Frank Reich offers baffling explanation for Jaguars shutting out Colts

The Indianapolis Colts will eventually figure out why they haven’t been able to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars since 2014. But for the time being, they’ll have to deal with the fact that they lost 24-0 in Week 2. Head coach Frank Reich met with the media after Indy’s 24-0 loss to the Jags and wasn’t able to come up with a sound explanation for falling flat once again.

Coming off our performance last week, the intensity at practice was at an all-time high, the intensity in the meetings last night, Reich said. “Honestly, it’s not about speeches or anything but the intensity of the meetings last night, the ferocity of the players, all week long wanting to coach us, wanting to get back on track.

The Colts had an uninspiring performance. Matt Ryan went 16-of-30 for 195 yards with three interceptions and was taken down three times. The Jaguars’ defense held All-Pro running back Jonathan Taylor to 54 yards — 50 came in the second half when the game was already out of reach. On defense, Indy didn’t register a single sack and logged a measly three total pressures.

Colts players said that they were treating this game like any other one but it looks like that approach didn’t work. Last year, they could qualify for the playoffs by beating the Jags in Week 18 but just they also came short, losing 26-11. Whether it’s the approach or the intensity, it’s clear something isn’t right when they play at TIAA Bank Field.

Frank Reich explanation for losing like the Jaguars sounds like an excuse

Reich nor any coach can’t just simply skip their media session and he had to say something after the loss to the Jaguars. However, it sounds as if he’s trying to rationalize the fact that the Colts lost to team analysts and bookies deemed inferior.

His ‘intensity’ explanation makes the loss look even worse. How would the Colts have fared if intensity hadn’t been an issue? Sure, it helped that Indy was without linebacker Shaquille Leonard and wide receivers Alec Pierce and Michael Pittman Jr.? But Jonathan Taylor was neutralized and the Colts’ defense couldn’t stop Trevor Lawrence. In fact, the No. 1 pick in the 2022 draft arguably had the best game of his NFL career.

Not having a full deck hurt Indianapolis’ chances at the Bank but good teams find a way to overcome injuries. Also, the Jaguars were fully healthy for the game but you can’t simply put an asterisk next to the win just because they had a favorable matchup.

The Colts may very well turn the corner. There’s plenty of time left in the season. However, Frank Reich needs to figure out what went wrong while the Jaguars try to build off of Week 2’s shutout victory.