One game after communication issues plagued the Colts defense against the Baltimore Ravens, safety Cam Bynum was relieved to learn that play-calling duties would be moved to linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither.
"I can talk to the DBs more," Bynum said Wednesday. "We can be on a better page. We can worry about what's coming out the huddle versus me worrying about getting that call."
Bynum has spoken the last few weeks about the difficulty in serving as the green dot as a safety. For a safety who plays as deep as Bynum does, processing the call, hustling back to the huddle, relaying that call and getting set takes up nearly all of the 40 second play clock. Bynum, as well as the rest of the defense, had multiple instances Sunday of not getting aligned on time.
"Clearly a couple of their tempo plays caught us off guard," defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo said. "I think they were ready for it. We practiced tempo. Obviously, that's a big part of what they do."
Bynum primarily wore the green dot throughout training camp, practice and the few snaps he played in the final preseason game. However, when it came time for a full regular season game of it, the plan didn't pan out.
"I think you work through some of those kinks early in the season," head coach Shane Steichen said. "We felt good about it going into the game, but it didn't work as well as we'd like. I think we've got to make some changes there."
Now, Bynum won't have to worry about communicating with the entire defense. Instead, he'll focus on hearing the call in the huddle and making sure the safeties and cornerbacks are on the same page.
"I think it'll help that I can focus on lining up and being able to facilitate on the back end," Bynum said. "It's perfect that (Davis-Gaither) is right in the middle of the defense where he can relay stuff at the front. I can do stuff on the back end, and then I think it creates better communication from front to back."
