Colts’ player of the game vs. Titans: WR Zach Pascal

Zach Pascal is the player of the game in Week 13.

With T.Y Hilton suffering a setback on his injured calf this week and Chester Rodgers exiting the game in the first quarter, the Indianapolis Colts receiving corps was thin. However, Zach Pascal stepped up in a huge capacity as the Colts fell to the Tennessee Titans, 31-17.

He finished the day with seven receptions for 109 yards, averaging 15.6 yards per catch. Pascal was the main target in the Colts passing game that had to get going quickly.

Having lacked explosive plays over the last month, Pascal had a huge hand in changing that. Of the eight passing plays going 16 yards or more, Pascal had four of them on the day.

Pascal needed a solid performance after struggling the past few weeks to get things going as he had earlier in the season. He gave all he could Sunday as the Colts’ fourth-quarter meltdown cost them the win.

Hopefully, the Colts receivers can get healthy as the team travels to Tampa Bay next week to try and salvage the season. Pascal epitomizes the hard work and “next man up” mentality that the Colts have had all year.

Studs and duds from Colts’ 31-17 loss to Titans

Studs and duds from the Week 13 loss.

The Indianapolis Colts (6-6) found themselves on the wrong end of a second-half comeback in the Week 13 loss against the Tennessee Titans (7-5) at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Despite the strong start to the game in the first half, this wound up being another putrid outing for the Colts offense. They have now scored fewer than 20 points in six games this season. Of those six games, the Colts have lost three in a row.

Here are the studs and duds from the divisional loss against the Titans:

STUD: WR Zach Pascal

He’s had some disappearing acts this season, but Pascal has mostly stepped up when the Colts have needed him this season. He did so again on Sunday against the Titans while recording a career-high for receiving yards in a game.

Pascal led the Colts offense with seven receptions for 109 yards. He also saw 10 targets, good for second behind Jack Doyle. With T.Y. Hilton and Parris Campbell both inactive due to injuries, Pascal stepped up in a massive way despite the end result for the Colts.

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Colts vs. Titans: Live updates in Week 13

Live updates from Week 13.

The Indianapolis Colts (6-5) are set to host the Tennessee Titans (6-5) at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday for a crucial divisional matchup.

Both teams are trying to stay alive in the playoff race, both for the division and the conference. The Titans are rolling lately having won four of their last five games since making Ryan Tannehill the starting quarterback.

The Colts, on the other hand, have lost three of their last four games while watching the passing game struggle mightily. Now, they take on a strong Titans defense that will try to travel on the road.

Keep updated with our live updates from the Colts and media members surrounding the team in Week 13:

https://twitter.com/TheColtsWire/lists/indianapolis-colts

5 Colts to watch vs. Titans in Week 13

Keep an eye on these Colts in Week 13.

The Indianapolis Colts (6-5) are preparing to host the Tennessee Titans (6-5) on Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium in what is expected to be a physical AFC South matchup.

Both teams are looking to find a way into the playoffs, which means this matchup will have plenty of implications down the stretch—not only in the divisional race but the AFC playoff race as well.

Here are five Colts to watch during the Week 13 matchup at Lucas Oil Stadium:

QB Jacoby Brissett

A player that everyone will be watching on Sunday is Brissett. After the Colts have gone four consecutive games without throwing for over 200 yards as a team, Brissett’s status as the future of the Colts’ quarterback room has come into question.

Brissett certainly has the tools to be a successful quarterback in the NFL. He’s intelligent, he has strong pocket mobility and he has a rocket for an arm. But he hasn’t been trusting it for the majority of the season. Those concerns reared their ugly head in the Week 12 loss against the Texans.

The Titans are likely to sell out against the run, which means Brissett will have his chances to air it out. Whether he will take advantage of those chances is what likely determines the game.

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Colts vs. Titans: Week 13 staff picks and predictions

Staff picks for Week 13.

The Indianapolis Colts (6-5) will play host to the division-rival Tennessee Titans (6-5) on Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium in what is expected to be a physical battle from both sidelines.

The experts around the league are siding with the road underdogs in the Titans despite the Colts being 2.5-point favorites. Both teams are heading in opposite directions entering this Week 13 matchup.

Here’s how the Colts Wire staff sees the outcome of this crucial divisional matchup:

Kevin Hickey (@KevinHickey11): Titans 21, Colts 18

Things aren’t looking good for the Colts, who have dropped three of their last four games. Now, they have to face a stout Titans defense at home without very many options. This is especially true after T.Y. Hilton suffered a setback with his calf injury during practice this week.

