Browns: 3 Indianapolis Colts players to game plan for

The Colts are not the offensive threat they used to be but they bring in one of the best defenses in the entire NFL for the Browns to deal with.

The Browns have the Colts on Sunday and it’s been an interesting year for the team from Indy. The Colts have long been the anthesis of the Ravens and have always had high-powered offenses but this year they’ve taken a play out of the AFC North guidebook and built a stingy, aggressive defense. 

While the opposition Colts have faced hasn’t been world beaters, The Browns let the Bengals and a rookie quarterback posterize them for most of the game. So, the idea that “of course the Colts beat-up bad offenses” isn’t one that flies here; you have to execute. These are NFL teams and just because they look bad on paper doesn’t mean they can’t hang 400 yards and 40 points on you.

Offensively they don’t seem too dynamic but Rivers is building a relationship with several players and he’ll definitely be the focal point of how far this team can go on Sunday.

These are the three Colts players the Browns should be game planning for.

Phillip Rivers

Phillip Rivers has shown to be capable in his advanced age and against the Browns he’ll need to step up even more. While still as accurate as ever, the Colts have no real offense around him. It’s the inverse of the days of Peyton Manning when it was the defense that was devoid of talent. Rivers will need to be able to push the pace and complete some big passes if he wants to keep up with the Browns high powered tank-of-an-offense.

Mo Alie-Cox

River’s most favorite target is becoming Mo Alie-Cox, a third-year player having a breakout season. He’s got two touchdowns on the year and has a 100-yard game already, which isn’t bad considering he was a former college basketball star turned NFL tight end. Rivers likes targetting Alie-Cox, who’s currently fourth on the team in targets and third on the team in receptions. He’s also the Colts leader in receiving touchdowns.

Justin Houston/Deforest Buckner

I cheated on the other column and put two together for one pick, so why not keep with the idea? Justin Houston and Deforest Buckner have been a wicked duo on the line and maybe the best DE/DT punch on any defensive line in the AFC. If they line up on the same side of the line and test Jedrick Wills and Joel Bitonio, this could be a long day for Baker Mayfield and company.