3 Unsung Heroes of the Colts Run Defense

Speed has started two games as the weakside linebacker, due to the absence of Shaquille Leonard. In Week 3 he started on the bench and rotated in, due to a schematic change. He has been a suitable replacement for the Colts, but Leonard is still greatly missed.

To put it nicely, Speed has been weak in coverage through three games. This can be remedied with the return of Leonard, after that Speed will be asked to cover a receiver less frequently.

This article is not about coverage, it is about what Speed brings to this ferocious Colts run defense.

Speed is a fitting last name for what the linebacker brings to the field, but to me the perfect one would be Spark. This is because he brings the energy to the team when they need some life.

In Speed’s 41 snaps defending the run, he made a play on the ball carrier eleven times (six solo tackles, five assisted). And when Speed comes at you, he does not miss (zero missed tackles). He has a knack for snuffing out the run, much like many of his teammates. Speed has recorded four run stops according to Pro Football Focus. And he has an average depth of tackle at 1.7 yards past the line of scrimmage.

Four stops will seem slightly unimpressive compared to Stewart (8) and Bobby Okereke (9), but with Speed’s limited snaps has a stop rate at 10%. All of Speed’s work is noted by PFF, Speed was giving a run defense grade of 90.3 for his production through three weeks.

2. LB Bobby Okereke

Okereke, like Speed, has been good overall but will benefit greatly from the return of Leonard. Also like Speed, Okereke’s skills shine in the run game, or I should say, disrupting it.

Three players out-snap Okereke (Zaire Franklin, Kenny Moore II, and Stephon Gilmore). On his 77 snaps Okereke has totaled a team-leading 16 tackles. His also leads the team with two missed tackles (tied with Stewart and Yannick Ngakoue).

As I mentioned above, Okereke leads the team in one more stat, and that is his nine run stops. He has an average tackle depth of 3.4, that may seem deep for someone with that many run stops. This is because he has made some tackles, deep in the box, that otherwise would have reached the secondary for possible big gains.

His run stopping and his “gash run” saving plays are the reasons why I featured Okereke on this list.

3. DE Kwity Paye

Stewart (59) and Buckner (60) both out-snapped Paye (57) on run defense, and they will most likely get the praise from national and local talking heads. But as an edge defender his responsibilities are different from the tanks in the middle.

While fighting on the edge Paye has totaled eight solo tackles and one assisted. Paye like Speed is yet to miss a tackle across three weeks. Paye has the same amount of run stops as Buckner with six, but Paye (10.7%) edges out Buckner (10.3) when it comes to run stop percentage.

With an average depth of tackle at 2.3 yards, Paye fits right in with the rest of the freak run stoppers on the Colts’ roster. He contains the edge while also making explosive plays, you cannot ask much more from the second-year player.