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INDIANAPOLIS – Readers of 1070TheFan.com can submit their questions to have a chance of them being answered in our mailbag.
Submit your questions here.
Here is the collection of Monday questions:
Colton (Sioux Falls, SD)
With Luck’s 400+ yard performance against Houston, do you anticipate more pass-heavy games now that he has shown he can rely on his shoulder? Compared to past years, it feels like he has thrown fewer interceptions at this point in the season.
Bowen: Through Luck’s first five games of 2018, his interception percentage is at 2.0{5cc93c20f90a32e13f8959d57682c5e5d5b1db216370168a8280434e1df7d759}, the second lowest of his career. It has been a very nice start for Luck when it comes to protecting the football. To build off your point, I do think we will see games where the Colts are more pass heavy. Why? Because they have an elite quarterback and their run game is anything but that. The discrepancy against the Texans had more to do with the score and the Colts getting behind early. Frank Reich gets it. Yes, he wants some run game balance, but he’s not going to force feed that week in and week out when he knows that his team’s biggest strength resides with No. 12. This is what Reich had to say about the lack of balance right now: “It’s killing me to have to throw it this much. I know you can’t sustain this. The story doesn’t end well when you have to sustain this level of throwing. Maybe there are exceptions to that, but I’ve learned that in my past. We are doing everything we can do to try to balance that out. That being said, we get in a game, we are going to play to win. When you get behind early – and then of course last week was an overtime game so you’re playing 70 minutes rather than 60. So, that has to be factored in there as well. That’s going to add to the attempts. But we need to be more balanced for sure.”
RJ (Toms River, NJ)
Do you think the colts will be a 500 team this year? Andrew luck doesnt have a losing season but I’m afraid this might be his first. We’re cursed with injuries!
Bowen: Toms River!!! I remember watching them in the Little League World Series with Todd Frazier back in the day. Onto the question, before the season started I picked the Colts to go 7-9 this year. I still hover right around that mark. Injuries have been brutal on the offensive side of the ball. If we are talking about a progress report after Week 5, I guessed the Colts would be 2-3, not the 1-4 record that they currently have. So they need to grab 2 of these next 3 (@Jets, Bills, @Raiders) to head into the bye week with a 3-5 mark, which is where I thought they would be after the first half of the season. Could they get on a late-season run and push for 8 wins? Maybe. I’m going to stick with my 7-win prediction before the season started.
Michelle (Fort Wayne, IN)
Hi Kevin… I’ve asked this last year and I am going to ask again lol… We are playing patriots tomorrow… Week 5… Would be nice to ‘for once’ have all or most of our starters playing our rival… My Q… Why is it that we are always hurt? Its not like we have one or two out its a slew… Why do we have the most..EVERY SINGLE YEAR…Why can’t the colts fix this? Its beginning to be a song on repeat! Btw.. Love having u doing mailbag!
Bowen: Michelle asks a question that I sadly have no great answer for. I’m just as confused as you are on why the Colts continue to have injury issues. They’ve overhauled their training staff and nutritional program twice in the last three years in an effort to try and stymie the injury problems. Veteran strength coach Rusty Jones was brought in this year to try and keep guys healthy. It’s been a variety of things so far. Anthony Castonzo gets hurt training on his own. Then Marlon Mack pulls a hamstring in the preseason opener. Then the durable Jack Doyle goes down for several weeks after playing through a hip injury in Week Two. It seems like the soft tissue hamstring injuries have flared up more often this season. I wish I had a better answer. But it’s crazy to look at the difference in the last two weeks. The Colts had 12 of their 14 inactives due to injury in the past two games. While the Texans and the Patriots ruled no one out due to injury. Mind boggling. Here is what Frank Reich has to say about the injury situation: “I don’t think there is a pinpoint. Like everybody here, we have all been around this business a long time and sometimes you just get bit and it seems they come in waves and that’s unfortunate when it happens. Some years you go and it seems like everybody stays healthy and then other years it seems like guys just are just getting dinged. There are so many factors that go into it, I just think it’s near impossible to try to pin it down. It doesn’t mean that you don’t look for things. It doesn’t mean that you don’t try to find ways to improve and do every little thing you can do to keep your guys healthy and keep them from getting hurt. Sure, we always are evaluating everything, but in the big scope of things I think it’s impossible to pin it to one thing.”
Mason (Indianapolis)
Rashard Matthew’s seems like the kind of receiver talent that the Colts could use on offense. Do you see him as a fit in the culture and scheme here?
Bowen: Form a talent standpoint, I would have looked into it. But it’s seems clear that the Colts are leaning more towards playing younger guys, compared to a soon-to-be 29-year-old Rishard Matthews. If the Colts were more in the playoff race and truly desperate for another wideout, then maybe we would see Matthews. But I have a feeling this team will focus on seeing their young talent ride the season out at receiver. Maybe Reece Fountain gets called up from the practice squad?
Juan (Bogota, Colombia)
Hello Kevin, it’s been a long time since I wrote las time. It was great to find you here and I’ve been reading your articles and listening to your podcast, it’s awesome. It’s your friend from south of the border again. Wirh this new scheme which looks to have an efficient and innovative offense, but makes us sometimes a little predictable because we can’t really hit chunk plays, do you think if Andrew keeps evolving and getting into more rythm, the offense will really become a strength of this team? Given also thay AC will be back to solidify de offensive line. On the other hand with the addition of a couple of pieces to the defensive line through the draft, do you think it would make the defense elite? Thank you and keep up your awesome job!
Bowen: Hey, Juan! Welcome back and glad you found us. 1. It’s pretty amazing that through the first 5 weeks, it’s been the defense doing the heavy lifting this season. I would have never expected that. But injuries have dominated the offensive side of the ball. And it’s a unit learning a more complex system. I’m with you though on the chunk plays. You have to start hitting more and more on chunk plays. After the first quarter of the season, Andrew Luck’s vertical passing game number was last in the NFL. It’s just so difficult in the NFL to put together slower moving, 12-play drives to march down the field. You need to start hitting on some chunks. But, of course, right when it looks like Anthony Castonzo could be returning, then T.Y. Hilton goes down. 2.
Jorge (Recife, Brazil)
The underperformance of the attack unit last Sunday are to blame for the lack of true playmakers, beside TY, on the roster? Projecting the next draft, think it’s the top need of the team right now?
Bowen: Well, it’s certainly a need. I was calling for a wide receiver in last year’s second round. The return of Deon Cain will help, but you still need to look long and hard at finding a wideout in the early rounds next April. Remember, T.Y. Hilton is turning 29 years old in November, so he’s obviously not getting any younger. As far as the top need, I don’t think it’s No. 1 on the list. I still lean towards the defensive line and probably even an offensive tackle above wide receiver/skill player.
