Cam Bynum backpedaled, crept forward a hair then turned slightly to his left, never letting his eyes leave the football. He positioned himself perfectly downfield, in a spot to catch a pass that looked like it could have been intended for him.
Of course, it wasn't — but in his Colts debut, Bynum wanted to make his presence known.
As he ran toward the end zone, football still in hand, Bynum knew exactly what he was going to do. He had his celebration for his first interception in a Colts uniform already planned out, and as his teammates flooded the field to celebrate with him, he motioned for them to wait as he performed in the end zone. What it was, exactly, he didn't even know.
"It was one of those random things where it doesn't even have a name," Bynum said. "It was one of those things that you do as a kid just playing around, then like damn, still an adult I can do it still."
That interception, and ensuing celebration, was the first major moment of the Colts' 2025 season opener, an emphatic 33-8 win over the Miami Dolphins. It was Bynum's first time getting his hands on the football wearing the horseshoe, and it was exactly what the Colts brought him in to do.
Bynum's infectious personality and positivity paired with his hunger for big plays have made him the perfect fit for a Colts defense that, under new defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, believes wholeheartedly in their potential this season. And when Bynum returned to the sidelines after his pick, there was only one thing to focus on:
"Who's next?"
Would it be cornerback Kenny Moore II, with a strip-sack? Would it be safety Nick Cross, with a blindside for a sack off the edge? Would it be defensive end Laiatu Latu, with the first interception of his career?
The answer is yes, yes and yes.
"It's contagious," Bynum said. "Energy on the field, we were having fun — everybody plays so much better. When you're stressed out and too tight and mentally stressed out, it's hard to play ball. So just the energy of everybody making plays, the crowd being in it with you, all that stuff's contagious and it just helps you play better."
"Just as an athlete, we all just want to give something to the team," Moore, who finished with four tackles and one pass defensed along with the sack and forced fumble, said. "And whenever your number is called, you want to do your best to execute that."
One of the hallmarks of defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo's defense is the secondary play, whether it's designing blitzes or deploying a plethora of coverages and tactics to disrupt the opposing offense. But the skill and versatility of the defensive line is just as important, and they're just as hungry to make big plays.
Just as Latu, who dropped back into coverage and snatched an interception, and looked perfectly comfortable doing it.
"Getting that ball and getting that takeaway, that's everything to us on the defense," the second-year defensive end said. "It feels really good to be able to produce and make a game-changing play.
"I feel like we're all just so locked in and clicked in together. We understand how everyone plays especially when we're rushing, and I've been dropping so much in training camp so I've been able to get comfortable with everyone in the back end, so we're all just circulating and flowing together on the field."
Even players who didn't have one standout play felt the ripple effect of Bynum's interception; cornerback Charvarius Ward Sr. fed off it throughout the game with strong coverage and a team-high six tackles (tied with Cross).
"It was amazing," Ward said. "The energy was super high, it was even better than I expected. We played lights out...we've been putting in the work all camp, so everything kind of just came to fruition today."
The Colts held the Dolphins scoreless until just six minutes remained on the game clock, in an overwhelming and dominant performance. But just because the Colts feel like their hard work paid off once doesn't mean they're going to stop trying to improve – because if there's one thing this defense wants more than a win, it's another one.
"We gonna come out and prove ourselves every week," Ward said. "Teams (aren't) going to be scared of us just because we had one good game, so we got to come out as a team and it every week and continue to get better."
There is one thing Ward wants to make sure the rest of the teams in the NFL know, though:
"New big dogs in town."