The Indianapolis Colts lost to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday night football by a score of 21-13.
It was a game where the defense held on as long as it could against a Vikings’ offense that has tons of talented and entered Week 9 as one of the best at generating explosive plays through the air.
Although Minnesota was able to put up yards offensively, the real issue for the Colts was with their own offensive unit, which fell flat in the team’s first game since benching Anthony Richardson.
With the game having just wrapped up, let’s take a quick look back with what you need to know.
Keys to the game
Colts can’t get the run game going: As I wrote about coming into the game, getting the run game going was a must. As a team, the Colts averaged just 3.6 yards per rush in this contest. That inability to get things going on the ground set up numerous third-and-long situations, which gave the Vikings’ defense the advantage. The Indianapolis run game becomes easier to defend when opponents don’t have to worry about the quarterback as a ball carrier.
Disjointed passing game: Coupled with the run game woes, the Colts’ passing game with Flacco was completely disjointed. Against a Vikings’ defense that entered the game ranked first in pressure rate, for the most part, the Indianapolis offensive line held up. However, in the midst of all those coverage and pressure disguises designed to cause chaos at the snap, the passing game couldn’t gain any traction and was out of rhythm in those longer down and distances.
Turnovers: The Vikings put up 415 total yards in this game, but takeaways by the Indianapolis defense helped keep the Colts in this game. In addition to shortening three Vikings’ possessions, those turnovers resulted in 10 points for the Colts.
Time of possession: The struggles on offense for the Colts resulted in short possessions, including five that went five plays or fewer. That then leads to a lopsided time of possession, with Minnesota holding the ball for an additional 13 minutes and running an extra 22 plays compared to the Colts. Over the course of the game, that’ll not only wear out a defense, but forces the Colts defense to have to be on the field more often against a big play opposing offense.
Stars of the game
Josh Downs: The little bit of life that the offense did show often came on passes thrown to Downs, who finished the game with six catches for 60 yards.
Grover Stewart and DeForest Buckner: We’ll put these two together since they wreaked havoc on the Vikings’ interior offensive line for much of the game. Combined, the duo had 10 tackles, including three for a loss, five quarterback hits, three sacks, and Stewart’s forced fumble.
Kenny Moore: Once again, Moore did a little bit of everything. He picked up Stewart’s forced fumble and return it for a touchdown. In addition to that key play, he allowed three receptions for just 12 yards in coverage, according to PFF, and had six solo tackles, including one for a loss.
Injury updates
There were no injuries to report during the game.
What’s next?
The Indianapolis Colts are back home next week for a matchup at 1:00 PM ET with the Buffalo Bills. The Bills are 7-2 on the season and have won four straight games. Buffalo ranks fifth in points per game scored and sixth in points per game allowed.
