Full Transcript for Rick Venturi breaks down the Jaguars loss and Cowboys Challenge | Inside Football with Rick Venturi

the end of three quarters for god's sakes it was forty two to seven i don't remember the last time i've seen guys clean up the fourth quarter with backups to tell you the truth yeah that in itself is an indictment i just can't i could hardly believe it uh... and you stated it uh... and i'm i'm not going to sugarcoat anything today number one uh... they were just much more talented uh... that's number one number two so much better coached. And they were much better motivated for one reason or another. We can talk about that. And in the end, they just kicked our butt, took names. And, you know, I don't even think it was about Duval County. We've talked a lot about that. That butt weapon could have happened on 12th and Meridian. I mean, they were just, it was like watching a bad JV team play a good varsity team, you know. And, you know, it's just, you know, the on-the-field disasters, the fire sale, though necessary in some cases, you know, the Colts' kind of refusal to change anything, you know, kind of, you know, and come up with a realistic solution, you know, it's worthy of Colts Nation meltdown, and it's there for sure. And both sides contributed to the horror show, no doubt. 00:04:03 Speaker 2: And, you know, you just kind of alluded to it there a little bit, and I don't know how much you can quantify this. In fact, I know you can't. But, I mean, after the team traded Quentin Nelson and DeForest Buckner, How much do you think those moves and what those moves symbolized lingered over the team and kind of slogged them down last weekend and Sunday? How much do you think that played into the Colts' performance in Jacksonville? 00:04:26 Speaker 3: Well, I don't think you can minimize it. First of all, when you send out two of the three elite players on this team, those two guys and Jonathan, I mean, those guys are confirmed elite players in the National Football League and elite people. you're not going to have an effect. Number one, you've essentially told your team that 2026 is basically over, that it doesn't really matter, that we're only looking way ahead of time. Let me say something about locker rooms and motivation and things like that. I think players are motivated in the NFL by a couple things. I think from a coaching standpoint, it's they want a coach that puts them in the right position to win. And basically, they pretty much know it one way or another. Are you putting me in the best position to win? I think from a coaching standpoint, that is more motivational than anything you can say. And as a player, I think when players look at one another, it's really not what you say. It isn't vocal leadership, really. It's not what you say. It's how you play. And basically, when you look at Quentin Nelson and you look at DeForest Buckner, you see guys who play great. I mean, they were the best players we had on the team. And not only great players, but great effort guys. And tremendous Colts who reflected great effort, class of play, and how they

carried themselves as individuals in that regard. So, you know, I think when you, you know, basically what you've done is, you know, you more or less cut the guts out of your team. And to think that that wouldn't have some type of effect on you psychologically, I think is crazy. I mean, you know, we're all human. I mean, and again, like I said, you don't fool the locker room. Coaches don't fool the locker room. Players don't fool the locker room. They know that those two guys... were dudes. They were dudes, man. They cast a long shadow. And, you know, leadership is organic. You can't all of a sudden turn around and say, okay, now you're the leader. It's organic. It's something that develops both coaching and playing-wise. 00:06:44 Speaker 2: That's Rick Venturi, and this is Inside Football. So the Colts are sticking with Daniel Jones at quarterback, despite ranking poorly in all of the major quarterback metrics. We know that so far this year. He's tied for the NFL league lead in giveaways with 12. Where do you think Shane Steichen's confidence in Daniel Jones is rooted, and what do you think it's going to take for a better performance to be pulled out of Daniel Jones here in these final nine games of the season? 00:07:13 Speaker 3: Well, it's obvious that Steichen cherishes what you do with cerebrally before the snap more than he does what you do after the snap, okay? On this issue, there's three things that are just astonishing to me, okay? And trust me, I was a fan of Daniel Jones. I was a fan in Aquarium. I was a fan last preseason when we were fighting for the job. But he is in a free fall of free falls. I don't think I've ever seen a player go from number one in QBR eight games last year to 29 out of 30. They only rank 30 guys now. With a 39.4, the 12 turnovers, five TDs to nine picks. I mean, honest to God, and the brain trust acts as if this really hasn't happened. As I said, they treasure this work ethic and cerebral ability more than play. I'm astonished at that, number one. Number two, I'm astonished because I just can't believe, and I know there would be maybe a handful of coaches that wouldn't have had an NCAA package for Anthony Richardson. some type of thing because, you know, we don't have playmakers. We lost the vertical stretch. So at least with Anthony, we could get an NCAA package that we could get lateral strength, which then would open up, soften up the edges for Jonathan. And so to me, to not have had that package from day one, plus the other thing, it not only stretches the defense, it keeps Anthony's hand in the game so that he just doesn't fade away. And to me, not doing that was malpractice to start with. And now, you know, when do we hold the quarterback accountable like everybody else? I mean, we had no trouble benching Anthony. We had no trouble, you know, sending Mitchell, A.D. Mitchell, out of here for a mistake. I mean, we had no trouble with that. But all of a sudden, we can have a guy on this free-fall, cautious,

