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Colts' pivot to Joe Flacco falls flat vs. Vikings; Shane Steichen left without answers again

4 November 2024Last Update :
Colts' pivot to Joe Flacco falls flat vs. Vikings; Shane Steichen left without answers again

MINNEAPOLIS — As Indianapolis Colts players, now showered and in street clothes, walked across the field at U.S. Bank Stadium and toward a bus that would take them to the airport late Sunday night, it was as if they were zombies filing out of the graveyard.

Most of them were silent. Most of them were expressionless. Most of them were glum.

Perhaps because most of what happened Sunday night was so ugly.

Five days after Indianapolis inserted itself into national headlines with a controversial QB change, it fell flat on its face in front of the country on Sunday Night Football. Minnesota didn’t play all that well, but it played well enough to gut out a 21-13 win thanks to a miserable Colts offense that suffered through its worst outing of the year.

To recap: Indianapolis’ defense tied its season-high by forcing three turnovers and turned one of them into a touchdown.

Indianapolis’ offense, on the other hand, was in shambles under Flacco’s direction. It produced season-lows in points (six), red zone drives (zero), first downs (13), total offense (227), rushing yards (68) and EPA per play (-0.35).

Nothing they did on Sunday night worked.

“I gotta be better,” Colts head coach Shane Steichen said.

If that sounds familiar, it’s because Steichen has uttered that same sentence on a weekly basis this season, yet with each game that passes by, the message loses its effectiveness. After a game like Sunday’s, it feels like it’s completely devoid of meaning.

Benching Anthony Richardson, the No. 4 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, in favor of 39-year-old Joe Flacco was the Colts’ way of saying they want to “win now.” They didn’t want to tie the trajectory of their season to a young and struggling QB. But what happens when the veteran quarterback struggles, too?

“There might have been a few completions here and there that we could have had,” Steichen said of Flacco’s performance. “But again, he’s a calm guy that has been playing at a high level for a long time. So, I have a lot of faith in him.”

Can the same faith be put in Steichen?

It would have been one thing had Indianapolis simply lost. Minnesota has proven to be a tough team, as its Brian Flores-led defense has gotten the best of many opposing offenses this season. Yet, to have Colts cornerback Kenny Moore II score as many points as the entire Colts offense is a terrible look for the franchise after Steichen proclaimed that Flacco, not Richardson, gave Indy the best chance to win.

After Colts defensive tackle Grover Stewart strip-sacked Vikings QB Sam Darnold in the second quarter, Moore scooped up the fumble and returned it 38 yards for a TD to give the Colts a 7-0 lead. Indianapolis never found the end zone again and never got even close enough to try.

“I have to keep looking at what we’re doing offensively,” Steichen said. “We have eight (games) left. We’re halfway through the year now. Just kind of look at scheme stuff and what we’re doing and go from there.”

And go where exactly? The playoffs?

Sure, it’s technically possible the Colts could get hot, go on a winning-streak and clinch their first postseason berth since 2020. However, they didn’t do themselves any favors Sunday night and now have just a 34% chance of reaching the playoffs, according to The Athletic’s NFL Projection Model.

Flacco was supposed to be the answer. As it turns out, he looked like another problem. The former Super Bowl MVP, who had thrown at least two touchdown passes in eight straight games, was shut out. He finished 16-of-27 passing for 179 yards with one interception, one lost fumble and three sacks taken. His 63.7 passer rating was his worst in over two years.

“We had a play here or there, but then we would shoot ourselves in the foot,” Flacco said. “We were just not really able to get guys going.”

After Flacco was picked off by Vikings cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. in the third quarter while trying to force a throw to Josh Downs near the sideline, he was bailed out on the very next play by Darnold, who was picked off by Colts safety Nick Cross. The third-year pro returned the interception 20 yards to the Vikings’ 25-yard line. Trailing 14-7 with a chance to tie the game, Indianapolis’ offense proceeded to only gain two yards on its next three plays before settling for a 42-yard field goal by Matt Gay.

The Colts would get another chance on their next possession, this time to take the lead, though they were unable to convert on a fourth-and-2 from Minnesota’s 40-yard line. Flacco tried to squeeze a pass in to Ashton Dulin over the middle, but the veteran receiver was sandwiched by Vikings defenders Stephon Gilmore and linebacker Jihad Ward, who forced an incompletion.

“I think any time you have a game like we had, you’re probably surprised a little bit you weren’t able to get it going because they obviously did a really good job against us,” Flacco said. “You know coming in here against a team like this it’s going to be difficult, but I don’t think you ever anticipate something like that.”

Sunday’s performance was the latest chapter in what’s becoming a rudderless season for a fracturing franchise. Steichen, in his usual vague manner, wasn’t too sure of how to fix it. Asked if Flacco will remain the team’s starting QB moving forward and if he still believes the 17-year veteran gives the Colts the best chance to win, Steichen would only commit to “right now.”

He said the same thing last week about Richardson before pulling the plug on the 22-year-old. Maybe Steichen will consider pivoting back to Richardson, or maybe he’ll stick with Flacco as the Colts prepare to host the Buffalo Bills next week. Either way, the clock is ticking as Steichen goes back to the drawing board with the 4-5 Colts sitting in a frustratingly familiar position.

“I’ve been going through it my entire career. Same old, same old,” Moore said, reflecting on his tumultuous eight-year tenure in Indianapolis. “But as a competitor (and a) person, you just gotta keep going. You just gotta weather the storm as best as possible.

“You just gotta hope for better things.”

(Photo: Jeffrey Becker / Imagn Images)

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