Colts vs. Panthers: Full Indianapolis Game Preview
This wasn’t how things were supposed to go for the Indianapolis Colts. Since drafting Andrew Luck with the top overall pick in 2012, the Colts haven’t missed the playoffs and have been progressing closer and closer to the ultimate prize each season.
Even with the seemingly unbeatable New England Patriots in the way, the next step was logically the Super Bowl for Indianapolis, and many people had the Colts tagged as dark-horse contenders for the Vince Lombardi Trophy this season, especially after a number of big offseason acquisitions.
But after a 3-4 start, during which the Colts are winless against teams not in the hapless AFC South, things aren’t looking quite as rosy for Indy. Chuck Pagano is on the hottest of hot seats, Luck is struggling to recapture the form that made him a superstar, and the veteran additions of Frank Gore and Andre Johnson have not done enough to change the team’s fortunes this season.
Things only get worse as the Colts face the toughest stretch of their season so far, with a pair of road games against the undefeated Carolina Panthers and 6-1 Atlanta Falcons sandwiched around a contest against the undefeated Denver Broncos at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Indianapolis needs to find a way to turn its season around or risk watching it slip away. It all starts Monday night against Cam Newton and the Panthers.
Viewing Info
Location: Bank of America Stadium; Charlotte, N.C.
Date: Monday, Nov. 2
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Week 7 Recap and Results
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Team | Record |
Indianapolis Colts | 3-4 |
2-5 | |
2-5 | |
1-5 |
For those who have watched the Colts for the entire season, Week 7 must have felt like deja vu. Against the New Orleans Saints—much as in the team's previous losses—Indianapolis was toothless from the start and found itself in a deep hole early.
Unable to get anything going on offense and committing too many turnovers, the Colts allowed Drew Brees and the Saints to build a 27-0 lead early in the third quarter before mustering any sort of a comeback.
Andrew Luck finished the day with decent stats thanks to a pass-heavy attack late and a pair of long touchdowns to T.Y. Hilton, but there was seemingly no fight from a Colts team that seemed to be suffering a hangover from the strong first-half performance against New England the week before.
It is a troubling trend for Indy, who fell behind early against Buffalo and New York before making those games appear closer than they were with a late comeback. Fortunately for the Colts, though, their position in the division remains strong.
A big loss by the Houston Texans meant the Colts maintained the top spot in the AFC South, even with Jacksonville taking down the Bills. A playoff spot is still very much in the cards despite another poor performance.
News and Notes
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Can Andrew Luck fix the turnover issues?
One of the biggest problems plaguing the Colts this season has been all the turnovers. After a couple of weeks of good play, it looked like the team has resolved those issues, but then three giveaways against New Orleans, including two more picks from Andrew Luck, put the Colts right back to square one.
Luck has thrown a staggering nine picks this season and at least two in four of his five starts. If the Colts are going to hand the Panthers their first loss of the season, they need to cut down the turnovers, and it all starts with Luck taking better care of the ball.
No more abandoning the running game
Frank Gore hasn’t been the revelation many were hoping for in the Indianapolis backfield this season. Despite his consistency with the San Francisco 49ers, the running back has failed to get going with the Colts this season.
A big part of that has been the team's need to rely on a more pass-heavy attack when falling behind early, which results in a lack of touches for Gore. According to Kevin Bowen of Colts.com, though, that trend is no more, and Gore will see his fair share of the workload no matter what the score of the game is.
"We all know that he’s a dynamic guy in our offense," head coach Chuck Pagano said, per Bowen. "Regardless of what the score is, we’ve got to stay with it. We can’t totally abandon [the running game]."
Stopping Cam Newton is easier said than done
The Colts haven’t been the most proficient team this season when it comes to stopping the average quarterback, and slowing down Cam Newton poses a whole new group of problems.
His ability as a passer will be on full display against a poor Colts secondary, but Indy cannot ignore his skill set as a rusher if it wants to have any chance at success. If Newton gets going, it could be a long night for the much-maligned Colts defense.
Latest Injury News
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Player | Position | Injury | Status |
Mike Adams | S | Hamstring | Questionable |
Phillip Dorsett | WR | Ankle | Out |
Clayton Geathers | S | Knee | Questionable |
Khaled Holmes | C | Neck | Questionable |
Heading into their Week 7 matchup with the New Orleans Saints, the Indianapolis Colts were on the relatively healthy side of things. With only Mike Adams missing from the first-team unit, Indianapolis looked like it had put its injury woes in the past.
