Jaguars Vs. Colts: Interior Pressure Necessary Against Indianapolis

Two games into the season, the Jaguars have been the victim of injuries as the offensive line was quickly decimated and key defensive contributors like Daryl Smith and Derek Cox have been unavailable. However, in a Week 3 matchup against the Colts, the Jaguars may finally be the beneficiaries of opposing injury struggles.

While players like Dwight Freeney and Pat Angerer will be out on the Colts defense, their own offensive line struggles will give the defensive tackles of the Jaguars an opportunity to show why many believed they were one of the best starting tandems on the Jaguars.

Andrew Luck is very good at playing within the pocket. The No. 1 overall selection in the 2012 NFL Draft has managed to only be sacked five times, which is a strong mark considering the consistent pressure that gets in to the Indianapolis backfield. He has the presence to step up and avoid a single rusher, forcing teams to collapse the pocket as a group to bring him down.

But with Joe Reitz still out, the Colts don't have many completely healthy offensive lineman ready for their game against the Jaguars. When Samson Satele went down in their Week 2 win over the Vikings, guard Mike McGlynn had to fill in. He continued to take snaps at center during practice in preparation for the scenario that he would have to fill in for Satele in Week 3.

Yet a knee injury in practice now has McGlynn listed as questionable, while a knee injury to Satele has him listed as probable. Satele and Winston Justice, each listed as probable, should play against the Jaguars, but neither are completely healthy for the game.

That's where Terrance Knighton and Tyson Alualu can take advantage. If the pair of defensive tackles can control the line of scrimmage and help to collapse the pocket on Luck, they can go a long way towards turning around the fortunes of a Jaguars defense that ranks No. 23 in the NFL.