After a rough first half against the Washington Commanders, the Indianapolis Coltsoffense started to get into a rhythm later in the game. Indianapolis managed to get 10 points on the board before halftime and kept piling it on in the second half to win the game 30-13.
Running back Jonathan Taylor was the leading force for this offense with 95 rushing yards and two touchdowns. All of the Colts’ touchdowns came on the ground, with the other rushing touchdown coming from quarterback Daniel Jones. Jones had a rough first half with a strip sack and an interception, but he did not turn the ball over in the second half.
Here is a look at the good, bad, and ugly from the Colts’ second straight win of the season versus the Washington Commanders:
The Good
The outcome:
It was not a pretty game for the Colts, especially in the first half, but they pulled away in the second half to get the win. Indianapolis really leaned into their run game, with Taylor taking control of the game in the fourth quarter. They also took advantage of the fact that Washington had a rookie quarterback playing most of the game, with an easy interception that they turned into seven points. Nonetheless, the Colts still have a number of things they can improve on.
Red zone efficiency: Indianapolis scored on all three of their red zone trips while preventing the Commanders from scoring on both of their red zone trips. Being efficient in the red zone on offense and defense is a great way to win football games. It is also much better than they did against the Houston Texans in their first win of the season. This was key in the Colts coming away with a 17-point win.
Penalties: Usually, penalties are a bad thing. Penalties have not been a major problem for the Colts this season, with an average of only five penalties per game in the first three weeks. However, the fact that they were only penalized once throughout this entire game is remarkable. Washington, meanwhile, was penalized 10 times for 84 yards. In what was a close game for much of the contest, this advantage for the Colts was important.
The Bad
Receivers: Indianapolis can survive some games solely relying on Jonathan Taylor to carry the team. But what about times when they need the receivers to step up? The Colts’ leading receiver in this game was Laquon Treadwell with just 42 yards. Tight end Tyler Warren also had 41 yards. Josh Downs, who was expected to be the one to step up with Alec Pierce out, only had three receptions for 16 yards. Indianapolis is going to need more productivity at receiver, even when Pierce returns.
Sacks: The Colts finished the game with only two sacks, and that's with Washington being in obvious passing situations often in the second half -- prime opportunities for a pass rush to get home. Athan Kaliakmanis was pressured on just 22.2% of his dropbacks, per PFF -- that's not a lot. The Colts only had seven sacks in the first three games, so this has been a pretty consistent problem: they cannot get the quarterback on the ground.
The Ugly
First half Daniel Jones: Daniel Jones was not terrible in the second half, but he was in the first half. Washington only scored three points off his two turnovers, but it could have been much worse against a team with more offensive firepower. He was also inaccurate at times and looked uncomfortable in the pocket.
Colts' downfield passing game: This element is non-existent without Alec Pierce. Jones averaged just 4.2 yards per pass attempt and had one completion of 10-plus yards. That makes this Colts' offense a lot easier to defend.
This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: Colts vs Commanders: Good, bad and ugly from Week 4 win