The Colts and Titans always play physical matchups that are won in the trenches. However, with the way the Titans have been playing under Ryan Tannehill and the lack of a passing game from Jacoby Brissett in recent weeks, the Colts don’t come out victorious in this crucial AFC battle.

If Brissett can find some of that early-season form, there is certainly a chance it happens. However, given what he has shown over the last four weeks, it shouldn’t be expected against a stout Titans defense.

On the other side, the Colts defense must bottle up Derrick Henry, something I think they will do, but they also must stay strong in the red zone—an aspect they may falter once or twice in on Sunday.

This game could go either way, but it’s difficult to have confidence in the Colts offense scoring enough to beat the Titans on Sunday.

Arden Franklyn (@ArdenSportsTalk): Colts 23, Titans 17:

I have to be honest, this was the first game in a while where I thought about going against the Colts but I just couldn’t at the end. Even with their latest string of injuries and fans/media doubting QB Jacoby Brissett, the Colts still have a lot going for them which should give them a much-needed victory. First of all, their defense has been playing like a top 10-12 unit across the league and it’s beginning to show up in rankings such as rushing yards allowed, sacks produced and points given up.

Lastly, I’ll bring it back to the offense and more so, this coaching staff. After having an extended break to rest from and prepare for this game, I believe Coach Reich and Co. will roll out a more balanced and inclusive offensive game plan that doesn’t make the Colts over-reliant on their running or passing games. It’s in my honest opinion, their over-reliance on running the ball against Houston last week ultimately set up their inability to execute down the stretch.

John Alfieri (@alfierijohn): Colts 21, Titans 13

The curse of injuries sadly continues as the Colts will host the Titans on Sunday for a crucial AFC South matchup. Both teams come into this one at 6-5 and hope to keep pace with the Texans, who host New England this week.

With Marlon Mack still out the run game has still been consistent with Jonathan Williams and Nyheim Hines carrying the load. Williams will go over 100 yards again in this one as the Colts try to get the ground game going early.

Zach Pascal will be a bigger part of the offense as the Colts try to throw the ball down the field with T.Y. Hilton ruled out and Parris Campbell likely missing another game.

The defense, the healthiest unit, will be the biggest factor in this one as they will hold Derrick Henry under 100 yards and no touchdowns. Ryan Tannehill will throw two picks as well. Expect the Colts to blitz more and sack Tannehill over five times as well.

The Colts will fall behind early but come out and have a huge second half as they could possibly retake the AFC South on Sunday. This team’s mental and physical toughness will be the reason they are victorious in this one.

Should Colts give Devin Funchess another shot?

Should Devin Funchess get another shot in 2020?

The Indianapolis Colts are expected to lose wide receiver Devin Funchess for the remainder of the season as they aren’t planning to remove him from the injured reserve list.

This move shouldn’t come as a massive surprise as it appeared Funchess was recovering slower than expected from the injury he suffered in Week 1 against the Los Angeles Chargers.

The Colts signed Funchess on a one-year deal this offseason but he didn’t have a chance to make any type of lasting impact. On an offense that is sorely lacking wide receiver options, should Funchess get another shot?

Turning just 26 years old during the upcoming offseason, the Colts could re-sign Funchess to another one-year deal. It wouldn’t cost the same as the $10 million deal he signed in 2019 and the team is in desperate need of depth at the wide receiver position.

Funchess is still a talented wide receiver—enough to warrant another chance from head coach Frank Reich and general manager Chris Ballard. But it also depends on how they feel the bone is healing.

Seeing as it is taking him longer than expected to recover from the broken collarbone, it isn’t clear how they might feel about his future as an impact player in the offense.

Funchess didn’t even finish one game with the Colts before breaking his collarbone in the fourth quarter of the loss against the Chargers. Since then, the Colts have gotten very little production from their wide receiver corps.

What say you Colts fans, should Funchess get another cheap, one-year deal from the Colts?

[polldaddy poll=10470656]

Colts vs Titans: 3 keys for the defense in Week 13

Keys for the defense in Week 13.

This Indianapolis Colts defense has been playing very well since Week 4. Anyone can argue they have been the reason the Colts have been able to stay in a lot of these close games.

Last week wasn’t their best performance all season but their next opponent, the Tennessee Titans, don’t present the biggest challenge for the defense.

In Week 2, the Colts held the Titans to their lowest total yards of the season, 243. That total was also the lowest for the Indianapolis defense this year. The difference between Week 2 and now, Tennessee has a new quarterback in Ryan Tannehill.

