The Colts have an outside shot at a first-round bye thanks to their Week 16 victory over the Chiefs, which means that linebacker Jerrell Freeman’s big game did the team a lot of good.
It also did him a lot of good. Freeman was named the AFC’s defensive player of the week as a result of his performance in the 23-7 win.
Freeman filled up the stat sheet on Sunday. He had five tackles, two interceptions, a sack, a forced fumble and three passes defensed during the game, leading to some praise from coach Chuck Pagano.
“Just like everybody else, he’s playing with a great deal of confidence,” Pagano said, via the Indianapolis Star. “He’s flying around. He’s having fun. He’s making plays. He’s a versatile guy. He can do a lot. He’s great against the run. He’s doing real good against the pass. You blitz him, he comes around and gets a strip-sack. He’s doing great things right now. It’s a good time for him to get hot.”
Indeed it is. The Colts will need a strong defensive performance to advance in the playoffs whether or not they get a first round bye and Freeman showed last Sunday that he can help provide it.