game after game after game. And we're talking yesterday in a press conference that, man, he made a hell of a check on that interception. I'm going like, you know, well, maybe don't do the interception, okay? And I'm very much with the school of thoughts with some coaches that I respect highly. Three of them I worked with, Ditka, Belichick, Saban, and now you saw it Saturday, last Saturday, right here in this state with Cignetti. If the quarterback is not performing, okay, don't be afraid to change it. He's no different than anybody else. You know, sometimes maybe if he sits for a while, you'd be better off. I will say that you have six games ahead now, which you only have one winning team, and everyone is really flawed, so maybe continuity is okay. But my thought is if you don't change how he plays, then you better change who plays. And it's not like Anthony's an untried rookie. The guy is 7-6 as a starter. And he's made a lot of great plays around here. So, you know, to me, it's just astonishing that, you know, we can just live with this and act like everything's fine. All right. 00:10:28 Speaker 2: Then just for the sake of conversation within the offense elsewhere, outside of quarterback, Rick, I mean, this is a loaded question. I understand that. But who and what else would you like to see more of on offense in these final nine games? 00:10:42 Speaker 3: Well, the first thing, if you're not going to change quarterback, I still would like to see A.R. 5. in an NCAA package to give them a totally different wreck wrinkle. Go no huddle with it. Don't let them adapt to it, number one. Number two, and these could all be number one, I want Burks and Doolin on the outside. I mean, I'll play Allen in the middle. I'll play Allen in the slot. And if the other guy, if he wants out of here, I'll pay for the Uber, to tell you the truth. We need guys that are committed to the horseshoes and are going to fight to get back there. So, I'm going to put those two speed guys on the edge. I don't care what their experience level is because I am going to try to pry open and stretch that outside of the field. And if the quarterback doesn't want to throw it out there, I know a kid in that locker room that will. So, I mean, I think you have to be able to stretch that no matter what you say. You can't let one guy like Pierce end up paralyzing you for the season. That's bad coaching. I think number three is, is you've got to find ways, some of it's balance, some of it's stretch, some of it is in formation variance and play variance. Jonathan Taylor has gone 15 games without 100 yards. That's inconscionable, to tell you the truth, with that guy's ability. That's coaching malpractice. So, you know, I think those three things, I think, number one, carry a package in there, do not tolerate bad quarterback play. Get Burks and Doolin on the outside. Even if they don't catch a bunch of balls, they'll at least be able to stretch you. No question about that. And then we've got to

find formation and balance ways to get Jonathan Taylor 100 yards. 00:12:24 Speaker 2: That's Rick Venturi. This is Inside Football. I do want to touch on the defense before we wrap up here on the big picture. I mean, the Jaguars, like a lot of teams the Colts have played, Rick, repeatedly attack the linebackers in both the running game and in pass coverage. How concerning is that group, that position group to you? And you and I, to be fair, we don't classify the linebacker position to be a quote-unquote premium position, but the Colts have proved this year when you don't have that unit solidified, it can be a big problem. 00:12:55 Speaker 3: Yeah, and that's part of the, I think, lack of overall cohesion. This team is not put together schematically very well. The scheme may be there, but fundamentally it's not well taught, okay? You know, and then, to be honest with you, losing Buckner is awful. Because as good as Addy is, Addy's a rusher. Addy's a guy that's a second and long, third and long guy, and he's going to be a premier rusher. Addy is not a great run player, I'm just telling you. And every time the last two and a half years that either Grover or Buckner wasn't in the game, we got scorched. We got scorched on the run, and Sunday was absolutely ridiculous. too long touchdown run straight up the a gap. I mean, I mean, I could have handed the ball off straight up the a gap. And what happens is they split that one in the three, they split that one technique into three technique. Now going to the linebackers, they don't know what to do. Their, their fits aren't right. Uh, coverage wise, they, they don't have a clue. I mean, we've got, we're, we're like 31st in the league in the run defense. We give up 4.9 yards, a rush, uh, We're soft with the exception of Grover and Tuimo, actually. They're the two best run players we have up front. Latu is not. No one else is. And then our linebackers, and plus that rotation. I've said about that from day one. If you want to play Allen and you want to play whoever, pick the best two guys for that week and play them in the