1. Anthony Richardson found success on designed runs, but the Colts' ground game otherwise didn't get going.
Richardson had 10 rushing attempts against the Lions, but two were scrambles on passing dropbacks and one was an end-of-the-half kneel down. Taking those three plays out, Richardson rushed seven times for 58 yards on designed runs or read option plays, good for an average of 8.3 yards per play.
"It was great – any time we get home going early in the run game, it helps our offense," head coach Shane Steichen said. "... Any time we can set the tone running the football, whether it's him or JT, it helps our football team.:
Richardson's early success – he carried three times for 35 yards on the Colts' opening drive – did not open things up for running back Jonathan Taylor, though. Taylor rushed 11 times for 35 yards, with 14 of his yards coming on a third-and-20 handoff. Outside of that, Taylor's longest rush was eight yards; eight of his 10 other rushing attempts gained two or fewer yards.
For Steichen, getting Taylor going again is top of mind heading into Week 13's matchup with the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium.
"It starts with myself," Steichen said. "I think schematically, we got to look at some things on what we're doing to get that thing going, because he is a very talented player that can create the home runs for us. So we'll look at that this week, big time."
2. Tanor Bortolini is in the concussion protocol.
Steichen said Monday rookie center Tanor Bortolini entered the NFL concussion protocol Monday after developing symptoms following Sunday's game. Bortolini, a 2024 fourth-round pick from Wisconsin, has started five games in place of veteran Ryan Kelly this season.
Kelly is on injured reserve, and the earliest he could be activated is the Colts' Week 15 game against the Denver Broncos.
If Bortolini does not clear protocol, the Colts will likely turn to Danny Pinter, who's started seven games – including four at center – since joining the Colts as a fifth-round draft pick from Ball State in 2020. Pinter has not played on offense in 2024, and he spent the entire 2023 season on injured reserve.
"Really smart, cerebral, very tough, obviously been around here for a while," Steichen said of Pinter. "The guys love him. So if he gets that opportunity this week, we're definitely looking forward to that."
3. Michael Pittman Jr. battled for a productive day.
Pittman briefly exited Sunday's game with a shoulder injury, but he quickly returned to the field and had an impactful afternoon with six catches on seven targets for 96 yards (16.0 yards/reception). The six receptions tied a season high, and his 96 yards were his most since 113 in Week 4 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
"The guy's tough as nails," Steichen said. "I mean, he just shows up. When you need a play, boom, he makes the play. And that's what he did again today."
Pittman has steadily been more involved in the Colts' offense over the last two weeks, with 15 targets, 11 catches and 142 yards combined against the Lions and New York Jets. Over his previous four games before that – between when he popped up on the Colts' practice report with a back injury ahead of Week 6's win over the Tennessee Titans and missing Week 10 due to that back injury – Pittman had 20 targets, eight catches and 128 yards.
4. Tyquan Lewis' return brought the Colts' defensive line as close to full strength as it's been since Week 1.
This isn't quite the defensive line the Colts envisioned in 2024 – Samson Ebukam, who led the Colts with 9.5 sacks in 2023, is on injured reserve with an Achilles' injury sustained early in training camp – but the return of Lewis on Sunday did make this group as whole as it's been since Week 1.
Lewis was placed on injured reserve after the Colts' Week 5 win over the Steelers with an elbow injury; he returned to practice last week and was activated for Sunday's game, in which he played 35 percent of the Colts' defensive snaps. Defensive tackle DeForest Buckner was limited in Week 2 against the Green Bay Packers with a back injury, then sustained an ankle injury at Lambeau Field that landed him on injured reserve through Week 8. Defensive end Kwity Paye also missed time this season with a quad injury.
The Colts' D-line snap breakdown in Week 12, then, became:
- DT DeForest Buckner (54 snaps)
- DE Dayo Odeyingbo (47 snaps)
- DE Laiatu Latu (43 snaps)
- DE Kwity Paye (40 snaps)
- DT Grover Stewart (39 snaps)
- DE Tyquan Lewis (25 snaps)
- DT Raekwon Davis (21 snaps)
- DT Taven Bryan (20 snaps)
The inside-outside versatility Odeyingbo and Lewis bring to this defensive line rotation is important, and with Latu stringing impactful games together over the second half of his rookie season, the Colts will look to this group as a bedrock on defense over the final five games of the regular season.
5. Colts hope to capitalize off latest possible bye.
While managing just six points – the team's lowest point total since Week 16 of the 2022 season – in a home loss may feel dispiriting, the reality for the Colts is a playoff push is absolutely still possible.
The Colts just wrapped a five-game stretch in which they won once (over the 3-8 New York Jets) and lost four times (to the 7-5 Houston Texans, 9-2 Minnesota Vikings, 9-2 Buffalo Bills and 10-1 Detroit Lions). The final five games of the 2024 season will see the Colts play:
- @ New England Patriots (3-8)
- @ Denver Broncos (7-5)
- vs. Tennessee Titans (3-8)
- @ New York Giants (2-9)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (2-9)
Sandwiched between road trips to New England and Denver is the Colts' bye, which in Week 14 is as late as possible on the NFL calendar. That's presented some challenges for the Colts, who this weekend will play on Sunday for the 13th consecutive week (with all but one of those games kicking off at 1 p.m.). The other five teams with a Week 14 bye – the Patriots, Broncos, Texans, Washington Commanders and Baltimore Ravens – have all played on Thursday Night Football, giving them a short week but also a "mini-bye" weekend off.
But with that late bye finally on the horizon, the Colts can see a possible benefit, especially to trying to make a playoff push around the upcoming holidays.
"You get a late bye and you get a little more fresh for the late run there in December," Steichen said. "So, I think there are some advantages to it. We'll see."
"We finally get a chance, and all those guys who may be injured, we get our chance to heal later in the year, which could give us an advantage on a team who maybe had their bye week sooner," Pittman said. "And it gives people time to see family around the holidays, and really I think that's the two benefits of having a (late) bye week."
