Two Colts key men are out for Sunday clash v. Cincinnati Bengals

The Indianapolis Colts have ruled out two key defensive starters for Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Indianapolis Colts (7-5) travel east on I-74 this weekend to face the Cincinnati Bengals (6-6), but they will be without two key defensive starters in linebacker E.J. Speed and cornerback JuJu Brents.

Following Friday’s practice, the Colts declared Speed (knee) and Brents (quad) questionable, but the team later downgraded both players to out on Saturday.

Brents will miss the Colts’ sixth game in a row, despite returning to practice for the first time this week. This season, the rookie has played in 5 games (4 starts) and has 24 tackles, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovered, 1 interception, and 3 pass breakups.

Darrell Baker Jr. has started the last four games for Brents and has performed admirably despite a difficult start to the season. Baker has been targeted 19 times since taking over for Brents, allowing 10 receptions (52.6%) for 112 yards (11.2 avg. ), including just 35 yards after the catch, and 0 touchdowns, according to Pro Football Focus. Baker also has four pass breakups, a passer rating of 79.7, and no penalties.