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The Colts abandoned their first game of the season against the Bengals 34-23 in a heartbreaking way. While it's hard to look at the positives after a tough defeat, there's a lot to be done in this game. The Colts are a young team that played well but could not do it.
So before we focus on the upcoming match with a talented Redskins team, let's go back to my 5 Colts to watch since last week and see how they did it last weekend against the Bengals:
Anthony Castonzo, LT (or whoever starts at LT):
Anthony Castonzo came into this game as a decision of playing time and was inactive for the game. As I predicted in my preview for the game, Joe Haeg ended up taking the lead in his stead with J'Marcus Webb at the right tackle. Overall, Haeg was able to protect the passes and was about average. His pass blocking was particularly commendable in this match as he made his first career start on the left against a very good pass from Bengals.
The most promising aspect of Haeg's performance was that Luck had time to get rid of the ball. Although much of what the Colts were doing involved quick passes, Luck managed to pass the ball 53 times and was only fired twice. None of these bags were won by the young aspiring player Carl Lawson, whom Haeg had the mission to block Sunday. Overall, it was a good start for Haeg and we hope that Castonzo will play next week against Washington.
Someone may have already spun this, but #PFF the notes are out, figured I would do a quick recap. #Colts offensive, luck is the highest note (no surprise there), Ryan Kelly 2nd, Joe Haeg, Jamarcus Webb finishes ahead of Quenton Nelson (unequal assignments to be fair). TY behaves badly.
– Josh Boeke (@JoshBoeke) September 10, 2018
Eric Ebron, TE:
In my preview article, I said that Eric Ebron would be the X factor for this Colts offense because he has athleticism and the ability to be a match problem for any defense. Reich obviously thought the same way. For several seasons, several journalists and coaches told us that Ebron was going to be very involved in this offense. Well, he was certainly involved last Sunday with an impressive 4 catches for 51 yards and a touchdown line.
Ebron has been deployed everywhere this weekend in order to get the best match possible. Jack Doyle and Ryan Grant being mainly used underneath, Ebron was the main target of the long intermediate match. His abilities in space and athletics were well visible when he made 26 yards in the second quarter. Overall, it was a very good start for Ebron with the Colts and I think his role will extend even further after this promising start.
Darius Leonard, KG:
Darius Leonard may not have played the most brilliant game, but he was very solid in his debut as a rookie. In his first career game, Leonard was credited with 9 tackles in total and a chess recovery. In defense against the race, he was rather solid in general. At times, he was able to take better angles and at other times, the race tracks were a little better, but overall, there were not many negatives. He played well in the cover of the passes and he was not significantly beaten.
This game was really solid with Leonard apart from some beginner mistakes. Leonard has been very impressive so far in his young career with the Colts and I'm expecting him to progress continuously in a very good start. He will be competing in his "A" game next week, as Washington travels to town after a performance where half-skaters Adrian Peterson and Chris Thompson have won in huge games.
Malik HookerSAF:
Hooker did not have a great match last Sunday, but as I said last week, much of his game does not show up in the score. By that I mean that his presence in the backend brings a factor of intimidation to the quarterbacks and forces them not to take as many shots in depth. In addition to a long touchdown pass to AJ Green, who is one of the best in the game, the Hooker effect was felt when the Bengals rarely attacked the Colts. This landing at Green was the only weak point of Hooker. In total, Hooker finished with 4 tackles in his first match.
I expect Hooker to improve his game as the season progresses. Last year, he had an excellent season before this terrible ACL injury that cost him his season. Although he played well on Sunday, there is definitely room for improvement. As the season progresses, I expect Hooker to consolidate as one of the best young goaltenders in the NFL.
Andrew Luck, QB:
CHANCE IS BACK Andrew Luck was doing this Sunday. After a bad decision on his first pass that led to an interception in the red zone, Luck completed 39 passes in 53 attempts for 319 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also earned a completion percentage of 73.6% and finished as QB 6th in the weekly standings. Not bad for a guy who comes out of the shoulder rehab and has not been playing for a year and a half.
It was a good start that no one could have hoped for from Luck. Everything seems to be always present from the presence of the pocket, the mobility and the strength of the arm. If Luck can continually produce performances like this weekend, the Colts will have a chance to win every game this year. Overall, the chance to play as well as he has been reason enough to hope this season as a Colts fan.
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