Tag: khari willis

Colts injury report: DE Kemoko Turay listed as LP

Wednesday’s injury report.

The Indianapolis Colts (6-3) returned the practice field Wednesday as they prepare for the Week 11 matchup against the Green Bay Packers (7-2) at Lucas Oil Stadium.

As the team prepares for arguably their toughest challenge this season, they started the week without two starters in the secondary and tight end Jack Doyle, who is still in the league’s concussion protocol.

Here’s a look at the injury report for the Colts on Wednesday:

*DNP = Did Not Participate — LP = Limited Participant — FP = Full Participant*

Name Position Injury Wed. Thur. Fri. Status
Trey Burton TE Rest DNP
Jack Doyle TE Concussion DNP
Justin Houston DE Rest DNP
Kenny Moore II CB Ribs DNP
Khari Willis S Ribs DNP
Mo Alie-Cox TE Knee LP
Julian Blackmon S Pelvis/Knee LP
Kemoko Turay DE Ankle LP

This will be a big week for the Colts and they will certainly need the talents of Moore and Willis in the secondary. It may be tough to come away with a win against Aaron Rodgers if those two aren’t playing. Their statuses should be monitored this week.

Turay logged his first practice since coming off of the PUP list on Tuesday, but it remains to be seen if he will be making his debut on Sunday.

The Colts have two more practices before the injury designations come out on Friday.

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Former Spartan, Colts safety Khari Willis picks off Kirk Cousins for first career interception

One former Spartan intercepted another former Spartan on Sunday as Colts S Khari Willis got his first-ever interception on Kirk Cousins.

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As I write this, two Spartans are currently duking it out against each other in week two of the NFL’s regular season. Former Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins and his Minnesota Vikings are in Indianapolis to face the Colts and former MSU safety Khari Willis, and Willis and his squad look to be in control in Indy.

At the end of the first half, Kirk Cousins took a deep shot downfield on a hail mary play, and this one did not go as well as the one he threw to Keith Nichol back in 2011. The ball was tipped by Colts defensive back Julian Blackmon into the hands of Khari Willis. This was Willis’ first career interception, so it’s a neat factoid that it came against a fellow Spartan.

Watch it below:

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7 Colts who could become rising stars with strong 2020

These players are on the precipice of becoming rising stars.

The Indianapolis Colts roster is one filled with young talent ready to emerge and take that next step into the national spotlight. Some already have while others may not get the credit they deserve.

The Colts have a number of young players who have yet to establish themselves despite having the talent to do so. That could all change for some of them if they wind up having a strong 2020 campaign.

The first step into stardom is getting on the radar by becoming a rising star. With a strong 2020 season, here are seven Colts who could enter the mix for that title:

RB Jonathan Taylor

Being one of the most productive running backs in college football history and then getting selected in the second round of the 2020 draft already gave Taylor enough recognition. If he comes through with a big season, there is little doubt he will be pegged as a rising star.

Taylor has to compete with incumbent starter Marlon Mack, who is talented in his own right. The duo is expected to split carries on early downs while Taylor should see a few more targets than Mack in the passing game. If he gets a few explosive plays under his belt and earns more of a role in the second half of the season, we could be talking about Taylor in a very different light next year.

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Colts’ secondary ranked No. 13 by PFF

Colts have a young secondary.

When the 2019 season was all said and done, the Indianapolis Colts had a defense that showed flashes of being an above-average unit. But where did they rank in accordance with the rest of the league?

Pro Football Focus took a look at ranking the defensive coverage units across the NFL. The Colts, who run primarily zone concepts, were ranked No. 13 in PFF’s rankings.

13. INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

After finishing the 2018 season 16th on this list, the Indianapolis Colts move up to 13th place after their performance in 2019. This past season, the Colts ran Cover-1  more than any other coverage scheme (168 times) but elected to use a variety of zone concepts on 409 of their 665 total coverage snaps. Armed with safety Malik Hooker and third-year cornerback Kenny Moore II, who finished 25th on PFF’s list of top cornerbacks for 2019, the Colts’ defense came away with 15 interceptions, and they led the league in total coverage stops with 114. However, while they may have kept the ball in front of them in zone coverages, they would finish the season with the league’s lowest forced incompletion rate (5.6%) while allowing the second-highest completion percentage (75.4%). In all, the defense allowed 393 receptions, the fourth-most in the NFL. It was a clear case of talent and scheme yielding mixed results.

It has been a theme for the Colts defense to give up a high completion percentage since Matt Eberflus took over as defensive coordinator in 2018. But they have been able to shore up in the red zone, which has allowed their success to take place.

There is an infusion of young talent in the Colts secondary. Rock Ya-Sin just finished his rookie season with valuable experience under his belt while fellow rookie safety Khari Willis also emerged as a starter.

Third-year cornerback Kenny Moore and safety Malik Hooker have also flashed throughout their career—Moore has done so often.

Adding to the cornerback room is likely on the to-do list for the Colts this offseason in hopes they can get into being a top-10 coverage unit.

