What should you expect from the Colts defensive line Sunday?
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On Sunday the Indianapolis Colts could be without DeForest Buckner and Kwity Paye. They were already without Samson Ebukam after tearing his achilles prior to the regular season. These injuries have provided opportunities for Laiatu Latu, Tyquan Lewis, Dayo Odeyingbo, and others to show their skillset.
For two of those players, it was a prove it year anyways. Odeyingbo being one and then Lewis being the other. Dayo is entering the final year of his rookie contract and Lewis signed a one-year deal with the Colts after closing last season strong.
As it pertains to Lewis, he’s accumulated 15 tackles, two tackles for loss, and one sack through three weeks. Four of his first five seasons in the NFL were limited because of injuries.
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This week’s contest against the Steelers will be a test for this Colts defense. In week one and two, it was horrible against the run. Pittsburg relies on being able to run the football with Najee Harris and Justin Fields. They will likely be without their RB2 in Jaylen Warren.
Much like their most recent game against Chicago, the defensive line needs to match the physicality of the Steelers offensive line to force Fields to become a passer.
Through three weeks Fields has player more like the Ohio State quarterback that people watched on Saturday afternoons. He’s completing 73.3% of his passes and has only turned the ball over once through three games. He’s averaging 203 yards of offense between his arm and legs.
In week two, the Colts struggled against Malik Willis. He was 12/14 for 122 yards passing and added 41 yards on the ground. Indianapolis will need its defensive line to come through because they cannot afford to repeat a performance like week two. It would result in the playoff percentage for the Colts being slim to none.
On Wednesday’s edition of Query Company, the Colts defensive lineman joined to discuss the following:
- How the defensive line approached last week knowing DeForest Bucker wasn’t suiting up
- What he expects to see from Pittsburg’s offense with Justin Fields quarterbacking
- Why the team stands behind Anthony Richardson as a leader of the football team
To listen to Jimmy Cook and Greg Rakestraw’s conversation with Tyquan Lewis, download the podcast containing the conversation below! You can always listen to the Query & Company from 12pm-3pm on 93.5/107.5 The Fan. You can also watch and interact with the show by going to the 107.5 The Fan YouTube Channel.
