We're back with another edition of The Colts Show Mailbag, where I'll answer listener questions both on the podcast and here on Colts.com every week.
You can submit your questions to me a few ways: At Colts.com/Mailbag, on social media (like X and Instagram) and in the YouTube comments for the podcast. Get your questions in, since next week's episode will be a full season preview – and I'll probably answer more than one on the podcast.
For this week's podcast mailbag question, I answered one from Lucas Puente about the Colts' pass rush. For the answer, check out this week's episode of The Colts Show – I was also joined by Robert Mays, host of The Athletic Football Show podcast, this week – wherever you get your podcasts, including on:
Let's dive into the rest of this week's batch of questions:
Andrew Coulter (Indianapolis): What do you guys think the plan is going to be to bounce back against the Raiders this week? How are we feeling about the next two games (Raiders and Cardinals at home)?
JJ Stankevitz: This week will be a good test for the Colts, who've shown some in-game resiliency in beating the Denver Broncos, and even in losing last week to the Los Angeles Rams, but haven't had to show week-to-week resiliency yet this season.
"Our guys are in the right mindset," head coach Shane Steichen said. "Just have that energy that we need and that laser focus in our preparation this week."
The main thing I'm watching for this week is if the Colts can keep their penalty total down. The Colts were only penalized four times in blowout wins over the Miami Dolphins and Tennessee Titans; they overcame 11 penalties to beat the Broncos by one point before losing to the Rams in large part because of the 11 penalties thrown on them in Week 4. It's not surprising the Colts have won games by 25 and 21 points when they've kept their penalties down and not turned the ball over – this is a good team that can match up with anyone so long as they avoid self-inflicted mistakes.
So to answer your question, the plan this week remains the same as it's been in previous weeks – just with a little more of an emphasis on avoiding penalties. Having these next two games at home is big; the Colts last were more than two games over .500 at home in 2020 (6-2). Not coincidentally, that was the last year the Colts reached the playoffs. The Colts are already 2-0 at Lucas Oil Stadium this season; if they go back to California in Week 7 with a 4-0 record at home, that'll go a long way toward feeling good about what this team could accomplish in 2025.
Colton Soloviev (Florida): I personally think Michael Pittman will break his record for most touchdowns in a season which was 6 in 2021. How many do you think he'll have when the season's over?
JJ Stankevitz: Fun question here. Pittman enters Week 5 leading the Colts with 29 targets and 21 receptions, in addition to his team-high three receiving touchdowns, and he's on pace for about 13 touchdowns, which would be the most by a Colts player since tight end Eric Ebron hit that mark in 2018 (only Ebron, Marvin Harrison and Raymond Berry have had 13+ receiving touchdowns in a season in Colts history). Could Pittman get there? Sure – he's healthy and looks every bit the player he was from 2020-2023 before a back injury limited throughout 2024.
But the Colts' offense also is built around versatility, with several different skill players having several different skillsets. The Colts could tap into any of those in the red zone – like Tyler Warren's toughness, Jonathan Taylor's vision and Daniel Jones' sneaking ability from the one-yard line, among others.
The Colts do need to get better in the red zone, but a lot of that will come from cleaning up penalties, not necessarily utilizing anyone in a different way. Pittman will be a part of that, but the Colts have plenty of options inside the 20; as long as the Colts keep getting into the red zone, though, Pittman will absolutely have opportunities to set a new career high in touchdowns, if not go well beyond it.
Harold Miller (Bedford, Ind.): I am a huge believer in Adonai Mitchell, I think he learned a valuable lesson against the Rams. Do you think that will make him grow?
JJ Stankevitz: While head coach Shane Steichen, when asked if Mitchell will play Sunday against the Raiders, said "we'll see how the week goes," everything we've heard about the second-year receiver has been that he's handled his mistake against the Rams with accountability and maturity. Mitchell took accountability publicly in a media session after Sunday's game, and then he addressed his team at the first opportunity he had – on Monday to begin the Colts' first team meeting of Week 5.
"AD is a special talent, we all know that," defensive tackle DeForest Buckner said. "I mean, the hardest part of the play was the catch, the spin, getting down there breaking free. The last part is fixable. Just the attention to detail, and he knows that. That maturity he has, him coming up in the team meeting, apologizing to the team – that just shows maturity right there. He knows. He cares. He loves ball, he loves his team. So we're always going to have his back."
Still, what Steichen wants to see is Mitchell turn his verbal message into actions that show what happened in Los Angeles – which Mitchell said was due to a "lack of focus" before he crossed the goal line – never happens again.
"Accountability is a big part of this thing and sometimes the outside world doesn't see the accountability that I talk to you guys about, but it takes place in this building a lot of times," Steichen said. "And it's your actions, too, after something like that happens, you've got to flip a switch and go prove it because words are words. Words can change your thoughts, but actions can change right in here (points to heart). So it's about action going forward."
Mitchell has to prove he will learn from his mistake, but there's no doubting how much talent he possesses – and, hearing from teammates and coaches this week, they all see a player who cares and will do what he can to grow from what happened Sunday.
Todd Reddick (North Carolina): Was a good game although we lost and really beat ourselves but from the mistakes and errors we had made. How can we bounce back from those mistakes and can we see Daniel Jones run more instead throwing under pressure because that will keep him from throwing picks?
JJ Stankevitz: What Jones has done under pressure has actually been fantastic – he has zero plays graded as "turnover-worthy" by Pro Football Focus when pressured this season, and his pressure-to-sack rate of 8 percent is second only to the Denver Broncos' Bo Nix (7.7 percent). And he's averaging 9.2 yards per attempt when pressured, per PFF, second-best in the NFL behind only the Baltimore Ravens' Lamar Jackson (10.1 Y/A); Jones leads the NFL in passer rating when pressured at 102.4.
Maybe these numbers come back to earth a bit just due to natural regression – only one quarterback had a passer rating over 100 when pressured in 2024 (Joe Burrow), and no quarterback averaged more than eight yards per attempt when pressured. But if Jones can continue avoiding turnovers when pressured while getting the ball out of his hand instead of taking sacks, it'll go a long way toward the sustainability of the Colts' offense this season.
