FOXBORO, Mass. — DeForest Buckner and the Indianapolis Colts entered Week 9 with the understanding the New England Patriots would be working with a patchwork offensive line at Gillette Stadium on Sunday.
“We knew they were down some O-lineman, obviously, and we had to take advantage of that,” Buckner told NESN.com in the Colts’ locker room after the Patriots earned a 26-3 win.
But that group, already missing starting center David Andrews and tackle Marcus Cannon while being forced to start Yodny Cajuste, received another in-game tweak as head coach Bill Belichick plugged Isaiah Wynn at left guard in place of rookie first-round pick Cole Strange. Seeing those sorts of adjustments — or “trying to find answers,” as Buckner put it — had the Colts’ defensive front salivating at the opportunity to get after quarterback Mac Jones.
“It definitely brings some confidence, obviously, to the D-line,” Buckner said. “Just being able to continue to get after him all game, like I said, we need to make more plays to get the ball away.”
Buckner and the Indianapolis defensive front came away with four sacks and seven quarterback hits on Jones. The Colts compiled eight tackles for loss while allowing a mere 3.3 yards per play. The Patriots’ offense scored one touchdown in the contest and that was after a game-altering blocked punt by the special teams unit set New England up at the Indianapolis 2-yard line in the second quarter.
“I feel like we had a good game plan going against their offense and, obviously for the most part, did pretty good job,” Buckner said.
Fortunately for the Patriots, the Colts’ offense was even worse. And a number of Indianapolis’ problems also were rooted in their abysmal offensive line play, allowing nine sacks on second-year quarterback Sam Ehlinger. Colts All-Pro offensive guard Quenton Williams didn’t take too kindly to the performance.
With the loss, the Colts dropped to 3-4-1 with the Week 9 loss with the Tennessee Titans sitting atop the AFC South standings.
