Colts’ defense earns two takeaways, puts down…

Jones had found success to this point of the season by leaning on a mostly run-heavy offensive attack, and also by taking advantage of a receiving corps that had dropped the fewest passes in the NFL this year. With heavy protection also in the mix — the Patriots’ 79 plays with six or more offensive linemen in the formation are the second-most in the NFL — Jones and the New England offense was able to keep opposing defenses on their toes by getting passing yards in huge chunks; in fact, the Patriots’ 83 passing plays of 15 yards or more rank sixth in the league.

To counter that attack, Eberflus this week installed a defensive gameplan that really threw everything it could at the rookie quarterback to see how he would respond. The Colts usually employ a pretty simple zone defensive approach, but on Saturday they not only played more man-to-man coverage overall, but they also were able to confuse Jones at times by showing man-to-man looks before the snap before quickly dropping back into their zone concepts at the second and third levels.

Indy’s defensive speed in the middle of the field did the rest from there, as linebacker Darius Leonard was able to jump in front of a Jones pass for an interception at the Indy 6-yard line late in the second quarter, helping preserve a 17-0 Colts halftime lead. Then, with the Patriots’ offense trying to hit the reset button to open up the third quarter, another Indy linebacker, Bobby Okereke, was able to read Jones’ eyes and make an impressive diving interception on New England’s third play of the second half. Four plays later, kicker Michael Badgley would known in a 41-yard field goal to extend Indy’s lead to 20-0 with 11:54 left in the third quarter.

Leonard, in a postgame interview with Colts.com’s Larra Overton, wanted to be sure nobody forgot that two other Indy linebackers — Matthew Adams and E.J. Speed — also made huge contributions on Saturday, as Adams was able to block a first-quarter Patriots punt attempt, which was recovered in the end zone by Speed for his second special teams touchdown of the year.

“I would love to say that the linebackers had a great day today,” Leonard said with a smile. “It feels good, especially (because) we go to war every day. You know, practices have been hard for the linebackers, and the way we work, this is more than teammates — we’re like brothers, we’re family. And to see other guys have success, that’s what you love, you know what I mean? … Everybody’s having fun, so it’s good. It’s good to see the linebackers stepping up and making plays when it’s needed.”