whole game. Don't in a series, out of series. I mean, it's just absolutely ridiculous because they are clueless. I mean, they're not fitting gaps correctly. And even though you flash some tackles and things like that, what you're overlooking is all the mistakes and the coverage. We have no clue in the middle of the field. From numbers to numbers, we haven't stopped anybody from the beginning of the field to now. 00:14:49 Speaker 2: All right, lastly on defense, and you just mentioned the pass rush there a little bit, the Colts defensive end group on the season. They have three and a half out of the team's 16 sacks on the year. You mentioned Adetamu Adebare. He's a good pass rusher. He just signed a contract extension this week, by the way. But he's got more sacks by himself than the Colts edge rushers have combined this season. I mean, at this point, this is just a rhetorical thing by me. I

mean, at this point, Rick, what's the harm in unleashing more of Caden Curry and more of George Gumbs Jr.? Give those guys more playing time. I mean, what do you have to lose after eight or nine games here? 00:15:25 Speaker 3: No, I can't disagree with that. And, you know, I think, first of all, I think Curry, there's no question about it. I think, you know, when you go back to preseason and you go back to where he was Sunday, he flat out deserves it. He deserves it based not on his potential but how he's playing. I mean, honestly, Latu's sack was a cleanup. I mean, all his plays are cleanup play. The guy who made the play is Curry. And Curry, I think, the way you use Curry is I put him in there for Latu because I think Latu on first down is a liability. I think he's soft on the run. And you put Curry in there to hold the line opposite Timo because Timo is actually playing good on the run. And you get Curry on the other side. And then when you get to third down, you kick him inside. You kick Curry inside with Addy. And then you've got a couple really athletic guys. uh... rushes on the interior and he showed that i mean he showed that sunday you know great effort player with it but i think he's talented i think he can play edge on the run on first down and i think he kicks in on third down and makes the place and i'm not afraid to look at gums i think gums shows enough potential you know where we have nothing you're exactly right i mean our edge guys really uh... they're on the witness protection program now tmo had a really good rush that's the first really flash where you beat somebody and hit the quarterback, not just caught somebody on the move. And that was good by him. So that's a little bit encouraging, but you're exactly right. Those edge guys right now are on the witness protection program. So, but you don't, to me, you're not even projecting for the future with Curry. You play him in there right now because he's the best guy. All right. 00:17:07 Speaker 2: Those are some big picture items and some realities for the Colts and what they're dealing with right now. Two and six, riding a four game losing skid, but the beat goes on and, The next chapter, Rick Venturi, is the Dallas Cowboys, a return home effort for the Colts. By the way, the Colts have just concluded one of their toughest stretches of the season. They've played four out of five on the road, so the Colts are back at home for three of the next four inside Lucas Oil Stadium. So week nine upon us, the Dallas Cowboys are next, and again, they haven't paid a visit to Lucas Oil Stadium since 2018-20. America's team, they enter this game at 3-5 and they're sitting in second place in the NFC East. And they're coming off one of the most painful losses in franchise history. Last week, Dallas led by 14 points entering the fourth quarter and by 10 with less than four minutes to go. But they surrendered four consecutive touchdown drives and lost 33-30 in overtime to the Cardinals. It marked

the largest fourth quarter lead the Cowboys have ever blown at home. Before that, Dallas was 342-2-1 when leading by at least 14 points in the fourth quarter. So the Cowboys have now lost three of their last four, and they've been competitive. Four of their five losses have been decided by one possession, including two games in which Dallas allowed the tying or winning score. in the final seconds. Offensively, this remains a very dangerous team with Dak Prescott at quarterback. They've got C.D. Lamb at receiver, but the larger concern is on the defensive side of the ball. Dallas is allowing nearly 400 yards per game, more than 26 points per game, and the Cowboys have surrendered at least 20 points in 14 consecutive games. That is the longest active streak. in the National Football League, Rick. So we're going to break down things in more detail on both sides of the ball. But that's the setup here on the big picture, these 3-5 Cowboys. They can score on anybody, but consistently they've had a hard time, Rick, finding ways to finish games under Brian Schottenheimer, their head coach. 