On Monday the Indianapolis Colts will play their first of four primetime games during the 2021-2022 season in Baltimore against the Ravens. Last season the Ravens got the best of the Colts by a score of 24-10 at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Colts defense limited Lamar Jackson to 58 rushing yards on thirteen carries. As a team, the Ravens rushed for 110 yards on 38 attempts (2.9 yards per carry).
The Colts will have the same task the rest of the NFL does when facing the Ravens, and that is containing Lamar Jackson. He’s ninth in the league in rushing yards with 279. That’s more than running backs Aaron Jones (Green Bay Packers), Saquon Barkley (New York Giants), and Jonathan Taylor (Indianapolis Colts). During Tuesday’s Dan Dakich Show, Mike Chappell made his weekly pit-stop and was asked by Dan whether or not the Colts would use All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard as a spy.
“I think there are times you do that. You don’t want to take him out of the rest of the game with what he can do. All the time? Probably not. I tell you, if that’s the guy that’s assigned to Lamar Jackson, then you better get his butt on the ground because everyone else will be occupied elsewhere. If you make a mistake and you aren’t where you are supposed to be, they gash you. He’s got the size, the speed, and he can take it anytime and anyplace and hurt a defense.” Says Chappell.
This is the first major challenge for the Colts defense against a true dual-threat quarterback. Tennessee’s Ryan Tannehill is the closest quarterback the Colts have faced this season to a dual-threat, and Tannehill ran for 56 yards…on five carries.
Now when Jackson has been kept inside the pocket this season, he has been sacked eleven times, which is tied for sixth most in the NFL. During their conversation, Dan asked Chappell what the Colts need to do in order to beat a really good Baltimore Ravens team.
“Pass-rush. It’s got to start there. You just can’t play defense if you can’t get around the quarterback and bother him. Jackson is a guy that’s hard to bring down because he’s big and elusive. They have to get more from their front four, which I don’t know where it’s coming from. Until they get the pass rush fixed, it’s just going to be a struggle because if you can’t get the quarterback off his spot, it’s just hard to play on the back end and do coverage and they are having way too many big plays and breakdowns in coverage.”
Other topics that Dan discussed with Mike Chappell include the decision for the Colts to give Marlon Mack eleven touches to Nyheim Hines four and if the run game is back in the NFL. Follow the link below for their full conversation!
https://omny.fm/shows/the-dan-dakich-show/best-of-the-dan-dakich-show-tuesday-10-5-21
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