INDIANAPOLIS – In his last high school game at Philadelphia's William Penn Charter School, Matt Ryan threw a grand total of eight passes.

That's how it went in his team's run-first offense, a scheme that didn't exactly require much heavy lifting from the quarterback's arm.

"I was a 170-pound, triple-option quarterback," Ryan told ESPN in 2017.

Now, two decades later, the Indianapolis Colts' quarterback is coming off a game in which he threw as much as he ever has. Ryan's 58 pass attempts in Sunday's win over the Jacksonville Jaguars was the second-most in his 15 NFL seasons. But what's more notable is this: The aggressive passing approach the Colts employed to win that game might be something they can replicate on a smaller scale as they try and find their offensive footing.

The Colts, among the NFL teams most dedicated to running the football in recent years, are already taking a much different offensive posture this season. For a variety of reasons, they've effectively flipped the script on their play selection. They've gone from one of the most run-heavy teams during coach Frank Reich's previous four seasons to one of the most pass-happy clubs in the league in 2022.

Consider the data: Over Reich's first four seasons (2018-2021), the Colts ranked 27th in the percentage of offensive snaps that are considered designed passing plays (59%). This season, the Colts are calling passes at a rate of 67.3% -- fifth-highest in the league entering Week 7.

That might not seem like a massive uptick, but let's put the numbers in a little more context. The Colts averaged 31 pass attempts per game last season. So far in 2022, they are averaging 42.

The current pace of pass attempts is potentially skewed by a couple of lopsided scores. Also, the use of the no-huddle offense against Jacksonville led to a higher number of offensive plays for Indianapolis. But the most significant impact has been the Colts' inability to run the ball effectively. The same team whose offensive linemen once proudly donned hats that featured their "Run the Damn Ball" motto, the same one that led the NFL in rushing yards per attempt in 2021, suddenly can't produce a consistent push in the running game.

In their effort to find solutions, the Colts did something that once would have been unthinkable: With top running backs Jonathan Taylor and Nyheim Hines sidelined by injuries, they all but abandoned their running game and the results were, well, fantastic.

"We're still trying to find our way a little bit in the run game, and in the meantime, we have to do what we can to try and win games," Reich said.

Expecting many games with 58 pass attempts might be a bit extreme. And there will be matchups that are not favorable for the Colts to throw so aggressively.

"We're not going to throw it 50 times every week," Ryan said. "It's not gonna happen."

But the dramatic turnaround in the offense this past Sunday can't be overlooked. So, here are a few questions to consider: Are we just witnessing a desperate team doing what it must to generate much-needed offense? Or could this be part of a longer-term shift? Should it be?

Time will tell, but here's what we know: The Colts were the lowest-scoring team in the league through five weeks before going pass-heavy and scoring a season-high 34 points against the Jaguars -- a team that shut them out in Week 2.

Additionally, the Colts have expended a lot of effort this season trying to reassert their rushing dominance, only to be stymied. They rank 30th in rushing yards per attempt (3.51). How many precious plays have the Colts wasted along the way?

Meanwhile, Ryan entered Week 7 second in the league in passing yards behind the Buffalo Bills' Josh Allen. Why not lean into that?

"I've always felt like if we have to do it, I trust myself, I trust our (receivers) and I trust our guys up front," Ryan said.

If you still think this is nothing more than a reaction to the Colts' struggling run game, Reich has actually been wrestling with his philosophy for quite some time.

As he watched last season's postseason play out with quarterbacks like Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes and Allen winning games with aggressive passing attacks, Reich looked at his own team and wondered whether it had the ability to do the same. Of the top 10 teams in passing yards per game in 2021, nine made the playoffs.

That's hardly the only statistic that makes the case that an effective passing game is what matters most, and Reich seems to understand that.

"You don't see teams that have this ground-and-pound run game win championships," he said in August. "You just don't."

He added, "If we happen to play teams that are light against the run and are struggling to play the run, we'll strap up and dominate in the run game and throw it 20 or 25 times. But that's just not going to last. And you're not going to win a championship like that."

If Reich felt this way even before encountering his team's recent struggles in the running game, he might be even more solidified in his feelings after Sunday.

Will Ryan end up attempting 58 passes on Sunday at the Tennessee Titans (1 p.m. ET Sunday, CBS)? Not likely. But given the way the Colts' offense is trending, he should also be ready to throw a few more times than he did back in the day at Penn Charter.