2026
2026 season · Weeks 1 to 8 · 2-6
Colts defense
Every snap the Colts defended, what it cost them and how they got there: the league ranks the player pages quote, where offenses find room, how this defense plays, and who plays in it.
- How good+0.07 EPA a play allowed, 24th of 32, and 0.05 above what the offenses they faced usually manage (22nd).
- How they playThey blitz on 22% of dropbacks, the 31st-most in the league, and get pressure on 18%.
- Where offenses find roomOn the ground: 4.8 a carry, 29th, and runs outside left gain 6.2 a carry.
- Who hurt themZay Flowers (BAL): 150 yards and +13.1 EPA on 6 touches, the most anyone has managed against them.
- Next upWeek 9 against the Cowboys, whose offense ranks 7th in EPA a play.
How good is itthe defense against the league, and game by game
| Stat | Value | Rank | League | Pctl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EPA per playevery snap | +0.07 | 24th of 32 | 27th | |
| Pass EPAper dropback | +0.10 | 22nd of 32 | 33rd | |
| Rush EPAper designed run | +0.02 | 30th of 32 | 8th | |
| Success rateplays that gain enough | 43% | 14th of 32 | 58th | |
| Explosive rate20+ pass, 10+ run | 10% | 20th of 32 | 39th | |
| Yards per play | 6.1 | 29th of 32 | 11th | |
| Yards per carry | 4.8 | 29th of 32 | 11th | |
| Third downsconverted against them | 33% | 5th of 32 | 86th |
| Stat | Value | Rank | League | Pctl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sack rateper dropback | 6.2% | 17th of 32 | 48th | |
| Pressure rateper dropback, PFR | 18% | 29th of 32 | 11th | |
| QB hit rateper dropback | 13% | 26th of 32 | 20th | |
| INT rateper dropback | 0.8% | 31st of 32 | 5th | |
| Red-zone TD ratetrips ending in a touchdown | 62% | 15th of 32 | 55th | |
| Points per drivetouchdown 7, field goal 3 | 2.34 | 25th of 32 | 23rd | |
| Takeawaysper game | 0.5 | 31st of 32 | 3rd | |
| EPA against expectationallowed minus the offenses' usual | +0.05 | 22nd of 32 | 33rd |
Each bar is the league's 32 defenses; the marker is the Colts. Right is better for the defense, so a low EPA allowed sits right. The pressure rate is PFR's pressures (hurries, hits and sacks) per dropback. EPA against expectation compares each game with what that offense averaged in its other games, so a strong schedule is not held against them.
They held 3 of 8 offenses below their usual EPA a play. The biggest stop: Week 4 against the Commanders, 0.28 a play under their norm. The offenses they have faced average +0.01 a play elsewhere, the 12th-toughest schedule of offenses.
vs BALL 23-41+0.32usual -0.02
at KCL 30-33+0.23usual +0.11
vs HOUW 19-17-0.09usual +0.04
at WASW 30-13-0.25usual +0.03
at PITL 22-34+0.24usual -0.06
vs TENL 20-26-0.15usual -0.09
at MINL 10-16-0.08usual -0.10
at JAXL 7-42+0.20usual +0.16Where offenses find roomthe field, the run lanes, the positions and the situations
The soft spot is deep left: +0.69 EPA a throw against a league +0.34. The lockdown zone is deep right, -0.14 a throw (league +0.33). Completions against them run 2.5 points under expected, 5th-best in the league.
Every pass they faced with a charted air distance and side, sacks excluded. Green is a zone where they allow less than the league, red more. How often shows the share of throws against them there.
Offenses run for 4.8 yards a carry against them, 29th of 32. The leak is outside left: 6.2 a carry and +0.33 EPA (league 5.0, 0.00).
| Position | Targets a game | Yards a game | EPA per target | Fantasy points allowed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wide receivers | 15.96th | 130.48th | +0.2015th-toughest | 18.010th-fewest22.77th-fewest27.46th-fewest |
| Tight ends | 6.811th | 51.413th | +0.2719th-toughest | 9.79th-most12.012th-most14.412th-most |
| Backs, receiving | 4.910th | 42.927th | +0.2830th-toughest | 21.47th-most23.19th-most24.810th-most |
| Quarterbacks | – | – | – | 18.014th-most18.014th-most18.014th-most |
Who hurt them most
| Player | Team | Touches | Yards | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zay Flowers | BAL | 6 | 150 | 1 | +13.1 |
| Bhayshul Tuten | JAX | 18 | 159 | 2 | +8.6 |
| Derrick Henry | BAL | 25 | 163 | 3 | +8.5 |
| Jaylen Warren | PIT | 21 | 188 | 2 | +8.2 |
| Tyquan Thornton | KC | 4 | 86 | +8.2 | |
| Dyami Brown | WAS | 4 | 65 | +6.0 |
Targets, yards and EPA per target by the receiver's position, ranked 1st for the toughest defense: the same numbers a receiver's This week panel quotes against this defense. Fantasy points allowed follow the scoring switch. Who hurt them ranks every opposing player by EPA on his targets and carries against this defense.
