Colts vs. Steelers: Breaking Down Indianapolis' Game Plan

The Indianapolis Colts are for real. 

They are a bona fide Super Bowl contender, a power in the AFC. They are second in the AFC in point differential to the Baltimore Ravens—who they beat soundly in Week 5. 

Indianapolis is quickly rising in the power rankings and are no longer seen as frauds. The defense is playing better than it has in decades, and the offense is back to Manning-era style and efficiency. 

All is good in Naptown. 

Now is the time where it gets easy to start overlooking opponents and looking forward to bigger matchups. But the Colts can't afford such a slip, not if they want to get a bye in the AFC playoffs, a very real possibility. With a slew of mediocre but occasionally dangerous teams on the horizon, the Colts can rack up wins as long as they keep their focus. 

This week's test? The Pittsburgh Steelers, which is no automatic win, especially on the road. In order to take care of business, here are four keys the Colts must keep in mind. 

Offense: Tighten up the Discipline

There is one thing that has plagued the Colts offense this season: Themselves. The team has lacked discipline at times, and it's killed drives early. The Colts are incredibly efficient this year on a per-drive basis, but a few glaring disappointments stand out. 

Turnovers is the big thing, especially fumbles. Interceptions will happen with as much as Luck is throwing the ball, especially considering how many of his interceptions have come off of tipped or batted passes this year.

Fumbles, however, can definitely be improved upon. Ahmad Bradshaw currently has the third-highest fumble rate in the league for backs with at least 50 carries, while Trent Richardson has the eighth-highest rate (and that's not including his handoff miscue last week). Combine that with multiple fumbles that occurred due to poor or mistimed snaps, and you have a team with more rushing fumbles than any team in the league. 

Patric Schneider/Associated Press

That kind of thing kills drives, especially when it happens in the red zone. Remember, a Bradshaw fumble deep in Houston territory in Week 6 halted what would have been a game-clinching drive and allowed the Texans to have a shot in the end.

Remember the Philadelphia Eagles loss? While an uncalled pass interference penalty could have prevented a loss, a Trent Richardson fumble on the Colts' 25-yard line in the third quarter led directly to an Eagles touchdown that tied the game. 

But it's not just fumbles. It's penalties as well, although the Colts tend to be pretty good there, outside of isolated, ill-timed incidences. 

It's also fourth-down execution. Chuck Pagano has been rightfully aggressive on fourth down in the red zone, but the Colts have converted just one of four attempts inside the opponents' 30-yard line so far this year. 

Overall, it's tough to complain about anything in this offense right now, but if the little things can be improved upon, it will go a long way toward raising the Colts' offensive efficiency into elite levels.

Offense: Dwayne Allen, Dwayne Allen, Dwayne Allen

As I tweeted earlier this week, Colts tight end Dwayne Allen is knocking more rust off each week, getting closer and closer to his elite 2012 levels of play:

It appears that Allen agrees, and thinks he can get even better, as he spoke to Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star about his return from injury: 

"

I don't feel comfortable. It was my goal going into the season, because of the injury and not having an offseason to train, to get better as the year went along. And I feel like I've done a good job with that so far, but I still have a long way to go to be the player I want to be at the end of the year. I've made a lot of strides but I'm still not there and I'm still not comfortable. Quite frankly, I hope I'm never comfortable.

"

Allen brings another element to the offense with his ability to be a crushing blocker as well as a threat in the passing game. It allows the Colts to run a higher variety of sets out of different formations, which is critical to Pep Hamilton's game plan. 

With Pittsburgh being 29th in Football Outsiders' receiving DVOA allowed to tight ends, Allen should find space against a struggling Pittsburgh secondary, especially if they focus on blistering-hot T.Y. Hilton. 

Don't forget about Coby Fleener either. While he has his deficiencies, he's quietly 10th in Football Outsiders' DYAR and DVOA. He can take advantage of gaps in zone coverage, and Luck is more than willing to target him off of play action.

Defense: Shift with Antonio Brown

A 2013 All-Pro selection, WR Antonio Brown is off to a fast start in 2014, leading all receivers in catches and receiving yards. He's in the conversation with Jordy Nelson and Dez Bryant for the the best receiver in the league with injuries hampering Calvin Johnson and A.J. Green. 

Even on an offense that has been inconsistent, Brown has produced, a task that's more difficult than it may seem. 

The Colts secondary has to make Brown a priority, shifting safety help to his side no matter if he's matched up against Vontae Davis or Greg Toler. The Colts traditionally tend to shift single-high safeties toward the left side to aid Toler, but if Brown lines up opposite Davis, the team has to be willing to give him help. 

Davis has been phenomenal for Indianapolis, but he's also had his share of miscues that opposing offenses have been unable to take advantage of. With Ben Roethlisberger looking Brown's way on a high amount of snaps, the Steelers will be ready to take advantage. 

Brown is an excellent route-runner, something that both the Colts' cornerbacks have struggled with at times. 

Look how he sets up Houston's cornerback in this near-touchdown on Monday night, for example:

NFL Game Rewind

Brown takes two chopped steps to the inside to fake a dig route, and the corner bites hard, getting off-balance and flat-footed. It allows Brown, who doesn't have great top speed but accelerates quickly, to get plenty of room for the open throw to the corner. 

Despite being in a Cover 2, the Texans had no safety far enough to the outside to get there in time. The Colts will need to have a safety line up wider toward Brown's side, or have their corners funnel him inside and guard the boundary closely. If that's the case, the Colts' interior linebackers and safeties must be aware. Brown is incredibly shifty and can rack up yards after the catch in a hurry. 

Expect the Colts to blitz the Steelers heavily on Sunday, attempting to get to Roethlisberger quickly enough to disrupt his rhythm with Brown on timing routes.

Defense: Spying Le'Veon Bell

Along with Brown comes the Steelers' other driving force, running back Le'Veon Bell. Bell has quickly established himself as one of the best backs in the league, and has been as productive as any back in the league, including DeMarco Murray: 

The Colts, despite their impressive effort against Giovani Bernard and Jeremy Hill last week, are just 30th in Football Outsiders' run defense DVOA and 31st in receiving DVOA against running backs.

Last week, they were able to keep eight men near the box at almost all times, trusting their cornerbacks to corral a weak Cincinnati receiving corp. The Colts also kept somebody assigned to the running back, whether it was a linebacker or safety, at just about all times, keying in tightly on leaks out of the backfield.

Indianapolis likely won't be able to keep a safety in the box quite as often this week, with Markus Wheaton and Martavis Bryant possessing big-play ability opposite Brown that will keep the Colts safeties on their toes. 

But the Colts have to be aware of Bell at all times. He's a patient, talented runner, but can also hurt a defense through the air. The Pittsburgh offensive line is suffering enough injuries that the Colts should be able to keep the running game in check, especially if the Colts offense can get out to a quick start and force Pittsburgh to go pass-heavy. 

But Bell will get his touches—and likely his yards. As long as the Colts keep him and Brown identified and highlighted on every play, the Steelers don't have the depth of weapons to hurt them elsewhere.

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.