Awaiting the Indianapolis Colts’ secondary this week is a matchup against New York Jets wide receivers Davante Adams and Garrett Wilson.
Overall, the Jets’ passing game has been up and down this season. New York will enter Week 11 averaging a modest 6.4 yards per pass attempt, which ranks 23rd in the NFL. They are 13th in explosive pass plays generated and 17th in passing yards per game.
However, we all know the individual talent that Adams and Wilson possess, and certainly can’t overlook who they have at quarterback in Aaron Rodgers.
Wilson leads the NFL in targets this season with 98 and is fourth in receiving yards with 704, along with ranking seventh in yards after the catch.
Adams, meanwhile, has been a favorite target of Rodgers’ for years, going back to their time together in Green Bay. An elite route runner with a deep release package at the line of scrimmage, Adams is excellent at creating separation. In only four games with the Jets, Adams has 38 targets and totaled 206 yards with a touchdown.
Coming into the season, the Colts’ secondary was one of the biggest question marks on this team. Early on in the season, there was a three game stretch against Chicago, Pittsburgh, and Jacksonville where Caleb Williams, Justin Fields, and Trevor Lawrence combined to throw for over 1,000 yards against this Colts’ defense.
However, since then, this group has been trending in the right direction. GM Chris Ballard banked on the development of players like Nick Cross and Jaylon Jones, which he’s gotten, not to mention that the emergence of Sam Womack has been key, along with Kenny Moore continuing to play at a high level.
On the year, the Colts are still giving up 7.3 yards per pass attempt, the sixth-most in football, but over the last three games against Houston, Minnesota, and Buffalo, the Colts’ defense ranks sixth in coverage EPA (expected points added) during that span, along with being one of the best in football this season at creating turnovers.
As would be the case for any secondary, Wilson, Adams, and Rodgers can be a difficult matchup. Giving the secondary a boost can be the Colts’ defensive front either in getting after Rodgers–which they’ve also done well as of late, generating pressure–or in stopping the run and putting New York in predictable passing situations.
