Indianapolis Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew has 29 starts and 40 games in the NFL, but he’s never faced the New England Patriots.
by Chad Jensen
The Indianapolis Colts signed Gardner Minshew in the offseason as veteran insurance for their prized-rookie Anthony Richardson.
That move turned out to be a smart one as Richardson battled injuries early in the season before being lost for the year with a shoulder injury.
Minshew has helped lead the team to a 4-5 record with three-winnable games in a row on the docket including this week’s opponent the New England Patriots.
He has 29 starts in 40 games in his five-year NFL career, but this is the first time Minshew will face Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots’ defense.
The Colts are scheduled to take on the Patriots at 9:30 a.m. EST in Frankfurt, Germany.
“Always pretty multiple, can do about anything, will show you a bunch of different looks,” said Minshew on the Patriots’ defense. “They can run stuff the week of that they haven’t ran. I think you just really have to be dialed in with your looks, be very solid with what we have going on and stick to our rules.”
The Colts’ defense stepped up in a big way against the Carolina Panthers in a 27-13 win, including an AFC Defensive Player of the Week performance from Kenny Moore II.
Minshew admitted the performance from the defense last week helps to take the pressure off the offense this week against the Patriots.
“Yeah, I think understanding our defense will get stops – trusting them to do that,” said Minshew about what he learned last week. “We don’t have to score every time, we are obviously going to go out and try to do that, but I think if we can end drives with a kick, we’re putting ourselves in a good spot. I think we got conservative last week but there’s always going to be more chances to push the ball down the field and do that in a safe and smart way.”
The Colts are 1.5-point favorites over the Patriots according to ESPN Gamecast. There are rumblings in Boston that the legendary Belichick could be coaching for his job in Germany this week.
Belichick isn’t going to get a lot of sympathy around the NFL as his team continues to sputter, and Minshew and the Colts would like nothing more than to make it a long, long flight home for the Patriots on Sunday.
Originally on Horseshoe Huddle on FanNation