Ranking the Colts' Most Important Individuals for Defensive Turnaround
The Indianapolis Colts have shot out of the gate over the first half of the season, with all three phases making leaps forward. It's a testament to the team's coaching and development over what was a tumultuous offseason.
But over the Colts' five-game win streak, the defense's improvement has stood out demonstrably. Sure, it's arguably the weakest of the three phases, but it's gone from one of the league's weaker units to a genuine asset for Indianapolis.
The turnaround from last season is stark. The league's 20th-ranked defense in yards per game last season is currently third, and fourth in points per game. They've held the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals to 13 combined points in the last three weeks, both potential playoff teams who were in the top five in Football Outsiders' offensive DVOA going into Week 7.
So what have been the keys for the Colts' defensive improvement? It's a team effort, of course, but there are certainly individuals that we can point to as catalysts to the impressive stretch.
10. Pat McAfee
1 of 10
No, Pat McAfee doesn't play defense, although he seemingly does everything, from punting to kickoffs to field goals to laying out returners.
But don't ignore what McAfee's done this year, easily placing himself among the league's elite punters and throwing in a phenomenal job on kickoffs as well. It isn't defensive play, but it's directly related.
The Colts were second in the league in average opponent field position leading into Sunday's game, and McAfee (and the coverage units) are the main reason why. The team is rarely allowing returns at all on kickoffs and have pinned opponents deep in their own territory at an alarming rate.
It's a lot easier to prevent 80 or 90-yard scoring drives than it is 50 or 60-yard drives. The defense has been put in great positions all season.
9. Sergio Brown
2 of 10
While LaRon Landry was the starter early in the season, it's been Brown who has come in and replaced him during the Colts defense's most impressive stretch of the season.
Landry has been a thorn in Colts fans' sides over the last year and a half, rarely (if ever) making the splash that he was expected to after signing a four-year, $24-million contract. Being suspended four weeks for a completely obvious, how-has-he-not-been-caught-before performance-enhancing drug violation soured fans on him even more.
Over the last three weeks, Brown has stepped in and done everything asked of him, making big plays and rarely being a liability, aside from a questionable stretch of run defense against the Houston Texans. He's allowed just three catches for 22 yards in that time period and has people—including coaches—noticing his strong play:
"#colts Pagano: Sergio Brown. Has taken full advantage of his opportunity. He's playing well. @rtv6
— Mike Chappell (@mchappell51) October 20, 2014"
Whether Brown keeps his job when Landry returns from suspension will be something to watch for. It's a ridiculous statement that would have been scoffed at three weeks ago, but not anymore. The Colts defense has been noticeably better over the last three weeks.
8. Schedule-Makers
3 of 10
Don't get me wrong, the Colts deserve the praise for their defensive performance, but let's not pretend like they've faced the stiffest competition.
Sure, they played Denver and Philadelphia early on, but they gave up a combined 61 points to those teams, and both opponents scored within a half-point of their respective season averages.
Since then they've played the AFC South teams, who are averaging just over 18 points per game. The Colts gave up just over 18 points a game to those three teams.
The other two opponents the Colts played were the Bengals and Ravens, two games in which the defense was extremely impressive. But injuries played a big part there.
Baltimore was facing significant offensive line injuries and was starting undrafted rookie James Hurst at left tackle, who gave up three of the Colts' four sacks. The Colts' success against the Ravens was almost entirely based on their ability to get to Joe Flacco, so that was a significant advantage.
Cincinnati was without A.J. Green, easily the Bengals' most talented player and biggest downfield threat. Without a downfield threat, the Colts left their secondary exposed for most of the game and sold out to stop the run and short passing game, and Cincinnati was powerless.
Now, keep this in mind, because I know some people will take this section the wrong way.
What, people misunderstanding and taking things to the extreme on the Internet? Don't be silly!
What the Colts have done has been very impressive.
Every team deals with injuries, and the team can only play who is put in front of them. This isn't a knock on the defense, it's just a rational examination of one of many reasons why the Colts defense is playing well to start the season.
Every NFL team needs luck to succeed. That's how the NFL works. A few bounces the other way and a 27-10 loss becomes a 21-17 victory. Just ask the Houston Texans after their bizarre loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday night.
The Colts are fortunate to have the schedule they have, and they're taking advantage of that.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
7. Ricky Jean Francois
4 of 10
Last season, the newly signed Ricky Jean Francois was underwhelming, to say the least. After signing a four-year, $22 million contract, Jean Francois simply didn't make the impact he was expected to. Part of that, of course, was due to injuries, as he missed six games.
But as a starter, Jean Francois was supposed to do more. This year, that's happening.
After free-agent signing Arthur Jones went down early in the season with injury, Jean Francois went from a rotational player to a starter once again. But this time he's been up to the challenge. He's making splash plays seemingly every week, getting tackles in the backfield both against the run and pass.
He has two sacks through seven weeks after having 2.5 in all of last season and is the Colts' second-highest graded defensive lineman, according to Pro Football Focus.
6. Mike Adams
5 of 10
Losing Antoine Bethea was supposed to be a blow to the Colts secondary, especially after failing to draft a replacement or sign a big-name safety.
The Colts signed Mike Adams on a one-year deal with little fanfare, and he was supposed to come in and compete with Delano Howell for the starting job. But after Howell was injured yet again, Adams won the job from guys like Sergio Brown fairly easily, and he's been dependable ever since.
While he's not quite the force that Bethea was against the run, Adams is more than willing to lay the wood on opposing players. But most importantly, he's been great in pass coverage, a huge key for a team that places a lot of stress on its secondary.
