Week 4 Preview: Los Angeles Rams at Indianapolis Colts
Photo Credit: Kevin Hickey, Colts Wire
Coming into this season both these teams came with a lot of question marks. For the Los Angeles Rams they were hoping Quarterback Matthew Stafford would be able to bounce back from a down season last year. For the Indianapolis Colts they were hoping to see their 2023 First Round Pick Anthony Richardson develop and look like their possible Quarterback of the future. Now three weeks into the season the Rams sit at 1-2 while the Colts are at a respectable 2-1. The Rams picked up a big Week one win against the Seahawks on the road 30-13. Unfortunately, they have two one score losses the past two weeks to superior opponents in the San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals. The Colts opened their season with a tough home loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars 31-21. Since then, they have picked up two big wins one on the road in Houston winning 31-20, then a big upset in overtime against the Ravens 22-19.
The big issue with the Rams offense so far this year is turning the ball over. Through three weeks the Rams offense has four turnovers. All four of these turnovers have been interceptions from Matthew Stafford. If Stafford can take care of the ball this Rams offense may be able to average around 21-24 points per game. A second issue with this Rams offense is the offensive line, they have allowed seven sacks through three weeks. This isn’t much of a surprise since they didn’t have the best offensive line coming into the season. The impact of Andrew Whitworth retiring had a major impact on this offensive line. Offensive Tackle Alaric Jackson is also questionable this week with a hamstring injury. Looking at their opposition the Colts Defensive Line has looked very good this year picking up 12 sacks through three games. The Rams will need to protect Stafford to give him the best opportunity to play a clean turnover free game.
For the Colts to continue their success offensively they must make sure to keep utilizing their strong running game. In their two wins this year they have at least 125 rushing yards. The Colts were able to achieve this even though Richardson wasn’t able to finish his starts this season, with the help of their running backs the Colts were able to pick up the wins. It may be more of a struggle for the Colts to run the ball this week. They may be missing three starters in Center Ryan Kelly, Guard Quenton Nelson, and Tackle Braden Smith. It's likely the offensive line will struggle going against Aaron Donald and a defensive group that has five sacks through three weeks.
With both offensive lines likely to struggle it’s probable both teams will try to rely on their run and short passing game to be successful offensively. This would in turn result in a slower paced game which will result in less points. It will be interesting to see how the Rams try to get Paku Nacua and Tutu Atwell involved after their hot starts to the season. As well as how involved Richardson will get in the rushing attack especially coming off of injury.
Defensively you can give the edge to the Colts who have four forced fumbles, one interception, and 12 sacks through three weeks. The Rams have done their job allowing 13 points to Seattle, 30 to San Francisco, and 19 to Cincinnati. With both defenses arguably better than their opposition, it will be interesting to see if turnovers will play a role in a likely tightly contested game.
The Rams are the more veteran team offensively, but the Colts are arguably the more complete team with the Rams’ current injuries. This as well as the home field advantage give the Colts the slight advantage. Also, if they can take care of the ball, they put themselves in a prime position to move to 3-1 with sole lead in the AFC South. If not, they fall to 2-2 and the Rams move to 2-2 to stay in play for a possible playoff spot.