00:19:16 Speaker 3: No, you're exactly right, Matt. And that blown lead last week to our friend Gardner Minshew, who maybe he's the best, he might be the best quarterback since Andrew Luck that we've had. He pulled that one out, played great in the fourth quarter. As you said, Brian Schottenheimer, long-term assistant, son of Marty of Marty Ball, and he's also the de facto offensive coordinator. The guy that's really embattled over there is their defensive coordinator, Christian Parker, first-year guy from Philadelphia. They're just awful. Matter of fact, this may be the battle of the two shakiest defenses in the National Football League. They actually brought in a familiar name to us in coaching, Mike Patton, who is basically kind of there on a consultant basis. Mike has a history in the NFL of a lot of defensive coordinators, so They're struggling. You never know if somebody's going to get fired there. And I've always said this, and this is kind of a little bit of a shot, but I don't really care. With the Milwaukee Brewers just proving to be probably the most underrated organization in sports, in my view, the Cowboys may be the most overrated organization in sports. And you said it best, when it's all said and done, They're damn good on offense. I mean, that gives them a chance to win every game, and they're very bad on defense, which just gives them a chance to lose every game. So in that sense, beatable, but definitely threatening because of that offense. They're strong on offense across the board. I've always really liked Prescott back to his Mississippi State days. He is the number six quarterback in QBR. He's really tough and outstanding in the pocket. He's a really good leader, decision-maker. He's an accurate gunner, and he's athlete enough to still move the chains. I mean, Lamb, what can I say about C.D. Lamb? He's 47 touchdowns. He is one of the best, if not, again, a lot like Jefferson and Chase. He's in the conversation for the best wide receiver in the league. And Pickens... who's a little bit enigmatic, but he does have a 15.6 yards per catch. Lamb is the do-it-all guy. Pickens is the deep guy. Pickens is deep and short. Flournoy and Mingo, they share that number three spot, and their tight ends are functional. Now, a couple of things to be alert for. They use a fullback, Lipke, number 30. He comes in to give them like 21 personnel. Real good blocker. I mean, they can run leads. And then sometimes he's in there with their passing down. Instead of a pass receiving back, they keep, and maybe we should think about this, they keep him in their protection sometime with Levin personnel. And then Jones, number 77, he comes in what I call jumbo situations as a tight end, both in 12 and 13 personnel. Now, the way they run it, Williams is a slash and stutter guy. He doesn't have big season numbers, but he did have 155 in 6.2 versus the Eagles. He's spelled by a kid who was here as Goodson. Goodson's done a real good job for him on the loose plays and returns. They tend to block very well to their left side on the run. The more and more, though, they've got their number four in sacks, but I think that's a lot of Prescott. The more and more, when they got that Cardinal game and they had to win at the end, they got crushed, okay? So, again, the Cowboys are number nine in the past, but they're only number 24 in the rush. But more importantly, seven in scoring on defense. They've struggled all over, and it's amazing. They have guys with tremendous name recognition. If I name them, people know them, but they're 27th in scoring, the 25th in sacks, 27 total. Three big names. Now, the Quinnen-Williams, 44 and a half stack. He's still pretty damn good. He really is. But then Gary, you know, who was a star at Green Bay, 47 and a half career sacks. He will be worked all around. You've got to be ready for him. You know, and then you have Clark at the nose tackle. You know, they've got a couple young edge guys. I like Lawrence, the rookie. They're explosive and dangerous. Overshown, I think, is a really good stack linebacker. He got 131 tackles and five sacks. I think he's athletic as hell. Barnum, number 55, gives him some versatility in the sense that he's a linebacker, but he'll move up and get them bare without you knowing it from the sidelines. Secondary leader is their young safety, who Downs, you know, the brother of, who can play back and front. He's a good guy off the edge, a good cover guy off the edge, and a good blitzer. Hooker, who was here, has real range at free safety. Where they're weakest is their field corner is marginal, bland. There's no question about that. It's a liability. And we'll talk about this in the must, but they brought Porter in from the Steelers, and he's a highly penalized player, but he gives them some advantages. He's a really good one-on-one press guy. They play him to the

boundary, Matt, and what that does is that allows them to either rotate strong or or what we call poach out of cover for Strong, and he does a lot of pressing one-on-one on the weak side. In other words, they say, you take that, and we're going to rotate over to the strong side. But at the end of the day, they're number 27 total and number 31 in rush per and 25th in sacks. So that's what it is. I mean, that's what they are in the big picture, and that's what you're looking at. 00:25:10 Speaker 2: All right, tremendous setup right there on the big picture indeed. Let's talk about now the game plans, and we begin first with this Cowboys offense that, as you chronicled there, one of the NFL's most productive units. They're explosive. They can still be very dangerous despite that 3-5 record. They've scored at least 30 points five times this year. That's tied with Buffalo for the most 30-point games in the NFL, and everything starts with Dak Prescott, who's in year number 11. and he ranks near the top of the league in nearly every major passing category this season. He also owns the Cowboys franchise records for passing yards, touchdown passes, completions, and completion percentage. His top target, obviously C.D. Lamb, one of the best and most consistent playmakers since he joined Dallas and became their