There are two ways of looking at this game.
On the one hand, there were some alarming aspects that are becoming concerning trends. Seattle continues to struggle on third down. They were unable to convert drives into touchdowns on offense. The running game is a problem. They’re averaging 8.3 points in the first half over the last three games. Generally the offense has stuttered and stalled.
There’s a more positive angle too. The Colts played a heck of a game. Philip Rivers, Shane Steichen and Lou Anarumo deserve a ton of credit. It might’ve felt like an easy game on paper coming in with Rivers, now a Grandad, coming out of retirement in a crisis. Two starting cornerbacks and Deforest Buckner were unavailable. Then they lost their left tackle during the game.
The Seahawks were double-digit favourites.
However, Indianapolis made this a very different game. They controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball for long stretches. They managed things brilliantly for Rivers — getting him into third and manageable with tough running, clever screens and shorter passes and didn’t put him in a position where he had to chase anything until the final 11 seconds.
Along with this, Indy’s defense played with its hair on fire. Nothing came easy for the Seahawks, even when they found a few solutions in the second half.
Rather than face a patsy, Seattle ended up hosting a wounded-animal fighting for its life. They easily could’ve lost this game after a horrific first half where they were out-coached and out-played.
For anyone saying they can’t play this way in the playoffs — flip that on its head. They may well end up in a war of attrition like this. You could argue they’re now battle-tested in a way they weren’t previously.
It’s one of those games where if they lose — it’s horrendous. If they win, it’s quite easy to spin it as a character-building experience.
Jason Myers’ flawless performance should be noted, as should the offense getting him in a position to kick two vital field goals in the end when the pressure was on.
I also thought the defense did what it had to. A lot of people expected sacks galore against a 44-year-old QB. The Colts never allowed that. The ball was out of his hands too quickly. For those saying Seattle should’ve blitzed more, Rivers would’ve loved that. He’d throw in behind the blitzing defender like any savvy veteran and make quick, easy completions anyway.
The key was to score points, apply scoreboard pressure, make him throw and take Jonathan Taylor out of the game. The Seahawks didn’t manage it until the end and then we saw the interception when he had to push the ball downfield. The defense would’ve eaten today if the offense scored more points.
There are definitely things to fix and the biggest problem remains the running game. It isn’t good at all. Ken Walker is not creating any yards after initial contact and Zach Charbonnet is not showing enough with his reps to convince he should get the bulk of the workload. The blocking isn’t good enough either. I’m not sure they’ll fix this in 2025 — which is putting a lot on the shoulders of Sam Darnold and the passing game.
I suspect they’ll need to re-work this running game in the off-season and that could start with adding a quicker, more shifty, dynamic runner. More on that in a separate article in the week.
For now — on to the biggest game of the season on Thursday and a chance to take control of the NFC’s #1 seed.
