The 2018 Indianapolis Colts live and die by the play of first- and

second-year players. When the young pros are at the top of their game https://www.coltsfanshop.com/Kemoko-Turay-Jersey , Indy has a great deal of success. While the defense continues to rely more on youth, and has been having a great deal of success, rookie contributions on the offensive line have been extremely important. Let’s take a look at both sides of the ball and see how these players mad an impact in an important division win in Houston.OFFENSEFirst and second round players have found a great deal of success for Chris Ballard. Look no further than offensive linemen Quenton Nelson and Braden Smith, who have refused to relinquish their starting spots and continue to play every snap. The offensive line gave up 2 sacks and 5 quarterbacks hits in Houston but comeback player of the year candidate J.J. Watt was held to one sack and Jadeveon Clowney not only finished the game without a sack, he was drawn off-sides to seal the Colts victory. Braden Smith had an impressive performance against Watt, particularly when you consider that he handled the assignment one-on-one for much of the game. Smith will face few challenges at right tackle that are more demanding that Watt.The running game has slowed considerably in recent weeks and the Texans game was no exception. Rookie Nyheim Hines was on the field for 42% of the offensive snaps but gained only 1 yard on 3 carries. He also caught 3 passes on 5 targets for 16 yards. Sophomore rusher Marlon Mack took 60% of the snaps to rush for 33 yards on 14 carries. He was targeted only once through the air but did not record a catch.Rookie receiver Daurice Fountain was called up to the active roster leading up to the Texans game but only saw the field on 4% of the offensive snaps. He did not record a catch. Second-year receiver Zach Pascal finished as the second most productive receiver on the roster. He caught 5 passes on 6 targets and generated 68 yards and a touchdown.DEFENSEIt was just another week for rookie Darius Leonard. Not only did he stay on the field for every defensive snap, he gathered 12 tackles, 1 sack, and defended a pass that was intended for all-world receiver Deandre Hopkins in the red zone. It was an eerily similar play to the one that torched the Colts in Week 4 in overtime, and led to a game winning field goal. Not this time.For those keeping track, Leonard’s stat line this season is as follows:135 tackles (17 more than second place in one less game), 7 sacks, 5 passes defensed, 1 interception, 4 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries.Bob Sanders won DPOY in 2007 with the following stat line:96 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 6 passes defensed, 2 interceptions and 1 fumble recovery.Rookie defensive lineman Tyquan Lewis continues to get a heavy snap count, taking 46% of the defensive snaps. He generated only 1 tackle but was active in the backfield and played a role in bottling up Deshaun Watson. Matt Eberflus had a solid game plan that included a heavy dose of rookie strong side linebacker Matthew Adams. He played on 42% of the defensive snaps and had his only tackle called off due to penalty. He also played a key role in keeping Watson in the pocket, allowing others to get hits and sacks.Undrafted rookie safety George Odum has been getting more defensive opportunities lately. He saw the field for 21% of the snaps and tallied 2 tackles. Second round defensive end Kemoko Turay continues to see his snap count drop, especially against opponents who like to run and during game where the score is close. He is not as strong as a run defender as his teammates Lewis and Al-Quadin Muhammad, so he only saw 18% of the defensive snaps and tallied only 1 tackle.Second-year corner Kenny Moore played every defensive snap and recorded 7 tackles and a sack. Safety Malik Hooker also played every snap and tallied 1 tackle. Linebacker Anthony Walker was on the field for 85% of the defensive snaps and generated 11 tackles and a pass defensed. He continues to look like a major win for Chris Ballard and like an excellent pairing with Leonard.Chris Ballard stole Muhammad from the New Orleans Saints and has given him the opportunity to be a key contributor in the defensive line rotation. On Sunday, Muhammad was on the field for 79% of the snaps and gathered 1 tackle, a tackle for a loss Anthony Castonzo Jersey , and a QB hit. He has been a nice surprise and is in his second NFL season.Three other sophomores took snaps but did not record a defensive stat. Quincy Wilson 58%, Grover Stewart 31% and Nate Hairston 1%.ANALYSISIt is not hard to understand why Colts fans have consistently expressed confidence in the team’s direction in 2018. Regardless of the record, when it was bad or when it is better than expected, fans acknowledge that young football players are heavily influencing the outcome. Each of these players still has an arrow