All the scrutiny and poor reviews of Sunday’s game have been shown on social media, but there was one major bright spot. The Colts’ secondary has been crushed with injuries all season long, but this week saw the return of Jaylon Jones. The former 2023 7th-round pick has played anything but that since his tenure began.
He began to make an impact midway through his rookie season as the injuries began to pile up. By October of that year, he was starting for the Colts and had never really looked back. He finished with 44 total tackles in his rookie season. His sophomore season showed more growth as he finished with 100 total tackles with two interceptions, and played all 17 games.
Jones has missed all this season with a hamstring injury but made his return this week. A return that was needed in so many ways. The Colts lost their competition in rookie Justin Walley during training camp. They brought in Mekhi Blackmon to bring depth, and now Mooney Ward is on injured reserve until the Colts return from their bye week.
Jones shines in Pittsburgh
The return of Jones was not only needed, but it was impactful. Jones played 55/62 defensive snaps and finished with 4 tackles. His most impressive stat was keeping star receiver DK Metcalf at bay the entire game. Metcalf finished with 2 receptions for 6 yards on 4 targets. Metcalf has had only 3 other games where he was held under 50 yards this season, but did score a touchdown in each of those games. According to Next Gen Stats, Jaylon Jones limited Steelers passcatchers to just 19 receiving yards, allowing 2 of 5 targets to be hauled in.
With Ward on IR, this team lacked that defensive outside corner that was a “shut-down” corner. While most would say that Jones fell in the draft because of his overall speed, he made one of the fastest speedsters on the outside feel non-existent. The coaching staff gave him the #1 defensive assignment after missing the entire season up to this point, and he delivered.
Will this alter the trade deadline plans?
Even in the loss this week to Pittsburgh, the Colts are still in first place in the AFC playoff race. Owning the tiebreakers over both New England and Denver. The NFL trade deadline is Tuesday at 4 pm, and the Colts (at this moment) are expected to be buyers and not sellers. The two main areas they will look to improve would be secondary and pass rush. With Jaylon Carlies set to return at some point, they will likely hold out until his return from a linebacker perspective.
There is no question that the Colts still need help in both mentioned positions. Before the Pittsburgh game, the order (for me) was secondary and then edge rusher. After the performance from Jones, this may push the Colts’ front office to focus more on edge rusher help. Ward is eligible to return in Week 12, when the Colts travel to Kansas City. Once Ward returns, it would be Ward and Jones, starting with Blackmon as the rotational piece.
The health of Ward and the return of Jones should allow the Colts to focus on getting a new depth piece at edge rusher, with both Tyquan Lewis and Samson Ebukam battling injury. Let’s not forget that starter Kwity Paye is in a contract year as well. The return of Jaylon Jones has potentially brought some needed stability to the Colts’ secondary, which has been lacking. It’s now time for the Colts to get a game wrecker at the line of scrimmage and begin their playoff push.
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