00:00It's time to talk some Indianapolis Colts.
00:01A 7-1 football team with the best record in the league.
00:04Win in dominant fashion again.
00:0738-14, they beat the Tennessee Titans.
00:10And I am sure some of you out there,
00:12if you're a Colts back or a Colts fan,
00:13if you're a Daniel Jones guy,
00:15maybe you were saying,
00:15is it time for K-Dub to admit that this team is awesome?
00:20That Daniel Jones is awesome?
00:23Maybe.
00:24But I want you to go first.
00:26Because I, of course, have my thoughts.
00:28But listen, I'd like to get a gauge on where you're at
00:32on this Indianapolis crew,
00:33who you were high on coming into the year.
00:35You thought Daniel Jones was clearly the guy.
00:37I did.
00:37I thought he gave them the best shot to get to a playoff.
00:41And he has shown that right now.
00:43AR was not the answer.
00:45And as much as I love the athleticism,
00:47the instability and the inconsistency of the passing attack
00:50was a key weakness of why this team would not get to a playoff.
00:54They had to make a change,
00:55and they did and made the proper decision with Daniel Jones.
00:59But this offense is still predicated on Jonathan Taylor
01:02and the rushing attack.
01:03And when he rushes for over 100 yards and you build a lead,
01:07that's all you can ask for.
01:08You needed somebody that could be basically that point guard.
01:13Get the football to Pittman.
01:14Get the football to Josh Downs and Alec Pierce in the passing attack
01:18and work off a play action.
01:19Limit turnovers.
01:20And that was easier said than done in New York where the offensive line
01:23was atrocious.
01:25But Stike is a better head coach than Brian D'Abel,
01:28and they put him in a position to win games.
01:32Are they all of a sudden now, in a playoff setting,
01:36would I take the Colts potentially to go to the AFC championship and win it?
01:42No, but I think they can make a pretty good run.
01:44So here's where I'm at.
01:47They're 7-1.
01:49And you have to give a team credit for dominating a bad opponent.
01:55You do.
01:57And Indianapolis has not taken any prisoners when they get a bad team.
02:04They have played six or five, I think it's five awful teams.
02:12They've already played the Titans twice.
02:15The lifeless Miami Dolphins, the lifeless Las Vegas Raiders,
02:20and Jacoby Brissett came in there and gave them a bit of a scare with Arizona.
02:24I'm sorry.
02:25There's just nothing I can do with those games.
02:27I can't.
02:29But are they the Vikings with Sam Darnold?
02:32That's what we're trying to figure out.
02:34Okay.
02:34So the three games that feel relevant,
02:37a close one-point win at home against Denver,
02:40if not for a penalty, that's a two-point loss.
02:44A close loss on the road against the L.A. Rams,
02:47could have won the game, didn't.
02:49And a dominant win against the L.A. Chargers on the road,
02:53though apparently the Chargers, with Joe Alt, good at football,
02:57without Joe Alt, worst team in the league, right?
02:59There's some gauge of that.
03:02So when I look at Indianapolis,
03:03what I see is a team that's very clearly going to be in the playoffs,
03:08a team that can absolutely beat up an undermanned opponent,
03:14but similar to Sam Darnold's Minnesota Vikings,
03:17when it comes time,
03:20and if they're across the field from a team that I fully believe in in the AFC,
03:27then I'm likely to go against them.
03:31And I think for the Colts, when you are 7-1, right,
03:35we don't judge it of like, oh, scrappy underdog.
03:37No, like, if you want to be measured like,
03:39hey, should Indianapolis be booked as the favorites to win the AFC?
03:43Right?
03:43Like, that's what we're trying to figure out.
03:45I don't believe that is the case.
03:47I don't think, and they're not, right?
03:48Do I have a problem with them being booked third, though?
03:51I don't.
03:52No.
03:52The AFC's a mess.
03:53Let's be very clear about that.
03:55The Baltimore Ravens were the favorite all-off season.
03:58They're 2-5.
04:00The Chiefs are the most dominant team in the conference.
04:02They're not even in the playoffs if the season ended today.
04:06We just talked the whole thing about how Buffalo's season's been weird.
04:09It is a bizarre year right now for the AFC.
04:13Yeah.
04:13Right?
04:14Absolutely.
04:16So, I am giving the Colts –
04:18I said this.
04:19The most respect I've given the Colts all year,
04:21I didn't take the 14-1⁄2 with Tennessee.
04:23I couldn't do it.
04:24I almost did.
04:25But I am not –
04:28I am not picking this team to win the AFC as of today.
04:32And, Joe, I would be surprised if at any point that changed throughout the season.
04:37Yes.
04:38But in a playoff scenario, which –
04:41And that's where they're trending.
04:42Anything could happen.
04:43Are they worth the lottery ticket, potentially?
04:45That's the problem.
04:46They're not that anymore.
04:48Because they're 7-1.
04:49Yeah.
04:49If you're holding an off-season number, awesome.
04:52Right.
04:52But, Joe, would you bet this team at under 5-1 to win this conference?
04:56No.
04:56Now.
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