Image courtesy of the Indianapolis Colts 

Colts quarterback Sam Ehlinger will be making his second career start against the Patriots today. Ehlinger was named the starter two weeks ago, replacing an ineffective Matt Ryan.

Ehlinger went 17 of 23 for 201 yards in his first start. It was an unspectacular performance that illustrated just how conservative the Colts were in terms of their play calling in their 17-16 loss to the Washington Commanders .

More of the load will fall on Ehlinger this week with Jonathan Taylor out. Expect the Colts to open things up more and try to get the ball out of his hands quickly with three step passes, perimeter screens and play action passes.

The Patriots must disrupt that timing. If they can win first down and get the Colts into second and long and third and long, they can dictate terms and really get after Ehlinger with their pressure packages.

We have seen it time and time again with young quarterbacks facing a Bill Belichick defense. The Patriots confuse them with multiple fronts, walk ups and disguising coverages. What the quarterback sees pre-snap and what they get post-snap are two different things.

That is exactly what Ehlinger will see today. He won’t get the same look twice. The Patriots will try to confuse him by showing certain looks and dropping off at the snap. He will see four, five and six man pressures. He may also see the Patriots rush three and drop eight if it’s a long down situation.

Here are some examples of looks Ehlinger could see today.

Ehlinger will take a masters class in reading defenses today. Whether or not he passes the class will depend on the success of the Colts offense. If I were a betting man, my guess is he fails.