2022 NFL season, Week 5: What we learned from the Colts' win over the Broncos on Thursday
Russell Wilson, the Broncos offense is back for the first time. Many insiders understand that Wilson's connection to his new receivers, signal caller, offensive line and the like will take time to develop in Denver.
But even a pessimistic observer couldn't have predicted some of the struggles we've seen so far, especially from Wilson himself. Some of that concern seemed to disappear after sometimes throwing heart and charm on Sunday against the Raiders,
even in a loss. But Thursday was a setback for the Broncos offense, as Wilson was picked off twice (once in the end zone, almost costing them the game) and averaged just six yards per attempt. He certainly can't be blamed for the absence of Javonte Williams.
The first six goals of the Broncos in the game were 17, 16, 15, 12, 10 and 7. Many early losses put Denver in a difficult position and should not be corrected. for most of the time.
Nathaniel Hackett is absolutely flawless offensively, but the Broncos aren't paying him $40 billion. Are Denver fans publicly leaving the drawing at the end of the rule? They are not stupid. They know that what they see is really bad.
2022 NFL season, Week 5
Escape game for Alec Pierce. The Colts are clearly shorthanded in this game without Jonathan Taylor, and it is imperative that everyone steps up in the playmaking department. Of course, in a game that featured only a 21-point lead over the Colts during the regular season,
picking the offensive giants was a tall order. Kicker Chase McLaughlin did a great job, making all four field goal attempts (three for 48 yards or more) and Deon Jackson, Taylor's support of this game, made an impact with 91 yards from scrimmage.
But Pierce's eight catches (and nine targets) for 81 yards ended up being huge — both in this game and going forward.
The Broncos took top cornerback Patrick Surtain II away from Michael
Pittman and then Pierce, a huge honor for the second round. If Pierce can play
like that every week, he could provide the second option the Colts desperately
need.
Does Matt Ryan cook half-baked? That's a tough question to answer correctly, since there are outside forces (see below) working hard against Ryan in his first season in Indianapolis.
Seeing him run for his life in the first half was definitely not what he or the Colts envisioned as an offensive management plan this season. But there are things that Ryan controls that he doesn't do well.
What we learned from the Colts
His two interceptions in the game were unforced errors that cost the Colts points in a game where points were scarce. We can't forget that Ryan capped off the Chiefs' surprise in Week 3 with a powerful final drive or completed almost 73% of his passes in the last two outings.
But fumbles - he had two more on Thursday, making it 11 in five games now - are the main issue,
and interceptions (seven now) are not far behind. Ryan worked hard and led two nice drives early. But he is years away from his first MVP form. Baron Browning was giving a good effort before he was injured.
If there's going to be a player missing from Thursday's game, the smart money would be on him coming from the defensive side of the ball.
With Randy Gregory on injured reserve, the Broncos knew going into this game they would have no source of pass rush. Enter Browning,
who takes his chance and shoots the flag with him. He made his presence felt early with different pressures and finished the game with six tackles, a sack that put the Colts' time within a field goal and six QB drops on Ryan.
Browning was more of a pass rusher in college, but he often showed the ability to pass quickly, which made him a logical step into the role this season. We saw the fruits of that change against the Colts, though he left the game with a hand injury.
The Broncos defense took a significant step back after leaving the game. The Colts' rebuilt offensive line is having a big night. There was some surprise on the pregame show when Prime footage showed that the Colts made a big change in the OL against Denver,
in a short week and a short program time. They've started nearly the same team in the first three games of the season, with Will Fries replacing Danny Pinter (starting Weeks 1-3) at right guard. On Thursday, they put rookie Bernhard Raimann at left tackle,
moved right tackle Braden Smith to right guard and moved Matt Pryor from left tackle to right tackle. The department initially struggled,
NFL news: The Colts' 12-9 win became the first game with no
touchdowns in more than four seasons since the Colts beat the Browns in Week 1
of the 2003 season when QBs Peyton Manning and Kelly Holcomb each had two
interceptions in 9 - 6 last.