INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Colts general manager Chris Ballard was unusually aggressive this offseason, adding two former Pro Bowl players, safety Charvarius Ward and safety Cam Bynum, to the Colts' secondary. But his biggest acquisition may have involved a man who does run or tackle: That's Lou Anarumo, the newly minted defensive coordinator whose defense held the Dolphins to eight meaningless points near the end of the game, a 33-8 victory over the Miami Dolphins Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium.
For too many years, the Colts' defense has been a bottom feeder, finishing 28th, 28th and 24th in points allowed under then-DC Gus Bradley. His defense, which featured the Cover-3, is a football relic, a simple scheme that only worked in Seattle because he had the Legion of Boom executing it back in the day.
More recently, though, it was too-simplistic a scheme, one that rarely challenged quarterbacks with different looks, with blitzes, with anything that could make an offensive coordinator lose sleep. Game after game, the Colts bent and then they broke, giving up ridiculous numbers in both the run and the pass.
Enter Anarumo, the mad scientist, who was largely scapegoated for Cincinnati's struggles the past two years and became available to Ballard, who scooped him up quickly. This is, after all, the same defensive coordinator who helped lead the Bengals to the Super Bowl in 2022. Why did his defense begin to struggle thereafter? Because Cincinnati is the stingiest franchise in the league and let several starters, including D.J. Reader, Chidobe Awuzie and Jessie Bates, walk at season's end.
One game into the Colts season, it looks like the addition of Anarumo was a masterstroke.
"I think it was great for the guys to come out the way they did and their energy and their enthusiasm, and certainly execution fuels the emotion," Anarumo said after the Colts limited the Dolphins to 211 total yards. "We came out of the gate hot and did a good job taking the ball away quickly. I was excited for the players. They put in a ton of work to lead up to that.
"It's just one week and we've got a long way to go, but I like where we're at."
Want some numbers? Here are a few: The Colts limited the Dolphins to 43 first-half yards. Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa spent most of the game in a blind panic, holding the ball far longer than the normal for a man with a crazy-fast release. He finished 14-of-23 for 114 yards, two interceptions and a 51.7 quarterback rating. Miami's two speedsters, Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, combined for eight catch for 70 yards.
Statistics show the Colts were just average for missed tackles -- the team counted five, Pro Football Focus had six -- but for the better part of 3 1/2 quarters, the tackling was largely immaculate.
"I was pleased," Anarumo said. "You always shoot for no missed tackles . We had it at five. I think if you can be five -- I think for 35 yards after contact -- if you're living in the four, five world, six max, you're going to be pretty good. You don't want any but this is a hard league. Those guys get paid on the other side, too. So I was pleased."
The Colts also got a hand from new cornerback Xavien Howard, who signed in Indy after a nice, eight-year run with the Dolphins. Howard told them how Tagovailoa loves working the middle of the field and how it was imperative to squeeze the middle.
"We knew the guy, he gets the ball out pretty quick," Howard said. "Once we take away his first read, I feel like it's panic mode after that. It showed (Sunday)."
Anarumo didn't say Tagovailoa panicked -- not specifically -- but he was asked how he can tell when a quarterback is confused by a multiple defense like the one the Colts are utilizing.
"I think if there's panic type throws, you know, where he's just not sure, holding the ball maybe a little bit longer than they normally do," Anarumo said. "I think our guys did a good job with both disguising what we were try to do and ending up in the right spot."
If anybody has a bead on Anarumo's defense, it's Colts offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter. Not only have the pair faced off before in games, but Cooter's offense faces Anarumo's defense every day in practice.
He knows a little something.
"Yeah, Lou challenges you in a lot of different ways, with a lot of different looks and sort of adjustments." Cooter said. "So you know, you're looking at several different fronts. You're looking at different coverage structures. You're not always able to go out and just sort of run your plays and go execute your stuff. Like, you might have a route that isn't good versus tight man coverage. Well, here's Lou calling tight press coverage.
"Or there might be a run play you really like versus a certain front and Lou throws a different front at you. He's been very versatile throughout his career attacking offenses. We always talk offensively about attacking the defense. I think Lou, he has some tricks up his sleeve as well...He creates headaches."
We saw Nick Cross get a sack on a safety blitz. We saw Kenny Moore get home on a corner blitz. We saw Laiatu Latu drop back into coverage and snare an interception. We saw...different stuff. And what a nice departure that is from the remedial defense Bradley's group employed.
It's just one game, but if the Colts can be a middle-of-the-pack defense this season, they may have a chance to do something interesting.
Bob Kravitz is an award-winning columnist who has been in the sports journalism business for 43 years. He's worked at Sports Illustrated, the Indianapolis Star, The Athletic and other publications, and is now an Indiana-based publisher at Roundtable Sports. You can follow him on X @bkravitz.