pointing up on development and should be considered likely to get better when they return in 2019.If that isn’t enough, Ballard’s stubborn frugality in free agency leaves the team in excellent financial position to go after any marquee free agent it wants and to retain any in-house free agent for the long-term. There are reasons to believe that the team should only get better from here. KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Chiefs‘ defense had been hearing all season about how bad it was, and how it was the biggest threat to an offensive juggernaut falling short of the Super Bowl.Then it shut down the Oakland Raiders in Week 17.Now, the Raiders are hardly one of the NFL’s premier offenses, and they rolled into Arrowhead Stadium with little impetus to play hard. But by holding Derek Carr and the rest of the Oakland offense in check, it gave the Chiefs some positive momentum heading into the playoffs, not to mention proof that some subtle tweaks to their personnel packages had paid dividends.“We just have to keep it rolling,” said linebacker Justin Houston, the defense’s longtime emotional leader. “It’s a great time for us to play like this. We were firing on all cylinders from the front to the back end (against Oakland), and now we just have to build off it.”That’s because Andrew Luck and the rest of the Indianapolis Colts, who come to Kansas City for the divisional round Saturday, represent a massive upgrade in competition.Luck threw the second-most touchdown passes in the NFL this season, behind the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, and played behind one of the best offensive lines in the league.The Indy offense isn’t a one-trick pony, either. The Colts dominated the Texans on the ground in a 21-7 win in the wild-card round as Marlon Mack piled up 148 yards rushing and a touchdown.The Colts have roared into the postseason with seven wins in eight games.“Andrew’s going to get you every once in a while,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said, “and you’ve got to make sure you get him more than he gets you, but he’s got a lot of good players around him. That offensive line, people can argue with you that it’s the best in the National Football League. You look at the receivers, they’ve got good receivers Ryan Kelly Color Rush Jersey , they’ve got good tight ends, you go all the way around.“You’ve got to bring your best. That’s what the playoffs are all about,” Reid added. “This is the best in the National Football League, which is the best in the world, and you have an opportunity to do that. That’s an exciting thing, but you better bring your best every play.”The question for the Chiefs is simple, though: Is their best good enough?Indianapolis was fifth in scoring while the Chiefs were 24th in scoring defense. They were last in the league in rush defensive efficiency, average yards after contact and first-down percentage, and they were second-to-last in yards-per-carry allowed despite many teams trying to play catch-up.As bad as those numbers were, though, the Chiefs were actually respectable against the pass. And they were downright dominant when it came to pressuring the quarterback, generating sacks on 7.4 percent of pass plays — better even than Khalil Mack and the Bears — and pressure on 31.1 percent of them.That sets the stage for an intriguing matchup between the Indy offensive line, which has allowed no more than one sack in a game since Week 4, and the Chiefs’ dominant pass rush.“The goal and strategy remains the same,” Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni said. “Run the football and set up other things by running it, and then be successful in situational football.”The Chiefs made some key personnel changes late in the season, effectively benching veteran safety Ron Parker and cornerback Orlando Scandrick. Daniel Sorensen, Charvarius Ward and Jordan Lucas have been playing more, and their results against woebegone Oakland were encouraging.The Chiefs also could get safety Eric Berry back after he missed Week 17 with a recurrence of his heel injury. Berry played only two games this season, but he changed the entire dynamic of the Kansas City defense for the snaps he was on the field.“We’ve just got to lock in,” Chiefs cornerback Kendall Fuller said. “For us, we’re inside this building. That’s the only thing we’re focusing on. I’m not a big social media guy. We just come together week-in and week-out, to win on Saturday. We just keep it in-house and focus on each other.”NOTES: Berry and WR Sammy Watkins (foot) participated in the portion of practice open to the media Tuesday. DT Derrick Nnaddi (concussion) also said that he’d been cleared to rejoin practice. … OLB Dorian O’Daniel did not practice because of a calf and ankle injury.100<button class="view-gallery">View Gallery</button> Gallery:View from the sidelines: NFL cheerleaders 2018Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports | Raj Mehta