On the field, he’s been solid. He missed most of training camp and all of the preseason due to a rare foot injury that required surgery. He came back much sooner than expected and looked much better than he did in 2020. He was voted a team captain so it seems the team believes in him as a leader. The question will be just how far can he take this team? The offseason work on his mechanics has really paid off, and there isn’t a better coach for him than Frank Reich. It’s unlikely he reaches 2017 levels of play, but his Week 1 outing was encouraging. Despite the offensive line surprisingly giving up a 33% pressure rate, Wentz was mostly solid. He completed 65.8% of his passes for 251 yards, two touchdowns and a 102.0 passer rating. His mobility showed up all over the place, but he couldn’t overcome poor offensive line play. All-in-all, I was encouraged with his start to the season and I’ll be interested to see how much improvement he can make as the season goes along.

Stifle the pass rush and use zone beaters. The Colts implement a heavy-zone scheme, typically showing looks in Cover 3 match and a typical Tampa 2. This works well when the pass rush is consistently getting pressure, and the secondary can react with their eyes in the backfield. The problem is when there is no pass rush and savvy play-callers know how to find holes in the zone. A familiar name to Rams fans is Seahawks OC Shane Waldron, who comes from the Sean McVay tree. Waldron’s offense, albeit led by Russell Wilson, had no issues whatsoever with the Colts defense. They put up 21 points in the first half pretty easily thanks to their zone beaters while the Colts posted a measly 21.4% pressure rate. As long as the Rams can keep the pass rush at bay, McVay and Stafford shouldn’t really have any issues.

On paper, probably not. I’m a big fan of Michael Pittman Jr. and what he can become. However, he’s yet to truly show he can be the WR1 of the offense. He mostly plays the X so if Jalen Ramsey follows him all game, Pittman Jr. won’t make much noise if any. Zach Pascal is probably the name to keep an eye on. He’s the most underrated player on the offense and one of the most efficient slot wide receivers in the league. He grabbed two touchdowns in the opener. Parris Campbell has 4.31 speed and I’m a fan of his talent, but he’s been injured every year. He had just one catch in the opener. Suffice it to say, the Colts don’t really have anyone in the wide receiver room that should scare the Rams.

Maybe Zack Martin. But that’s it. It’s been three seasons and Nelson is already on a Hall of Fame trajectory. If there’s anyone to step to the line with a chance to slow down Donald, it’s probably Nelson. The issue is that the Rams won’t simply line Donald in the B-gap every play across from Q. They’ll have advantages when Donald lines up elsewhere. And as expected, there will be a lot of double teams with center Ryan Kelly. It will be very interesting to see how this matchup goes because it’s most likely going to determine the outcome of the game.

I’m favoring the Rams pretty heavily. The Colts are still struggling to find their identity, and now have some serious injuries. They could be without DE Kwity Paye, RT Braden Smith, CB Xavier Rhodes and LT Eric Fisher, depending on the final injury report. The Rams appeared to be clicking in Week 1 and after facing one of Sean McVay’s proteges, the Colts have to take on the man himself. Rams, 29-20.