Colts-Browns Week 5 recap (thread):

Let's start with a snapshot of where the Colts are after 5 weeks.

The defense is still at the upper echelons of the league, while the offense has dropped to a below average unit.

However, both units share blame for the result against Cleveland.

Let's start with the defense. They had a Jekyll & Hyde performance with a subpar 1st half and a very strong 2nd half. Look at these splits against the pass:

Comp/Att , Yards, Comp %, Y/A , INT:

Def:
1H: 20/29, 246, 69%, 8.5, 0
2H: 2/9, 19, 22%, 2.1, 2

So what happened? While there were a handful of coverage breakdowns, the biggest factor was the lack of pass rush.

I charted the number of pressures (within 3 seconds) the Colts generated in the 1st half. Of 30 dropbacks, the Colts pressured Mayfield *once*.

In this game, they particularly missed speed off the edge. Hopefully Turay can come back healthy in a few weeks.

Here are a few plays showcasing the lack of pass rush in the 1st half:

4 seconds and no one close to Mayfield

4 seconds before AQM applies pressure, but the rush can’t get home. Hard for coverage to hold in these circumstances.

Those were just two examples, but you get the point.

So what changed in the 2nd half? Of Mayfield’s 10 drop backs, the Colts pressured him on 4.

Good outside rush from AQM here for the sack.

Pressure in his face forces a quick (and bad) decision from Mayfield for INT 1.

Houston gets home here and causes the inaccurate throw for INT 2.

On the coverage front, here are a few of the breakdowns. I *think* Rhodes is expecting inside support from Blackmon on this long completion.

Someone is supposed to cover the seam. Not sure if it’s Wilson or the LB, but this is as easy a TD as Mayfield will have all year.

There were some bright spots for young players, though.

This is phenomenal coverage from Okereke against Landry.

Another nice rep from Okereke but the Browns make another contested catch.

And lastly, look at how quickly Blackmon gets across the field on Beckham’s pass.

Now for the offense. Before we dive into Sunday, here's a snapshot of how Rivers compares to the rest of the league through Week 5. Not great, but far from terrible. He's still a big upgrade on Brissett who last year rated about where Trubisky is now.

Like the defense, Rivers had a Jekyll & Hyde performance by half on Sunday.

Comp/Att , Yards, Comp %, Y/A , INT:

Rivers:
1H: 8/11, 120, 73%, 10.9, 0
2H: 13/22, 123, 59%, 5.6, 2

Good 1st half. Really bad 2nd half. So what happened?

In the 1st half, protection (mostly) held up and allowed Rivers to wait for plays to develop downfield.

Good blitz pickup from Taylor and the OL holds up long enough to hit Johnson.

Again, the OL holds up long enough for Rivers to take advantage of the safety.

Now what happens with protection? Rivers doesn’t have the mobility to do much of anything when things break down.

Here’s a 3rd down where Clark gets beat by Vernon. Again, I’ll keep harping on it that missing Pittman kills them in these situations.

And here’s another 3rd down where they can’t beat press man without an X receiver. So frustrating.

And here’s another 3rd down they can’t convert because of breakdown in protection and Rivers’ lack of mobility.

Ballard really needs to get a young QB who can make something out of nothing on these plays in the future.

Look, another 3rd and 4 without an X receiver. Without an X, Rivers has to wait, which leads to happy feet, which leads to a terrible decision.

Happy feet —> easy misses

And happy feet lead to more bad decisions (look at Burton at the top of the screen).

Btw, this protection is terrible against a 3 man rush.

So where does that leave us? What's the plan of attack for the rest of the season?

1) No, Rivers should not be benched and it should not be under consideration. He's still far and away their best option for a team that should compete to make the playoffs.

2) The pass pro has to be better. They're winning at a league average rate in pass protection, which isn't good enough given the investment. They must be ELITE.

3) The defense can't let games get out of hand and force Rivers into bad spots. 0 stops and 20 ppg halves can't happen

4) Pittman needs to get back. This offense can't stay on the field in enough 3rd and manageable situations without him. He should also help in the RZ as well.

5) Hopefully Campbell can get back and help stretch the defense side to side and deep from the slot.

6) Defensively, they need more pass rush than they showed in the 1H. They've shown that it's there, but it has to be more consistent. If Turay can come back healthy, that would be huge.

7) Reich needs to make better decisions. That safety was on him as much as anyone.

All told, there's no reason this team can't compete with the likes of TEN and CLE in the 2nd tier of the conference. If all of the above breaks their way (WRs, OL, pass rush), then we can talk about possibly aiming higher.