Let’s take a look at three keys for this Colts defense against the new-look Titans offense:

1. Be opportunistic

A hallmark of the Colts defense has been their ability to force turnovers, a lot like the Titans defense. This week, the opposing QB they’re facing is susceptible to having turnovers.

In the five starts Tannehill has made since becoming the starter at QB for the Titans, he has had four interceptions, and five fumbles lost. Tannehill is prone to turning the ball over, and when he does on Sunday, the Colts must pounce on the opportunity to help out the offense create short drives.

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Colts vs. Titans: 3 key matchups to watch in Week 13

Key matchups in Week 13.

After having an extended break following last Thursday’s game against the Houston Texans, the Indianapolis Colts return to action as they’ll host the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. They approach the end of this three-week stretch, which consisted of all divisional matchups.

Even with their loss in Week 12 and suffering additional injuries, the Colts are still very much alive in the AFC playoff picture. It’s just a matter of relying on their strengths at this point, and hopefully getting back a key contributor or two in the coming weeks.

Here are three, key matchups to watch in the Colts’ Week 13 bout against the Titans:

QB Jacoby Brissett vs. Titans’ Top 10 scoring defense

Even as someone who has defended Jacoby Brissett on various occasions, I must admit now is the time for him to step up his game. Regardless if it was before his knee injury in Week 9 or right after, the Colts’ QB1 has begun to struggle and is in need of a huge game on Sunday.

While the Titans rank fairly low in defensive categories such as passing yards allowed (24th with 255) and red-zone scoring percentages (30th with 64.5%), they’ve been a stingy group in other areas. Entering Week 13, the Titans have been giving up the ninth and eighth fewest points per game and third-down conversions, respectively. This is huge to think about in relation to Brissett’s struggles.

For a quarterback that has averaged 138 passing yards in his last two games along with being sacked four times, the odds seem to be against Brissett having a breakout game. Especially when he’ll be missing his three best offensive targets in RB Marlon Mack, WR T.Y. Hilton, and TE Eric Ebron.

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Colts vs Titans: 3 keys for the offense in Week 13

Keys for the offense in Week 13.

After coming off a terrible loss on Thursday Night Football in Week 12, the Indianapolis Colts will return home to face another AFC South rival in the Tennessee Titans.

Both teams are coming into this matchup at 6-5 on the season. Currently, the Colts have the tiebreaker with their Week 2 win in Nashville. This game in Indianapolis will go a long way in determining how each team’s season will finish out.

The Titans have one of the best defenses in the NFL, and back in that Week 2 game, the Colts had their lowest total of yards gained in one game.

Even with the 286 yards of offense they were able to get three passing touchdowns from Jacoby Brissett. Let’s take a look at three keys for the offense in this Week 13 battle:

1. Sustaining drives

The first key sounds a lot easier said than done, and that will for sure be the case for Indianapolis on Sunday. In the last matchup between these two teams, the Colts were 7-14 on third down and 1-1 on fourth down. The Titans, on the other hand, were 1-10 on third, and 0-1 on fourth down.

If there is one big strength of the Tennessee defense it’s their third-down defense. The Titans have won four of their last five, and it has been because of their third-down defense.

Over their past five games their defense is allowing 25-57 conversion rates on third down. On the season, Tennessee is top-10 in third-down defense at a 35% conversion rate.

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Colts vs. Titans: NFL experts make Week 13 picks

NFL experts make their picks.

The Indianapolis Colts (6-5) and Tennessee Titans (6-5) are expected to be engaging in a physical battle at Lucas Oil Stadium in Week 13

The vital divisional matchup will have implications in the AFC South and AFC playoff race down the stretch and oddsmakers are expecting a tight game—as per usual with these two teams.

The Colts opened the week as slight home favorites over the Titans, but how do some of the experts around the league feel about the matchup?

Expert	Pick	Score (if applicable)
Nate Davis (USA TODAY)	Titans	23-20
Mike Jones (USA TODAY)	Colts	24-23
Jarrett Bell (USA TODAY)	Titans	23-20
Mike Clay (ESPN)	Titans	N/A
Vinnie Iyer (Sporting News)	Titans	24-20
Pete Prisco (CBS Sports)	Titans	19-16
Jared Dubin (CBS Sports)	Titans	N/A
Todd Haislop (Sporting News)	Titans	24-21
NumberFire	Titans	N/A
Pro Football Focus	Colts	N/A
Bleacher Report	Colts	23-17