Stampede Blue
The red hot Indianapolis Colts are taking their talents on the road as they meet up with the semi-spiraling Pittsburgh Steelers. For eleven years the Colts couldn’t win week one. That streak finally broke and with it, the floodgates seemed to open as Indianapolis is running through opponents like a Manning-style buzzsaw. The attention now turns to other streaks (I will see you later Jaguars road game) like the current four game losing streak against the Steelers in Pittsburgh. With eight wins total against them in franchise history, the situation has been bleak, but with good fortune on their side, the Colts have a solid chance to leave victorious.
The last time the Colts won in Pittsburgh was 2008. You may be thinking, “well, that isn’t as bad as I thought or even as bad as you make it seem.” I get that. These aren’t divisional foes that meet every year in Pittsburgh, so that is fair. On top of the four game losing streak in Pittsburgh, however, what makes that last win in 2008 stick out is the fact that it was the first and last win for the Indianapolis iteration of the Colts. To find the next and only other win in Pittsburgh one would have to travel back to 1968 when the Baltimore Colts crushed the Steelers 41-7. The Colts proceed to lose the next twelve road contests between 1968 and 2008. At least that makes the current four game losing streak look a little better…
After that 2008 victory, the Colts lost the next eight in a row to Pittsburgh, home and away. The good news is the Colts’ luck started to turn the last two seasons picking up back-to-back home wins. They have the series and season momentum heading into this contest, and it could be the year the dam breaks. The Colts’ offense is reaching historic levels and the Steelers’ defense is in shambles giving up the most passing yards in the league. With Josh Downs back at practice, it appears the Colts will have their full arsenal out there on Sunday. Frankly, the Steelers won’t be able to cover all the holes. Tyler Warren is set to light this team up, and there is no earthly reason to believe they will slow down Jonathan Taylor. Visions of the Chargers game should be dancing in your head.
The Colts have all the tools to end the current losing streak and continue adding balance to the series win-loss column between these two teams. Just because the Colts have been playing well, it doesn’t mean they can waltz into Pittsburgh and think it will be easy though. It has been a bit of house of horrors for them, (ok, not as much as Jacksonville…I promise, I will get to that later) but this is as good a year as ever to leave the victors. A high level offense meets a defensive sieve. This is the year for ending streaks. Let’s see if the Colts can put...
