Isaiah Land	4	5%
Rodney Thomas II	1	1%

On the defensive side of the ball, five players played 100% of the snaps (79 total): Zaire Franklin, Kenny Moore II, Jaylon Jones, Julian Blackmon, and Nick Cross. Cross was not only named a starting safety after an entire offseason and preseason of speculation but did not come off the field for one play in the season opener.

The rotation of the defensive line will fluctuate from game to game, but the 68% of snaps played by DeForest Buckner is not far off from the 72% he played throughout the entire 2023 season. How the Colts will handle the rotation of the other interior defensive linemen after Sunday's poor performance in the run game bears watching. Grover Stewart was on the sidelines for one-third of the Texans' rush attempts.

First-round rookie Laiatu Latu was out-snapped 52 to 31 by both Tyquan Lewis and Kwity Paye, showing the Colts' intent to use him primarily as a pass rush specialist at least early in his rookie season.

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