But looking forward to the Monday night matchup with Carolina, things aren’t looking nearly as good. Adams is still listed as questionable, and the ball-hawk safety missed practice Wednesday, even if Pagano claims he is going to play, per Kevin Bowen of Colts.com.
The real issue is a slew of new injuries to important contributors, which could make things even harder for a Colts team that is heading into a difficult matchup in need of a win.
Starting center Khaled Holmes sat out the second half against New Orleans with a neck injury and is questionable to play on Monday. He hasn’t played great this season, but Jonotthan Harrison isn’t an upgrade for a Colts offensive line that is already struggling.
The biggest loss from last week, though, was wide receiver Phillip Dorsett. Although the first-round wide receiver has been the No. 3 or 4 option for Indianapolis this season, not many Colts have the skill set to replace his big-play ability. The offense will miss him in the passing game.
All injury reports via FoxSports.com
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Key Matchups
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Colts offensive line vs. Panthers linebackers
It is a well-known fact that the Carolina Panthers have one of the best linebacking units in the league. Spearheaded by Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis, the Panthers are capable of giving any offensive line in the league fits, as they rank No. 8 in sacks on the season.
In stark contrast to the elite status of the Panthers' linebacking corps stands the Colts offensive line, which has not been able to grab any sort of footing since the season began and has put Andrew Luck in tough situations time and time again. Anthony Castonzo has been terrible, and Indianapolis desperately needs its line to improve for the season to turn around.
Against Carolina, that is going to be difficult, especially if the Panthers learned from the Bills and Jets and blitz more than usual. If the Colts can’t improve in pass blocking or figure out how to make teams pay for blitzing, Monday night could be another rough outing.
Panthers wide receivers vs. Colts secondary
Granted, the receiving combination of Ted Ginn Jr. and Corey Brown is not the most intimidating in the league, even with Greg Olsen piling up stats as the tight end. But both players have done their jobs about as well as could be expected this year and should still give Indianapolis fits.
The Colts have been unable to stop any passing attack they’ve faced this year, ranking No. 29 in the league in passing yards allowed per game. Carolina shouldn’t be any different. Possibly getting Mike Adams back helps, but it still might not be enough to prevent the Panthers from exploiting the weakness in the secondary.
X-Factor
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QB Andrew Luck
All the talk of the Panthers defense, the Colts' inability to stop the pass, the highly questionable Carolina receivers and even the status of Chuck Pagano is warranted. These things will have a huge impact on the game and affect how both teams will play for the rest of the season, but Monday night’s game comes down to one thing: Andrew Luck.
The Colts' franchise player and one of the best quarterbacks in the league still has some decent stats on the year despite missing a couple of games with an injury, but they are mostly an anomaly based on situations Indianapolis has been forced into.
Playing from behind in a majority of their games, the Colts have been forced to abandon the run, which has artificially boosted the quarterback's stats when the game is already out of hand.
His biggest issue this season has been turnovers, though, with at least two interceptions in four of his five starts. With the Panthers tied for fourth in the league in interceptions, Luck needs to clean up his play if the Colts are going to have a shot at the upset.
There is too much going wrong in Indianapolis for Luck to play anything less than a perfect game and lead the team to a win Monday. "Perfect" is possible for a player of his quality, but it isn’t likely, and the Colts could find themselves in an even deeper hole come Tuesday.
Prediction: Panthers 31, Colts 21
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This really has become a game of two teams that have completely gone against their preseason expectations. While the Colts have struggled despite being considered on the short list of Super Bowl favorites, the Panthers have transformed into one of the best teams in the league despite a lower perception of the talent on the roster.
Cam Newton looks like a player reborn, while a receiving corps led by castoffs and youngsters such as Ted Ginn Jr. and Corey Brown has thrived. The defense has been outstanding as many expected it would be, and the Panthers have found a way to overcome their greatest weakness on the offensive line.
The Colts, on the other hand, have become a victim of their flaws. The offensive line cannot keep pressure off Andrew Luck, which has contributed to the superstar's decline this year. The secondary is making even the weakest receiving units look elite, which has made wins hard to come by in the early stages of the season.
At the moment the Panthers are very much in the ascendancy and would likely be running away with their division, were not it for a hot start from the Atlanta Falcons. Meanwhile, the Colts are just holding onto the lead in one of the worst divisions in the NFL.
Things are trending in opposite directions for both franchises at the moment, and the Colts don’t appear any closer to fixing their problems than they were at the beginning of the season. Carolina should be able to take advantage quite easily and move to 7-0 on the season. Indianapolis will drop to 3-5 and have more questions than answers after Monday night.
Prediction: Panthers 31, Colts 21
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