With all of the draft grades and criticisms of so many teams regarding their offseasons with free agency and the 2025 NFL Draft, it’s nice to see someone point out each team’s reasons for optimism. Tyler Sullivan of CBS Sports says the Indianapolis Colts do have hope that things could turn around for them following a disappointing 8-9 2024 season.
According to Sullivan, the Colts’ defensive back end should be much better.
Improved secondary
“Indy ranked in the bottom 10 of the league last season in passing yards per game allowed (229.4), opponents’ completion percentage (69.36), and opponents’ passer rating (95.8),” Sullivan writes. “Even with questions surrounding the quarterback position, this was a key area to address over the offseason, and they were able to fetch a couple of big games. In free agency, the Colts landed safety Cam Bynum and cornerback Charvarius Ward. Their injection into the secondary should raise the floor of the overall defense, making life less difficult for whoever is under center.”
The new defensive coordinator should help
Paul Bretl of Colts Wire points out that a new defensive coordinator could help add a fresh coat a paint to a defense that could use it. Lou Anarumo is in his first season in charge of the Colts’ defense and brings 36 years of coaching experience with him.
“Also not to be forgotten about when it comes to the secondary is the addition of Lou Anarumo as the defensive coordinator,” Bretl writes. “Anarumo’s coaching background is rooted in the defensive backfield, and he helped produce some productive secondary units during his time in Cincinnati.”
“Anarumo’s aggressive and disguise-heavy scheme can make the job of the quarterback a lot more difficult and help put his defenders in positions to make plays.
“With a reliable secondary, there is a positive trickle-down effect to the front run seven, which can include some additional run support when needed and added time for the pass rush to get home. One of the contributors to the Colts’ poor pass rush production in 2024 is that opposing offenses picked apart the secondary via the quick game, which made getting pressure quite difficult.”
Other improvements for the Colts
The Colts do have other reasons for optimism for the coming season. They seem to have had a nice draft (although no one knows at this point), adding highly touted tight end Tyler Warren from Penn State. The rough news for Colts fans is that they could have the best secondary in the history of the NFL, a Hall-of-Famer-to-be in Warren and a 2,000-yard season from Jonathan Taylor…but, if that quarterback situation doesn’t improve pronto, none of it might matter.
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