number one target back in 2022. During that span, he ranks first in the NFL with more than 6,000 receiving yards. and he's produced 25 games with at least 100 receiving yards. Now, George Pickens is still in the fold as well. He gives the Cowboys another dangerous vertical threat since entering the NFL in 2022, leads the league with 15.6 yards per catch, and the running game is pretty solid as well. Javante Williams is their top back. He's got Eight rushing touchdowns this year, and he's one of the best after-contact rushers in the NFL. At tight end, Jake Ferguson has been a very dependable red zone target. He's recorded 11 touchdown catches since the beginning of the 2025 season. That's tied for third among NFL tight ends in that span. But his availability, though, is a little bit in question. We've got to monitor that after suffering, after he suffered, I should say, an ankle injury against Arizona State. last Sunday. So, Rick, I'm going to stop it there and, of course, let you open up this Dallas Cowboys offense a little bit further before you dive into your must for the Colts on defense. 00:27:03 Speaker 3: Yeah, you set it up really well in terms of the personnel and who they are. So this little short session before I go to must is really just to kind of give you a technical aspect of they want to run straight forward with Williams, you know, inside zones, outside zones. They run what I call a midline RPO where they run right up the gut, and then they have Lamb on a quick screen if the run isn't there. When they want to run outside, they usually use Goodson on tosses and flips. Again, be alert for 230 at fullback to pound leads, and then a jumbo

77 to give them a big, big tight end, their jumbo tight end. Running game is arrow up. I think it's getting better. And occasionally, if they think you're going to blitz a lot, like if they were playing Minnesota, 30 would be in the game on third down to block. They prefer to run to their left. And then, as we said, Lamb all over. Isolations, slots, seams, corners. When it's on the line, Dak is going to go to CD. You just know the CD. You just know it. And then Pickens is really their number two. He could be number one. But really what Pickens is for them, is the deep ball threat. He can fly. He can get over the top. Again, they favor running to their left, get the ball to Lamb all over, take some shots to Pickens, protect and let Dak operator. And he will run some designers. They ran a touchdown quarterback draw versus the Eagles two weeks ago. Offensive line is functional if the game is two-dimensional. And, you know, that's incredible. But they struggle when it isn't. So I think what the Colts' defensive blueprint has to be is, number one, you absolutely have to stop Williams. And you said he's got 4,000-plus, 38 touchdowns. Now, he's a slash and go. He's not a real elusive guy. He's a stutter go guy. And as you said, he's a tackle breaker. He's got real good vision tackle to tackle. You can't open up gaps for him. and let him go because he can stutter, find it, break it. And then know which back's in the backfield because when Goodson's in, you're going to get more pass, you're going to get more loose plays like tosses and craps, you know, and know who's in the game. They want to pound to their left, which is going to be all right. Make them one-dimensional and blitz vulnerable. Number two, you have to have a comprehensive both mentality and zone and blitz, all three things. Every time Lamb is in there, you have to have a plan for Lamb. 48 touchdowns, 8,300 yards plus, and he's just a monster, and he will be all over. That's why I say it's a comprehensive plan for He's not going to line up in one spot. But when the game's on the line, you better have a scheme that takes away Lamb. I would say more than anything else, because I'm going to direct my coverage to Lamb, the most important thing is to stay on top of Pickens. The 15.6 per catch averages what stands out to me. I don't see him as a great route runner like Lamb, but he can get on top of you and he can make plays. So the key is, Schematic plan for Lamb, stay on top of Pickens. Number three, you have to affect Dak. Dak, if you don't affect him, he's going to kill you. He's a four-time Pro Bowler, 37,000, almost 38 yards. He has a 98 passer rating, 256 TD passes. You know, he's rushed for touchdowns. And don't let him move the chains with scrambles. He likes to sit in there until the last minute. He's very tough in the pocket. He wants things to develop. He doesn't get shaky in the pocket, but he can scramble to move it. And the one thing I will tell you, if you're inside the 10, which is

kind of critical, critical spot, that's when he's run some red zone designers. He's still a good athlete. He's just kind of become a really good passer. I think getting the lead is so important. I alluded before to the fact that their offensive line functions in a two-dimensional game. In a one-dimensional game, the wheels come off the car. If they get in a must-pass game, number one on their right tackle, Steele, 78, you can beat him with speed and athleticism. He's very, very top-heavy. He doesn't adapt to that second move. On their left side, Guyton, speed got him at Arizona. And what gets him consistently, now this gets him consistently, and this is something that Latu can do, is you start him up and you come under quick. The quick counter really hurts Guyton on their left side. And then their center has been hit with bursts. So, you know, and they have some issues with the blitz. Again, get the lead and you can attack this offensive line. I think number five, big thing is play clean. The Cowboys are 18th in penalties, so they step on their own foot. They don't stop. You've got to kill their running game so they're one-dimensional, and then you have to beat their protection and take the ball away. They don't give it up much, but I think if you get them in a one-dimensional game like Arizona did at the very end, when it was on the line and Dallas had a chance to win it, Arizona beat them off the edge consistently. 