INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — The Indianapolis Colts are riding the high of their first opening-week victory in over a decade. However, standing between them and a 2-0 record is a reigning playoff team, the Denver Broncos, who also happened to unofficially spoil the Colts' postseason hopes last season with a 31-13 victory in mid-December.
While the Broncos have plenty of talent on both sides of the football, the Colts recognize that at least half the battle this Sunday afternoon will be against the Broncos' coaching staff, led by head coach Sean Payton and defensive coordinator Vance Joseph.
“I think they do a lot of good things," Colts head coach Shane Steichen told reporters this week about Joseph and the Broncos' defense. "I think it starts up front. I think 15 (Nik Bonitto) is a hell of a player. Obviously, just got paid a lot of money for a good reason. I think (Zach) Allen is a good player. No. 2, (Pat) Surtain II, he's one of the best in the business.
"They're aggressive. They like to play in your face, and match, and rush, and cover. So, I think Vance Joseph does a heck of a job with the scheme. Had a chance to go against him for many years. So, a lot of respect there for those guys and the way they play and how hard they play.”
Last week, Denver's defense made like difficult for rookie quarterback Cam Ward and the Tennessee Titans offense, holding them to 133 total yards, 12 points, notching six sacks, and taking the ball away twice.
As for Denver's offense, they're led by Payton as the playcaller and second-year quarterback Bo Nix, who orchestrated the No. 10 scoring offense last season.
“I think he's done a nice job," Steichen said of Nix. "He stepped in, made some really good plays. Obviously, he can create with his legs and his arm. He makes it – great scramble plays with his legs, but he also throws a good ball too. So I think he does a good job. I think Sean Payton does a good job with him, with the offense, within the offense, of keeping him on schedule.”
While Nix had a strong rookie season overall, he is looking to rebound on Sunday from a rocky performance last week against the Titans, in which Nix turned the ball over three times.
Surrounding the young quarterback is an evolving cast of skill-position players, multiple of whom are young receivers who are growing alongside Nix.
“Yeah, (Marvin) Mims Jr., (Courtland) Sutton, (Troy) Franklin. Sutton is a big-time player. He's been a good player in this league for a long time," Steichen said. "Mims can fly. Franklin can fly. So, we got to be great on the backend with those guys. We know the matchups. So, those guys on the backend have got to be on their P's and Q's because they're really good players.”
As for the challenge ahead that Anarumo has against Payton, the Colts' defensive coordinator is more than familiar with what Payton can do with his playsheet.
“I mean, he's been doing it at a high level for so long. He’s just always changing within the game – going to have things specific to your team that he's playing against," Anarumo said about Payton. "Does just a great job calling the game and trying to keep you off balance. So, ultimate respect there for sure.”
Jake Arthur has been covering the Indianapolis Colts for over a dozen years and is a member of the PFWA. He's one half of the Locked On Colts podcast and has worked for the Colts' official website, On SI, and more. You can follow him on X @JakeArthurNFL.