Colts feel strongly about direction of 2019 rookie class

Colts feel good about their rookie class.

The Indianapolis Colts continued adding depth to their roster with a 10-pick crop from the 2019 NFL Draft and while the group has undergone some changes, the team still feels strongly about the progress made during the campaign.

Especially when it comes to the early-round defensive picks the Colts made, head coach Frank Reich is excited to see how much they can develop with a full season and offseason under their belt.

“Man, the rookie class is a strong class, now,” Reich told Matt Taylor of Colts.com. “Obviously on defense, we picked all those defensive players. They are all really good players; we’re excited about all of them. Bobby (Okereke) had a great year, Khari (Willis) had a great year, Rock (Ya-Sin) — all those guys. Excited about E.J. (Speed)’s development, Gerri Green — I mean, those guys are going to be a big part of the foundation going forward.”

The Colts did see some intriguing development from the three players in Ya-Sin, Okereke and Willis. The defensive backs took over starting roles just a few weeks after the season began, and Okereke had a strong second half that showed why there is optimism surrounding the class.

There were some hiccups with the group, of course. Wide receiver Parris Campbell played in just seven games and battled injuries starting in training camp. Defensive end Ben Banogu never truly made an impact and was used sparingly during the second half.

But there is still optimism with the group heading into 2020. Ya-Sin and Willis will return as starters. Okereke is likely to compete for the starting WILL spot with Anthony Walker, who is in a contract year. And there is a chance Banogu works himself into a bigger role in Year 2.

It wasn’t all daisies for the first-year group, but there was enough to warrant optimism moving forward.

There are still plenty of moves that need to be made along the roster, but Reich is confident in the direction the rookie class took on following their first season in the league.

4 Colts who overachieved in 2019

The biggest breakouts for the Colts in 2019.

Before each season starts fans, media and the team set expectations on each player as to how they think they’ll do this season. Sometimes those expectations are way too high, and sometimes way too low, but people set expectations as a barometer for if a player did well that season or not.

While the Indianapolis Colts finished the season losing five of their last seven games, and finished 7-9, missing the playoffs for the fourth time in five years, there were some pleasant surprises from the season.

Here are some of the biggest overachievers from the 2019 Colts’ season:

AP Photo/AJ Mast

LB Bobby Okereke

The third-round pick in the 2019 draft, Okereke solidified the SAM linebacker spot halfway through the 2019 season.

Okereke became a full-time starter in Week 8. He would go onto have 58 tackles, one sack, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovered, and he intercepted and returned a two-point conversion attempt for points.

Okereke was just recently named to the PFF 2019 NFL All-Rookie Team where he was graded out at 79.2 coverage grade. That ranked him 10th among off-ball linebackers. He was also PFF’s eighth-highest-graded overall rookie with a 77.3 grade.

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Colts’ Year-End Awards from 2019 season

Handing out some awards from the 2019 season.

The Indianapolis Colts failed to reach the postseason despite their hot start to the 2019 campaign and while it was ultimately a lost season, there were some bright spots along the way.

Finishing in third place is never desired but the Colts showed that even without their franchise quarterback, they can still compete down the stretch. Some additions this offseason may need be in order, but there is plenty of optimism in terms of the direction of the team.

As the 2019 season ends and we look forward to 2020, let’s hand out some awards before the offseason officially starts:

AP Photo/Michael Conroy

Most Valuable Player: CB Kenny Moore

There are a few names worthy of this award. When talking about the most valuable player, it isn’t just the player that puts up the best stat line. While that helps, the most valuable player should be given to the player that had the biggest impact. That doesn’t always show up on the stat sheet.

Moore’s impact on the defensive side of the ball can’t be understated. He’s the team’s best cornerback working both from the slot and on the outside when they need him to. Though he dealt with injuries plenty this season, Moore’s impact was felt every game he was on the field.

The Colts value versatility and Moore’s 2019 season was the perfect embodiment of that attribute. From applying sticky man coverage to being one of the best open-field tacklers in the game to even being used as a blitzer from the slot, Moore’s impact was monumental for a growing defense.

What’s more, the absence of Moore may have been felt in a bigger way when he couldn’t get on the field due to an ankle sprain. The defense fell apart and it’s almost a direct correlation to Moore’s absence.

There are several players deserving of the award, but Moore was the team’s most valuable asset in 2019.

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Colts’ Khari Willis (concussion) ruled out vs. Texans

Khari Willis is in the concussion protocol.

Indianapolis Colts head coach Frank Reich ruled out rookie safety Khari Willis on Monday ahead of the Week 12 matchup against the Houston Texans.

Willis is currently in the league’s concussion protocol and with the Colts having to turn around on a short week to visit the Texans at NRG Stadium, the rookie safety has been ruled out.

Replacing Willis is likely going to be a combination of Rolan Milligan and Clayton Geathers. Fellow safety George Odum was seen in a sling following Sunday’s game against the Jaguars, and it isn’t clear if he will be ready to go.

Reich also confirmed that running back Marlon Mack, who underwent a procedure to fix a fractured hand, has been ruled out for the Thursday night game.