00:32:49 Speaker 2: All right, good stuff right there so far. That's just half of the blueprint, though. Let's shift over to the Cowboys' defense for Sunday. And again, statistically, one of the worst defenses in the National Football League in 2026 resides in Dallas. They're giving up more than 27 points and 395 yards per game, ranking near the bottom of the NFL in both categories. And as we said earlier, they've surrendered at least 20 points in 14 straight games. Their defensive struggles have repeatedly wasted that productive offense, Dallas becoming the first NFL team this year to lose multiple games while scoring at least 30 points. But everything starts with their inability to stop the run. They rank last in the NFL, giving up 152 rushing yards per game. Tyler Algier for Arizona reinforced that problem last week. He rushed for 147 yards on only 11 carries. Gardner Minshew also came out of the bullpen for Arizona and put up 27 second-half points on Dallas, but they're still individual players, like you mentioned, capable of disrupting the game, and everything up front begins with Big Q, Quinnen Williams. He leads the NFL with 41.5 run stuffs since he broke into the NFL in 2019, and he also has 11 career multi-sac games. That ranks third among defensive tackles in that span. The secondary is worth monitoring because injuries are beginning to mount. Cornerback Joey Porter Jr. and safety Caleb Downs left the game with a concussion, while P.J. Locke entered the concussion protocol as well. Rookie edge defender Malachi Lawrence is also expected to miss multiple weeks with an ankle injury. We mentioned Caleb Downs, the rookie out of Ohio State, the brother of Josh Downs. He's been a central part to that defense, producing 52 tackles already, a sack. He's got two forced fumbles. and his availability is going to be important, and we'll have to monitor that storyline leading into Sunday. So, Rick, I'm going to stop it there and, of course, give you more time to expand. What else stands out to you about this Cowboys defense when you study the film? 00:34:56 Speaker 3: Yeah, you know, we talk personnel, and, you know, I think we cover that pretty well. I think tactically what you've got to know about them is they are a high-volume defense. They do a lot of stuff, but they don't do it very well. They look confused to me a lot before the snap. Quick tempo, I think, would hurt them. I think change of strength motion bothers them because they make a lot of adjustments on the line of scrimmage. You know, if you just go on reputation, they've got a lot of big-name guys, but to me they're really, really underproductive. You know, they're an over team, and an over, instead of covering the nose, they'll have a three, and then they'll have a guy on the inside shade of the guard I call that an over one. They mix some bear from base with Barnum moved up, and then sometimes they'll run the big bear and put three tackles in the game. And occasionally, and we'll probably see this, they'll actually go to 6-1, kind of an old-fashioned 6-1 heavy. Coverages, your threes, a lot of threes, eights, some fours. And, you know, on nickel-dime, a lot of nickel off the edge and dime fires there. Again, there's some fires in the A-gap. And again, a lot of stuff, but nothing done really well. Long yardage coverage, a lot of what I call eight press, where they'll play eight to the field, and then they'll press with Porter on the weak side. Same thing with the six high buzz press. A lot of stuff that even in their cover four, they'll take that weak safety and they'll cheat him strong. and pretty much leave Porter on the island. You know, if you're short, if you're like third and, you know, four to seven, then the man-to-man will come out, you know. And sometimes what they do, they're like everybody else. Everybody is borrowing from Minnesota. So, you know, in the game, when you get in long yardage, you're going to get those double mugs. You're going to get that eight-man front. Everybody's doing that, and they're either going to blitz it, blitz everybody, blitz one or two, give you a heavy inside, blitz the outside, and then all of a sudden bail everybody. And they're using a lot of what we call that invert two now from that, where you'll blitz one guy, but you'll play cover two, but your free safety actually plays the hole, and the weak side corner plays the half, and then the weak side outside linebacker will drop to the flat, not to get too geeky, but it's kind of become in combat. I call that a two

