The Indianapolis Colts suffered a brutal loss Sunday in overtime at the hands of the Los Angeles Rams. After falling behind early due to poor play in the first half, the Colts responded with an epic comeback to send the game to OT. Once overtime came, it was much of the same of what we saw in the first half and that’s the Rams marching down the field to score a game sealing TD.
There are a couple of players who shined in the game. One, who arguably shined the brightest, was the third-year player out of Vanderbilt, Dayo Odeyingbo.
Odeyingbo, who spent much of his rookie year injured, has shown flashes in his early years with the Colts. In his second season, he had five sacks in essentially his rookie year when you consider his first year he spent majority of the time recovering his torn Achilles.
On Sunday, Odeyingbo put together his best all around game as an Indianapolis Colt. He finished the game with 7 total tackles (5 solo) 1 tackle for loss, 1.5 sacks (should have been 2), 1 force fumble, and 1 pass deflected. While those numbers are great, it’s the overall feel he gave through the game that was most impactful.
I had the pleasure of speaking to two different people on the Rams' coaching staff and they both had high praise of Odeyingbo. The first said, “54 he wrecked us today, had no idea he played that violent heck of a player.” The second one said, "You know I’ve always loved his game… That get off for a guy that size is just rare, he had a damn good game today.”
Not only is Odeyingbo playing really well in the run game and as a pass rusher, he’s starting to develop a knack for making the splash plays. Odeyingbo is no longer satisfied with making a stop. He is trying to change the trajectory of the game.
For the second time this season, Odeyingbo was able to reach those long limbs to the quarterback and knock the ball completely out of his hands, almost eerily similar to what another former Colt used to do almost a decade ago.
Odeyingbo's role this season is perfect for where he is in his development. I compare it to having an explosive sixth-man in basketball. He’s not technically a starter, but he plays a lot of minutes and on any given night he can be the best player out there. All of the great teams have that player, and Odeyingbo embodies that role for the Colts.
In a season where the Colts are evaluating and trying to figure out who their building blocks of the future are, Odeyingbo so far this season has certainly put his name on that list.
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