Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
The best thing you can say about the Indianapolis Colts defense is that Andrew Luck is their quarterback.
Confused? Apparently, so was their defense last year. The only thing slowing down Luck’s meteoric rise last year was the horrific play of the Colts’ defense, and it may end up being the same this year.
Ranked 21st in the NFL in scoring defense and dead last in DVOA, the Colts didn’t do well at stopping anything last year. To make matters even worse, they got rid of their best defensive player over the last decade, Dwight Freeney, and replaced him with high-upside, high bust potential prospect Bjoern Werner – not exactly a confidence-booster, considering Werner wasn’t considered a fit for their 3-4 defense.
If there’s strength to be found in this year’s defense, it has to come from the secondary. Antoine Bethea is one of the better safeties in the NFL, and pairing him with hard-hitter LaRon Landry seemed like a no-brainer. At cornerback, Greg Toler joined the Colts in free agency after three years with the Arizona Cardinals. However, Toler hasn’t really been the same since his 2011 injury, so there’s still a lot to prove on the boundaries of this defense.
If these men can stay healthy and on the field, they should be able to help the linebackers out when runners get through that porous defensive line.
Speaking of defensive line, the best player on the 2012 Colts was Cory Redding. That should tell you everything you need to know about their line play.
The best the Colts can hope for is that a balance is struck amongst their linebackers. Anchored by former CFL star Jerrell Freeman and ex-Iowa Hawkeyes player Pat Angerer, the Colts have some absolute tackling machines. If these super studs can turn tackles into turnovers, they may start to look like an effective unit.
The bottom line is that even though they play the likes of the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans (twice each), the Colts aren’t a good fantasy pick.