robber. in that respect. But, you know, again, Gary, you also have to keep your eye on Gary, number seven. He plays edge. Sometimes he kicks to three, and then he'll use the radar, meaning he'll stand up over the nose. So in terms of volume, you've got to be ready for those eight guys, and then you've got to be ready for Gary moving around. I don't think there's any question about it. Again, big names, underperformers, and I think it's the softest unit we've seen so far. As far as the blueprints, for the Colts offense, and you hit it. I mean, Arizona did it. You've got to pound them with JT. I mean, we have got to get JT 100 yards. If they could get it last week with their backup running back, my God, we've got to be able to get it. And you've got to hit them directly at that bubble. Whenever there's a bubble, you've got to hit JT, and the cutbacks are there all day. If that hole is stuffed, you take it, rip it back to the backside, block that backside, and that's really, really important. Anytime they get in a bear or just sometimes you want to run it to the three, power it and crush their edge guys. Just crush them. I don't think they're real physical. I think this is a soft front, which, you know, they're last in the league per rush. 5.0 indicates that. Again, this is a must game. This has got to be the first 100-yard games in the last 16, and that's just almost unconscionable. Now the one thing I'll say, and you mentioned it, the two guys you have to get blocked on this team. You've got to get Williams blocked up front because he's still a dominating front guy, particularly at the three. And Overshawn is a really good athlete in the stack. He's going to run and make hits. You've got to make sure those two guys are blocked. I think number two on first down, we've really got to get that boot gap. going. It's just disappeared. These guys miss assignments. They're out of position. I think you can move on these guys with bootlegs. The flats will be open. The crossers will be open. Just get Jones back out in some space and where he's got some things in front of him. He doesn't have to digest too much. Get him some completions on that kind of stuff, and maybe he'll come out of it. I think that misdirection is good. I think number three, I think first of all, you want to think working on their field corner, whether that's Bland or whoever played. They played about three guys last week. They were trying to survive, and I think you can work deep. You can work deep outs on that strong side. They will cover strong over there. But they don't rotate a lot over there. So I think, number one, you can do that. And then number two, you almost know that you have Porter on the boundary side one-on-one press all day. So whether it's Burks, whether it's Doolin, get somebody over there that can go and fly. Because the one thing we know about Porter over the years, he is a holding machine. He's the grabbiest corner. He's one of the grabbiest corners I've ever seen.

But if they're going to play him one-on-one and poach everybody strong, then you've got to also be able to take your shots on him. But you can't do it with Clydesdales. You can't win the Kentucky Derby with the Clydesdales. You've got to put guys over there that can beat him on release and get on top of him and either get the ball or get a penalty. No question about that. Isolate them and test them. I think the key is we really have to finish in that orange zone. is the 30 to the 20, and then the red. We've got to get TDs. We've scored five times, touchdowns five times in four games. I mean, Jacksonville had five and three quarters. So, I mean, this is just how bad it's been. And in this game, it's possible to do it. There's no question about it. But you have to do it. They're 26th in the red zone, so they're vulnerable. But on the other side of it, they can score. You know they can score. So TDs, are a must. You can't have this meager finish when you get down in there. No penalties. You know, we get down there, we get a fourth-and-one penalty, we get in a red zone, we get a sack, or we get a penalty. All that stuff is self-destruction. And I think, number five, the biggest thing is you just have to play clean on offense. And if you play clean, you win. No penalties, no sacks, no giveaways. You know, the boys are 25th in sacks, 30 in takeaways, 18 in penalties. This This is not the steel curtain. I mean, this is a game where if you play clean and you win those areas, you win the penalty battle, you win the sack battle, and you win the turnover battle, you're going to win the game. So, I mean, it's very possible, but that's what you have to do. 00:42:30 Speaker 2: All right, wonderful job right there. Those are the blueprints for success for the Colts against the Dallas Cowboys. Both teams have underperformed this year, both teams with losing records, and that's the game plan. all kind of consolidated into one nice, tidy podcast as the Colts look to end their four-game losing skid and respond as they return back home to Lucas Oil Stadium after back-to-back weeks on the road. All right, to close out the show, we always finish with Rick's final instructions, the lasting points he wants to give to the team before they take the field on Sunday. And, Rick, it's got to be pretty clear. I mean, I don't want to do this for you, but, I mean, when you lose 42-7, But Jacksonville, this has been another difficult week inside the Colts organization. A lot of outside noise still going on right now when it comes to the non-between-the-lines aspect of this football squad. So give us what you would say to this team to get its attention and produce a winning performance against Dallas on Sunday. 00:43:29 Speaker 3: Well, this team is definitely challenging my creativity in terms of motivation. 00:43:35 Speaker 2: I get it. 00:43:37 Speaker 3: But I've been there, so I've been there many times. I will try to come up with something. First of all, I'm not going to sit

