New Orleans Saints 2-4 @ Indianapolis Colts 3-3 1:00 PM ET - TV: FOX Although the Colts brought along bruising back Frank Gore to add another dimension to a prolific offense, the saving grace of OC Pep Hamilton’s unit isn’t going to be the ground game, grounding and pounding the football. The main issue has been ineptness on the offensive line protecting the pocket and creating running lanes. Sprinkle that in with inaccurate throws from QB Andrew Luck (yeah, that’s right, Luck’s ball placement has been off) along with falling behind in the down and distance, and you got yourself an erratic offense. That’s not saying Hamilton’s offense hasn’t made any splash plays – his unit is loaded with talent, but this offense will live and die by the sword of Luck’s arm. Is it Luck’s nicked up shoulder that’s played part in his over and under throws? That could be the case, but whatever the deal is, Hamilton’s unit needs to get some consistent rhythm going for the Colts to be serious contenders and gain separation from their foes in the AFC South. Saints DC Rob Ryan likes to use manufacturing pressure concepts, and knowing Indianapolis’ O-line has struggled to pick up the blitz, look for Ryan to use a few toward Luck. Hamilton has gone with more short concepts for Luck to get the ball to his outlets quickly. …show more content…
Averaging 3.4 yards per carry is a non-sexy number, but what HC Sean Payton has always kept functioning since he’s been at the helm is getting the backs to be effective on screen game concepts. Mark Ingram, C.J. Spiller and Khiry Robinson aren’t as explosive as former backs Darren Sproles and Pierre Thomas were on screens, but the extension of the running game is still there for QB Drew Brees to turn to on drawing the second and third levels of opposing defenses to