Killer instinct.

It’s one of the toughest attributes for a football team to acquire, and it’s obvious from Penn State’s last two losses that the Nittany Lions have yet to possess that important trait.

A one-point loss to Ohio State three weeks ago and a four-point loss to Michigan State last week both materialized in the fourth quarter with Penn State leading and with it having chances to put each team away.

These last two narrow losses continue a trend of the last few seasons where the Nittany Lions can’t finish a game strong against a higher quality of opponent – Penn State’s last five losses are by a combined 12 points, all against ranked teams.

I’ve had many people reach out to me, asking me who’s fault this is?

Most are quick to blame head coach James Franklin and offensive coordinator Ricky Rahne. Of course, there are some plays that Franklin and Rahne would like to have back.

But I argue it’s that the plays are just not being made on the field.

On the coaching front, I was disappointed that Penn State didn’t attack the Spartans down field more last week. Michigan State was surrendering over 300 yards per game through the air coming into the game and I thought Trace McSorley and his talented bunch of wide receivers - who by the way, outside of KJ Hamler, have forgot to show up this season - would be able to exploit that. But McSorley didn’t look comfortable in the pocket and the receivers didn’t seem to get much separation. Still, I would’ve like to see more deep passing plays called in the game.

Here’s Franklin’s take on why the passing offense has struggled at times this season.

“Too many drops, not enough detail in the routes and the execution, protection, a little bit longer, you know, so he can be a little bit more comfortable in the pocket and more consistent,” said Franklin. “I think it’s a little bit of all those things.

“I think what happens sometimes is early in the game, if he (Trace McSorley) gets in a situation where he’s expecting one route to be run, and they don’t, it gives him hesitation. He’s got to have a one-play mindset where, that may have happened earlier in the game, but you’ve got to trust it’s going to happen the next play. It’s those type of things, but I think it all affects.”

In my opinion, this season’s losses are more that the players just aren’t making the type of plays they need to make to seal a win. Poor tackling against Ohio State on the bubble screens, not being able to grind out first downs running the football at the end of a game, not coming up with an interception that would seal the game that was right in the stomach of a player. These are all the types of plays that the players must make to win games against higher quality opponents, and right now those plays just aren’t being made.

I thought Franklin hit the nail on the head in his press conference when talking about all these little plays and moments that are costing Penn State victories.

“We have to make sure that we do everything that we can, that the margin of error is not so small and that one or two plays or one or two calls that go against us don’t determine the game,” said Franklin.

To me, that quote is exactly what Penn State has been lacking. When leading, it needs to put the hammer down, keep the foot on the gas pedal and finish off a team. A great football team needs to be relentless in that pursuit. Franklin seems to know it, the players have learned the hard way over the past few seasons, so they surely know it, now it just needs to transfer to the field.

This week, the Nittany Lions (4-2, 1-2) will look to bounce back on the road against Indiana (3:30 ET, ABC). There’s no better time for the Penn State offense to break out after a lackluster performance last week than against the Hoosiers (4-3,1-3).

In its three losses, Indiana has given up 42 points per game and 331.3 passing yards per game. The Hoosiers like to bring pressure and they play aggressive, but if the Penn State offensive line can give McSorley time he should be able to have a pretty solid day, but that’s what I thought last week too. I think it all comes down to the wide receivers. If they play to their potential, the Nittany Lions should be able to take advantage of the Indiana pass defense.

On the defensive side of the ball, Penn State will need to focus on defending the pass and creating turnovers. The Nittany Lions are just plus-one in that department six games into the season, which is not good enough. Peyton Ramsey can sling it around for the Hoosiers as he’s thrown for 1,624 yards with 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions. But Ramsey has also shown he will turn it over with seven picks on the year.

Las Vegas has a Penn State as a 14.5-point favorite.

The key in this one is can the Nittany Lions offense be more explosive? The Indiana defensive statistics point to yes, but like I said the plays need to be made on the field.

Also, as always getting pressure on the quarterback will be key defensively. That’s something the Nittany Lions have not been able to do consistently this season and it hurt them last week in the game-winning drive by Michigan State. Defensive tackle Fred Hansard was lost for the season due to a knee injury last week, which thins out an already thin defensive tackle unit.

But as I say most weeks, it’s hard to bet against McSorley. He hasn’t been as sharp this season — I get that — but I think this week he breaks out. It just feels like he’s due for a big game passing the football.

My pick is Penn State 44, Indiana 21.