in front of you and sugarcoat things. If you are not embarrassed by Sunday's performance, you simply do not have a pulse. And if you want out, I'll pay for your Uber to tell you the truth. We will build from here with guys who have pride in the horseshoes and will fight to the death to get this train back on the track. The way we do it is this. Each and every coach and every player must prepare to be a championship NFL standard. You must live in one play. Six second capsules. Must do your job with great effort and absolutely refuse to quit. Do not think final results. Think. Do your job in the moment. If everyone on this roster does his job, play after play, the result will take care of itself. Anyone can play when things are going great. It takes a real man and a warrior to fight when it looks the bleakest, to fight when your back is to the wall and no one believes you can. At West Point, where they train future combat leaders, there is a sign for reacting to defeat. The sign says, I will lie down and I will bleed for a while and then I will rise and fight again. Men, it's time to stop the bleeding and fight like the warriors you can be. Sunday will be a vicious battle between two former great franchises that are struggling and coming off embarrassing losses. The winner Sunday will be the team and the individuals who can overcome adversity, can reach back and find their inner greatness, and can light a fire for 60 minutes and send the Cowboys home with their heads between their legs. Sorry, Jerry. 00:46:06 Speaker 2: Old Jerry's going to be there on Sunday for sure in attendance. 00:46:10 Speaker 3: Oh, my God, with his entourage. With his entourage. Oh, man. 00:46:14 Speaker 2: I don't know. That was pretty good, Rick. I think you found the motivation in all the right places right there. I think you need to give yourself some more credit when it comes to your creative ability to fire up the masses. That's what's going to be needed for the Colts coming up on Sunday right there. Well done on the final instructions, the insights, the big picture, all of it as we get ready to focus in on the Colts and the Cowboys on Sunday, Rick. Always appreciate the film breakdown and the blueprints for success. Now, I got to ask you before we close out here, the daylight savings time, this fall back stuff has got us all screwed up because it gets dark around here about 4.30 nowadays. So where are you with the motorcycle rides as you balance daylight here in the early part of November? 00:47:00 Speaker 3: Well, you're preaching to the choir here. I got up and started working at four today because I haven't adjusted. It was really five in my head. 00:47:11 Speaker 2: That justifies everything, doesn't it? 00:47:14 Speaker 3: What are you doing? I hope I can come out of it because Then I'm going to sleep at like 8 o'clock. I'm trying to watch a ball game, and I'm out in the first series. 00:47:25 Speaker 2: As soon as Jeopardy is over, you're toast, brother. 00:47:27 Speaker 3: Oh, my God. I can basically make it through the news. I mean, I told her last night, I'm just exhausted. She goes, it's 7 o'clock, for God's sakes. But like I said this morning, I woke up at 4. And the problem was it wasn't like a nervous wake up at 4. It was just I was bright-eyed ready to go. Well, that's just it. You know, whoever came up with this one, they say it's for the farmers, but I don't understand that because the warmest part of the day at this time of the year is like 4 or 5 o'clock to me. You would extend your work day in the warmest time of the day, and you're right. I've got to kick that motorcycle rod up a little bit here. So this year, when we run those errands at noon, I've got to tell her we've got to get these done by about 1 o'clock. 00:48:09 Speaker 2: Yeah, you've got priorities, brother. 00:48:10 Speaker 3: That's for sure. You know, and here's the deal. That's my tranquilizer. Yeah. That's my tranquilizer. 00:48:16 Speaker 2: You talk about going to bed at seven o'clock or the fact that you could, I think we're all, I mean, we've all been working so much that, I mean, I'll raise my hand around seven o'clock at night. I could probably shut it down and be just fine. 00:48:27 Speaker 3: Okay. 00:48:29 Speaker 2: Four out of five. We'll, uh, we'll do that to you on the road here. 00:48:32 Speaker 3: All right. 00:48:33 Speaker 2: We'll be safe out there when you do get up and moving on the motorcycle. We need you every week here on the breakdowns and, can't wait to get your insight as always on Sunday and the pregame show with the boys from touchdown town. So have a great rest of the week, Rick, and we'll talk to you on game day. 00:48:46 Speaker 3: All right, partner. I'll talk at you again. All right. 00:48:49 Speaker 2: Rick Venturi right there. And that's going to do it. That'll put a wrap. I should say on week nine, as the Colts get ready for the Cowboys at Lucas oil stadium, we'll see if the Colts can snap this four game skid and, Start the second half of the season with much better results compared to the first half of the season. Radio coverage begins Sunday morning, 10 o'clock, with Rick and the crew, Colts pregame huddle, and then countdown to kickoff, of course, gets you underway at noon on the Ascension St. Vincent radio network all across Colts country, all over the great state. 00:49:20 Speaker 3: State of Indiana. 00:49:21 Speaker 2: Then at 1 o'clock, Colts and Cowboys from Lucas Oil Stadium. That's going to do it for the Inside Football Podcast here with Rick Venturi. Thanks for listening, everybody. Have a great rest. 00:49:31 Speaker 3: Of your week. 00:49:32 Speaker 2: I'm Matt Taylor, and we'll talk to you next week right here on the Colts Podcast channel. So long.