Indianapolis rookie Laiatu Latu won’t be the only one to remember his first NFL sack. Another paragraph in his remarkable story, this one may have saved the Colts’ season.
His team clinging to a 14-9 lead with less than seven minutes remaining in a victory over Chicago, Latu swam through a Cole Kmet chokehold to clip the arm of Caleb Williams. Grover Stewart recovered the quarterback’s fumble at the Bears’ 16-yard line and, four plays later, Jonathan Taylor’s 1-yard touchdown run provided crucial points in an eventual 21-16 win.
“Yeah, it was a big-time play, obviously there in the fourth quarter,” head coach Shane Steichen said Monday. “I think there was about six-and-a-half minutes left, to get the strip-sack fumble there.
“He was matched up on the tight end there to come around and get that. Grove recovering it was bigtime, obviously, for him and our football team in that situation. Offense was able to capitalize on it. Playing complementary football is what it’s all about, but it was a hell of a play by him and we’re looking forward to more of that going forward from him.”
More of that from Latu is what Steichen needs on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, CBS), when the Colts host the red-hot Steelers (3-0). Pittsburgh, expected to again start Justin Fields, is playing the most physical brand of football in the NFL entering Week 4.
And entering Week 4, Indianapolis hopes to capture the momentum of Latu’s strip-sack. It certainly captured the attention of the UCLA social team, who noted the play came against a product of the Bruins’ cross-town rival.
“I was so excited for him,” said Colts defensive end Tyquan Lewis. “He had been working extremely hard just to get one, especially in the last three weeks. It’s so hard to get a sack in this league. I mean, that’s going to be his first of many. He’s a great talent, so I was extremely excited for him to get his first one.”