Adams is second in the league in Pro Football Focus' pass coverage grade for safeties, and his reliability is a huge reason why the Colts can afford to blitz on every other down. Oh, and he also has a hit and two hurries of his own on 11 blitzes.
5. Greg Toler
6 of 10
While he can get picked on a bit in the Colts' cornerback group, Greg Toler plays a huge role in the style of defense that the Colts want to play.
Toler has been up and down during his time with the Colts, but the drop-off from him to the next outside corner, Josh Gordy, is significant. The Colts defense was actually playing pretty well to start the 2013 season, but after Toler was lost to a groin injury, things went downhill fast.
Sure, there's a bit of a paradox with Toler.
He's ranked 89th among all cornerbacks in Pro Football Focus' grades. He gets targeted at a high rate and allows a too many yards after the catch. He's second-to-last in Pro Football Focus' tackling efficiency metric, with seven total missed tackles on the season (tied for second-most among corners).
But that doesn't mean he's a bad corner.
Toler gets picked on a bit because he plays opposite Vontae Davis, who's playing lights out. The Colts' other corner is Darius Butler, who is a very good slot corner in his own right. And it's not like Toler is getting burned: His 66.6 passer rating against is 12th in the league, per Pro Football Focus. Toler has very good ball skills, and his coverage is more than fine a large part of the time.
He's not a Pro Bowler, but he fits the Colts scheme. The team can leave him in man-to-man coverage and trust him enough to blitz consistently. If asked to cover for a decent amount of time, he can be inconsistent, but when the Colts' pass rush is on, Toler is more good than bad.
4. Cory Redding
7 of 10
When Robert Mathis was suspended due to a PED violation, Cory Redding knew that his leadership would be needed more than ever. When Mathis was lost for the season with an Achilles tear, that need was raised even higher.
Redding, of course, was up for the challenge. In what may be the last year of his contract, Redding has been nothing short of the Colts' second-best defensive player, consistently making plays for a defense that lacks individual playmakers.
Redding already has three sacks on the season, one year after putting up 4.5 total. His plus-8.0 pass rush grade from Pro Football Focus places him sixth on the list of 3-4 defensive ends. He's the leader of the defense, both in his words and locker room presence and in his on-field play.
He's been a home run signing for Ryan Grigson since arriving in 2012, and it's been needed more than ever in 2014.
3. Bjoern Werner
8 of 10
Who was going to step up in the Robert Mathis-shaped void at outside linebacker? That was the big question entering the season.
Well, as expected, it was going to have to be a team effort, but second-year outside linebacker Bjoern Werner has taken a second-year leap that has been critical for the team's improvement.
There's not much else to say after writing a column on it earlier this week, but let's put it this way: The Colts certainly have relied on blitzes and schemes to manufacture a pass rush this year, but Werner and Cory Redding are making sure that the rush doesn't completely disappear when the team chooses not to blitz.
That's a big factor that can't be ignored. Werner isn't the best player on the defense, and he's not in the top three either, but his improvement from 2013 to this season makes a demonstrative difference in the team's performance as a whole.
2. Greg Manusky
9 of 10
Greg Manusky isn't exactly a well-known name for most NFL fans. I mean, the yearly mug shot is the only photo in the Bleacher Report photo services from his three seasons in Indianapolis.
But after the season he's had so far, his name should be shouted loud and proud from every media organization.
There are so many reasons why the Colts are succeeding on defense this season, but Manusky is as important, or more, as all of them. In his third year as a defensive coordinator, Manusky has mastered playcalling with this particular unit, timing his blitzes and funky coverages perfectly over the last five weeks.
Without a marquee pass-rusher, the Colts are tied for third in the league in sacks. Without any big-time playmakers, they are tied for fifth in takeaways. The team leads the league in third-down conversion percentage at a stifling 26 percent—no other team is under 30 percent.
Execution is paramount for any team's success, but Manusky's job manufacturing pressure with Robert Mathis out and his ability to manage the game ranks among the league's best this season.
1. Vontae Davis
10 of 10
What else is there to say about Vontae Davis this season?
He leads the league in Pro Football Focus' cornerback grades. He's in the top five in passer rating against and yards and receptions per coverage snap, and is seventh in snaps per target, all per Pro Football Focus. He's one of nine cornerbacks not to miss a tackle yet this season, per Pro Football Focus.
On Sunday he was credited with four passes defensed, helped lock Mohamed Sanu and the Bengals passing game down and had one bone-crushing hit on Giovani Bernard (that left Twitter reeling as well).
The Colts are leaving him on an island on just about every play, and he's rewarding their trust with outstanding play. He's not disappointing after a big contract, but raising his level of play. He's allowing the Colts to blitz at a very high rate, roll coverages to other parts of the field and basically just not worry about him.
Davis isn't an elite cornerback. He's not Darrelle Revis, Patrick Peterson or Richard Sherman, the NFL's elite trio that are on a level of their own, even with a "slow" start to the season. Like the rest of the defense, Davis has benefited from poor opposing quarterback play.
But what Davis is doing is unprecedented in Indianapolis since "Big Play" Ray Buchanan, and it's a huge reason why the Colts are doing what they are doing. If it can continue, so can the Colts' defensive dominance.
All statistics and snap counts come from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) and Pro Football Reference unless otherwise noted.
Kyle is an NFL and Indianapolis Colts analyst for Bleacher Report and the editor-in-chief of Colts Authority. Follow Kyle on Twitter for more stats, analysis and general NFL analysis.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
