Frank Reich still confident in WR T.Y. Hilton

While the Indianapolis Colts are entering the bye week with a winning record, they have done so mostly in spite of their top target in wide receiver T.Y. Hilton.

Even with the addition of Philip Rivers, which has been an upgrade for the passing game, Hilton hasn’t seen a corresponding increase in production. The 30-yer-old has essentially vanished from games whether it’s of his own doing or surrounding factors.

But even while Hilton’s numbers have been uninspiring, head coach Frank Reich is still confident that the Ghost can have a strong second half.

“I mean, T.Y.’s playing well. He hasn’t had the production that we’d hope for at this point, but, like, even in this last game, there were just several times he just got a bad break. You know, we had the one catch that we challenged that we thought was a catch, but it got overturned. There’s another one, he’s wide open on a deep in-cut, but it was one of the few times in the game where Philip got pressured and had to step up and throw the checkdown. And then that same thing happened twice,” Reich said to 1070 The Fan. “So, T.Y.’s fine. He’s always a focal point when we’re making the gameplan, of how to get him the football. He’s running good routes and doing his job, he’s a great team player; hopefully we’ll just keeping mixing it in there and he’ll end up having a great year.”

Even though Hilton has been healthy and running routes well, the production and target share haven’t favored the veteran wideout. The Colts have had a few run-heavy game scripts, but he has also simply not been productive.

His one-catch game in Week 6 was the first time he was held to just one reception since Week 8 of the 2018 season. Hilton hasn’t had a 100-yard game since Week 16 of the same season. That’s 17 games since he’s hit the century mark.

Of course, there is context to be had. Hilton had Jacoby Brissett as his quarterback in 2019, which essentially kept the offense from having any semblance of a passing attack. And 2020 has been a wacky season for the Colts offense.

But Hilton’s 19% target share is the lowest it has been since his rookie season. Even though Philip Rivers has a history of over-targeting his top wide receiver, that isn’t happening here.

The Colts don’t have an easy schedule coming up. Hilton will have his games where he’s a non-factor. But Reich is confident the veteran pass-catcher can get it going in the second half.

If the Colts want to make a push for the playoffs, Hilton will have to produce more than he has through the team’s first six games.