NFL Power Rankings Week 4: Drop Down The Rankings

Oct 4, 2022 - 9:30 PM

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The Colts continued their 2022 season at home against an AFC South rival, the Tenessee Titans, who were 1-2 coming off a win against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Colts managed to get some key players back from injury in Shaquille Leonard, who was playing in his first game of the season but could’t muster a win.

The Colts sit at 1-2-1, and are currently third in the AFC South. The Colts couldn’t manage to grab their second win of the year and need to with both the Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars now sitting ahead of them in the race for the AFC South title.

The national media have dropped the Colts in the power rankings board after their loss to the Titans. Here is how the Colts stack up in the week 4 power rankings.

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ESPN has the Colts at 26.

The Colts’ defense thrived on takeaways last season, producing 33 turnovers. But the unit ranks among the worst in the league this season in this regard, forcing just three turnovers through four games. A big reason for this is the absence of linebacker Shaquille Leonard, who made his short-lived season debut on Sunday, only to leave with a concussion in the second half. Leonard has been ruled out for Thursday night’s game at Denver

NFL.com has the Colts at 28.

What is it that the Colts do really well right now? They can’t beat you with their passing game, they struggle to protect their ancient quarterback, they don’t move the ball on the ground (and now Jonathan Taylor is injured) and their special teams have already cost them one win. Their run defense entered Week 4 as a bright spot, but even that was exposed by Derrick Henry, who piled up 99 yards in the first half alone of Sunday’s 24-17 loss to the Titans. Have we mentioned Shaquille Leonard has already been ruled out for Thursday’s game against the Broncos with a concussion? I don’t mean to be a downer here ... but the vibes ... they’re no good in Indy.

CBS Sports has the Colts at 19.

At 1-2-1, they are limping into their Thursday night game with the Broncos. The Jonathan Taylor injury situation bears watching.

USA Today has the Colts at 28.

Time to put these horses down, especially with LB Shaquille Leonard out with a concussion? Wait, we have to watch them on Thursday night?

Yahoo Sports has the Colts at 20.

Jonathan Taylor hasn’t been ruled out of Thursday’s game, but he has an ankle injury and a short turnaround. If Taylor can’t play or is less than 100 percent, the Colts’ offense will struggle. And it’s hard to imagine this team struggling much more than it has. Then again, Taylor hasn’t done much either this season. It’s all a mess for Indianapolis.

Bleacher Report has the Colts at 22.

After downing the Kansas City Chiefs at home last week, the Indianapolis Colts appeared to have turned a corner. There was a light at the end of the tunnel after a rough start to the season.That light was an oncoming freight train.

On Sunday in Indianapolis, the Colts reverted to a team that just cannot put together a complete effort. Quarterback Matt Ryan had a big day, passing for 356 yards. But the run game managed just 38 yards on 23 carries. The Colts held the Titans to just 243 yards of offense and converted over half of their third downs. But they also turned the ball over three times.

Head coach Frank Reich admitted after the game that the Colts are making far too many mistakes and leaving too many plays on the field. “We feel like we’re seeing some things we want to see,” Reich said. “But in the end we need to play better, we need to execute better, we need to stop turning the ball over, we need to start getting turnovers, we need to run the football a little bit better and start faster.” As rough as the Colts have looked so far this season, the team is still just a half-game back in the NFL’s worst division. Two of their next three games are against the two teams ahead of them—home against the Jaguars in Week 6 and at Tennessee the following week. But given how the team has played so far in 2022, it’s hard to be confident in their ability to right the ship.

Pro Football Network has the Colts at 24.

The Colts can’t seem to get out of their own way. They immediately turned the ball over against their division rival, and they allowed Tennessee to get out to a 24-3 lead before scoring just before halftime.

Matt Ryan fumbled twice and threw an interception to boot, while Jonathan Taylor fumbled once. The Titans scored 14 points off two Ryan turnovers. Additionally, Taylor suffered a high ankle sprain against Tennessee, which will likely sideline him. Indianapolis does not have adequate depth at the position to sustain a long hiatus from Taylor.