Their biggest third-down edge is third-and-short (1 to 3): offenses convert 53% against a league 61%. They are stingiest in the two-minute drill (-0.20 a play, league 0.00) and weakest in 2nd down (+0.11, league +0.00).
| Situation | Plays | Allowed | League | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st down | 197 | +0.09 | +0.02 | +0.08 |
| 2nd down | 153 | +0.11 | +0.00 | +0.11 |
| 3rd down | 91 | +0.01 | -0.04 | +0.05 |
| 3rd and 1 to 3 | 15 | 53% | 61% | −7 pts |
| 3rd and 4 to 6 | 25 | 48% | 44% | +4 pts |
| 3rd and 7+ | 51 | 20% | 27% | −7 pts |
| Red zone | 56 | +0.07 | +0.03 | +0.04 |
| Two-minute drill | 48 | -0.20 | 0.00 | -0.20 |
| When they lead | 180 | +0.09 | +0.01 | +0.09 |
| One-score game | 326 | +0.08 | -0.01 | +0.08 |
| When they trail by 9+ | 70 | +0.07 | +0.03 | +0.03 |
EPA a play allowed, or for third downs the share converted (a first down or a touchdown). Green is better than the league for the defense. Score states are from the defense's side.
How they playpressure, the box, what offenses try, discipline
One of the least aggressive defenses in football. They send extra rushers on 22% of dropbacks and average 4.2 rushers; 78% of dropbacks see four or fewer. They allow +0.16 EPA when they blitz and +0.06 when they do not.
They put 6.9 defenders in the box on runs, eight or more on 11%. Into a light box (six or fewer) runs gain 5.0 a carry; into eight or more, 2.3.
Offenses lean on the run against them: 2 points under their expected pass rate on early downs in a neutral game. Play action gains +0.21 EPA against them on 30% of throws; screens -0.12.
16 defensive penalties for 122 yards, 9 of them first downs, the 4th-fewest. They miss 9% of tackle attempts by PFR's count, 22nd-best.
The defenderswho plays, and what each one has done
DeForest Buckner leads the pass rush with 10 pressures and 4 sacks on 72% of the snaps.
| Player | Snaps | Pressures | Sacks | QB hits | TFL | Tackles | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 97Laiatu LatuDE | 76% | 9 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 19 | |
| 99DeForest BucknerDT | 72% | 10 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 31 | |
| 91Jaylahn TuimoloauDE | 62% | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 18 | 1 |
| 90Grover StewartDT | 60% | 5 | 0.5 | 3 | 2 | 24 | |
| 95Adetomiwa AdebaworeDT | 42% | 9 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 18 | |
| 94Jerry TilleryDT | 36% | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 14 | |
| 98Arden KeyDE | 32% | 4 | 0.5 | 3 | 8 | 1 | |
| 55Caden CurryDE | 17% | 19 | |||||
| 93Tim SmithDT | 17% | 6 | |||||
| 52George Gumbs Jr.DE | 8% | 1 | 1 | 3 |
Akeem Davis-Gaither plays 92% of the snaps with 64 tackles.
| Player | Snaps | Tackles | TFL | Sacks | Pressures | Targets | Rating allowed | Missed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 51Akeem Davis-GaitherLB | 92% | 64 | 3 | 18 | 94.6 | 4 | ||
| 57Jaylon CarliesLB | 41% | 15 | 2 | 10 | 101.2 | 3 | ||
| 50Bryce BoettcherLB | 22% | 25 | 12 | 99.7 | 3 | |||
| 58Austin AjiakeLB | 21% | 22 | 6 | 69.8 | ||||
| 53CJ AllenLB | 21% | 15 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 83.3 | 1 | |
| 59Germaine PrattLB | 4% | 3 | 1 | |||||
| 44Tahj ChambersLB | 0% | 2 |
Charvarius Ward is the hardest to complete a pass against: a 65.9 passer rating on 31 targets.
| Player | Snaps | Targets | Catches allowed | Yards | TD | Rating allowed | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0Camryn BynumSAF | 99% | 18 | 13 of 18 | 188 | 1 | 99.4 | 1 | 2 |
| 7Charvarius WardCB | 91% | 31 | 13 of 31 | 170 | 65.9 | 6 | ||
| 25A.J. HaulcySAF | 83% | 26 | 10 of 26 | 262 | 3 | 94.4 | 2 | |
| 1Sauce GardnerCB | 78% | 23 | 13 of 23 | 244 | 1 | 102.5 | 6 | |
| 27Justin WalleyCB | 63% | 40 | 28 of 40 | 295 | 1 | 90.3 | 3 | |
| 29Cam Taylor-BrittCB | 19% | 8 | 4 of 8 | 41 | 2 | 84.6 | 2 | |
| 30Hunter WohlerSAF | 16% | 3 | 2 of 3 | 31 | 1 | 118.7 | ||
| 33Kenneth HarrisCB | 9% | 2 | 0 of 2 | 39.6 | 1 | |||
| 34Kapena GushikenCB | 6% | 2 | 1 of 2 | -2 | 56.2 | 1 |
Tackles, sacks, QB hits, TFL, interceptions, passes defended and forced fumbles are nflverse's weekly stats; pressures, targets, catches and yards allowed, passer rating allowed and missed tackles are PFR's charting. Snap share is the season average of defensive snaps.