The Indianapolis Colts are traveling to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers here in Week 2 of the NFL season.
It’s still early in the 2024 NFL year, but this is an important game for both teams, who currently find themselves 0-1. While each situation is different and pass results aren’t indicative of what’s to come, historically speaking, falling to 0-2 is bad for a team’s playoff chances.
So let’s take an optimistic approach to today’s game and dive into the three reasons why the Colts should come out winners against the Packers.
An inexperienced quarterback for the Packers
With Jordan Love downgraded to doubtful, I think we can finally say that we fully expect to see Malik Willis under center for the Packers. Not only is Willis an inexperienced player in the grand scheme of the NFL with only 67 career pass attempts–where he’s completed only 52 percent of those throws with three interceptions–but having only been in Green Bay for not even three weeks, he’s inexperienced within the Packers’ offense as well.
A lack of experience can often lead to mistakes, incompletions, short possessions, and generally speaking, when there’s inexperience at quarterback, we don’t often see great performances. Priority No. 1 for the Colts should be stopping the Packers’ run game. This, at times, could leave their shorthanded secondary exposed against a very good group of Packers’ receivers, but the Colts need to put this game on Willis’ shoulders and not running back Josh Jacobs.
For more on what the Colts can expect from the Packers offense, click here.
Colts pass rush
The run defense was ripped apart by the Texans in Week 1, but the Colts pass rush was able to get after CJ Stroud. By ESPN’s metrics, the Colts finished with four sacks and 10 quarterback hits.
The Colts defensive front will face a good challenge this week against the Packers offensive line, a group that gave up only eight pressures and one sack against a good Eagles front. Although, left tackle Rasheed Walker gave up four of those pressures–so a matchup worth watching his Walker versus Laiatu Latu.
Pressure on the quarterback is always important but the impact of it becomes magnified against an inexperienced quarterback, particularly when that quarterback is in a new system and is operating from a limited playbook and in the heat of the moment may not know where his outlet options are in the passing game. Pressure creates more mistakes and puts the offense in long down-and-distance situations.
Now, certainly worth monitoring is the status of DeForest Buckner and Kwity Paye, both of whom are listed as questionable. For what it’s worth, the Colts did elevate defensive end Genard Avery from the practice squad.
Colts big play offense
Last week, the Colts’ passing offense generated three plays of at least 50 yards–two of which went for touchdowns. Could the opportunity for that be there once again this week?
The Packers are coming off a game in which they gave up 34 points and over 400 total yards, including some explosive plays. Eagles’ quarterback Jalen Hurts averaged 8.2 yards per pass attempt, which after one game is the seventh-highest mark in football.
DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert each had receptions of over 20 yards while AJ Brown had a long of 67 yards. And while, for the most part, the Packers were able to contain Saquon Barkley on the ground, a 34 yard run in the fourth quarter broke things open for him and he finished with 109 total rushing yards.
Explosive plays often lead to points–as we saw last week–and if the Colts offense can find more big play success, it’s going to put added stress on Willis and the Packers offense to have to keep up.