NFL Notebook, Week 5: Christian McCaffrey’s greatness, coaching carousel, weekly awards

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - OCTOBER 06: Christian McCaffrey #22 of the Carolina Panthers jumps over Tre Herndon #37 of the Jacksonville Jaguars for a touchdown during their game at Bank of America Stadium on October 06, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - OCTOBER 06: Christian McCaffrey #22 of the Carolina Panthers jumps over Tre Herndon #37 of the Jacksonville Jaguars for a touchdown during their game at Bank of America Stadium on October 06, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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KANSAS CITY, MO – OCTOBER 06: Quarterback Jacoby Brissett #7 of the Indianapolis Colts celebrates with center Ryan Kelly #78 after detating the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on October 6, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
KANSAS CITY, MO – OCTOBER 06: Quarterback Jacoby Brissett #7 of the Indianapolis Colts celebrates with center Ryan Kelly #78 after detating the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on October 6, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images) /

Andrew Who?

Remember when I tweeted that the Colts would be just fine? No? Here it is:

In the days following Andrew Luck’s abrupt retirement, I would imagine most people would’ve scoffed at the Colts potentially beating the Chiefs in Kansas City just a few weeks later. Alas, that is exactly what happened.

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Quarterback Jacoby Brissett didn’t look like John Elway or anything, but Brissett was fine enough in arguably the Colts’ toughest matchup yet. His lone interception would have hurt more had Brissett not scrambled for a touchdown earlier in the game.

As for the rest of the team, the Colts’ offense is ranked 15th and the defense is 16th. That’s not great but not bad, either. A bright spot has certainly been running back Marlon Mack, who has capitalized on the second-most rushing attempts by having the fifth-most rushing yards.

Listen, I’m not saying Indianapolis is a Super Bowl contender, though they could easily be a playoff team. They’re tied for first in a muddled AFC South and their two losses have come by six and seven points, respectively.

After this bye week, the next team the Colts face with a winning record (aside from their division rivals, the Houston Texans) is the New Orleans Saints on Dec. 16. If Indianapolis wants a shot at winning the division, they’ll have easy enough competition to do it.