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:
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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.
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:
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.
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.
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.
The Tennessee Titans recently added a new kicker in Ryan Santoso, and not much is known about exactly how the team will utilize him.
The Tennessee Titans recently added a new kicker in Ryan Santoso, and not much is known about exactly how the team will utilize him.
About as much as me know about Santoso at this point is that his name sounds like a hybrid between Ryan Succop and former Titans kicker Cairo Santos — but that doesn’t give us any information as to which role he’ll play.
The 6-foot-5, 258-pounder said himself earlier in the week that one of his biggest strengths is his leg, so it will be interesting to see if he gets some action on kickoffs moving forward in Nashville.
Succop missed all three of his field goal attempts in his return against the Carolina Panthers, but was 6-for-6 in extra-point tries in the Titans’ 42-20 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars last week in Nissan Stadium.
The Titans will keep both kickers on the roster ahead of the weekend contest, so we’ll get an answer soon as to what Santoso will contribute to the squad, and how they’ll go about that.
Santoso played college ball at Minnesota, successful on 29-of-39 field goal attempts, with a career-long of 52 yards.
He also was good for 76-of-77 point-after attempts, and kicked off 168 times while racking up 80 touchbacks. 46 of his punts were pinned inside the 20.
Since Minnesota, Santoso has spent a pair of preseasons with the Detroit Lions, and also saw time with the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes.
Santoso also punted 144 times and averaged 41.8 yards (fourth-best in school history). He placed 46 punts inside the 20 and had a career long of 68 yards in 2017
The Titans and Colts are set to kick off at noon CT on Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Running back Derrick Henry continues to be one of the most important players on offense — and the team as a whole.
The Tennessee Titans’ offense has come alive since quarterback Ryan Tannehill replaced Marcus Mariota in the third quarter of Week 6’s shutout loss to the Denver Broncos.
But Tannehill isn’t the only one who has been essential to keeping the team in rhythm.
Running back Derrick Henry continues to be one of the most important players on offense — and the team as a whole.
Here’s what team writer Jim Wyatt had to say of the former Alabama standout this week.
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“Call Titans running back Derrick Henry ‘butter’, because he’s been on a roll. In back-to-back wins over the Chiefs and Jaguars, Henry has 188 yards and 152 yards, respectively, with four rushing touchdowns,” he wrote. “The Titans have been riding him since last December, and he’s led the NFL with 1,616 rushing yards in the past 16 games. Can Henry and the Titans keep it going against an Indianapolis defense that’s ranked 8th vs. the run, allowing just 97 yards per game? Well, it would sure help.”
The Titans have struggled historically against the Colts, never recording a victory over the team with Andrew Luck at the helm and fell 19-17 in a close matchup after Jacoby Brissett took over.
Henry accounted for 15 carries for 82 yards and a touchdown to finish as the team’s leading rusher in that game.
The Titans totaled 124 rushing yards overall in the contest, and 278 yards of total offense.
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The Titans look very different and much more dominant as a team heading into the game this time around, and it will be interesting to see if Henry can stay hot as Tennessee faces Indianapolis in Lucas Oil Stadium at noon CT on Sunday.
The Tennessee Titans have had their fair share of troubles with the injury bug this season, and it’s continued to affect the team into this week.
The Tennessee Titans have had their fair share of troubles with the injury bug this season, and it’s continued to affect the team into this week.
On Saturday afternoon, wide receiver Tajae Sharpe was downgraded to questionable ahead of Week 13’s matchup against the division rival Indianapolis Colts.
WR Tajae Sharpe has been downgraded to questionable today with hamstring. @Titans
The Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans are set to face off in a crucial divisional matchup in a game that likely has serious playoff implications down the stretch.
Game Information
Tennessee Titans (6-5) vs. Indianapolis Colts (6-5)
Sunday, Dec. 1 — 1:00 p.m. ET
Lucas Oil Stadium — Indianapolis, IN
Television
Broadcast: CBS (regional) Announcers: Kevin Harlan (play-by-play), Rich Gannon (color analyst), Jay Feely (sideline)
Those in the green region of the TV map get the game on CBS.
(Courtesy of 506 Sports)
Radio
WFNI — Indianapolis, IN WHLK — Indianapolis, IN Sirius XM Radio (Colts) — Channel 134 (XM App 231) Sirius XM Radio (Titans) — Channel 119 (XM App 386)
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:
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
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.
Our weekly NFL underdog betting staple continues into Week 13 where Ken Pomponio features three teams likely to upset their underdog odds
We’re past Thanksgiving, so the real NFL season is underway.
At least that’s how the saying goes.
In this space, we’re bringing a 21-15 overall record into the closing stretch after going 2-1 last week. I was on pair of underdogs who covered in straight-up losses (Colts +3.5 against the Texans and Cowboys +6.5 vs. the Patriots) and another (Packers +3.5 at the 49ers) that most definitely did not.
Now, with the trio of Turkey Day games already in the Week 13 books, we’ll have to come up with three underdogs from the rest the card, utilizing, as usual, Wednesday’s posted point spreads from BetMGM.com. Here goes …
Tennessee Titans (+2.5) at Indianapolis Colts
(Photo Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel – USA TODAY Sports)
These two AFC South foes met back in Week 2, and the visiting Colts came away with a 19-17 road victory for their 19th win in the last 23 meetings with the Titans since the start of the 2008 season.
But it’s been the Titans who have since undergone the greatest transformation, winning four of five games since Ryan Tannehill replaced the scuffling Marcus Mariota as the starting quarterback in Week 7. Tannehill has been much more than just a fill-in, throwing for 10 TDs and rushing for three more while throwing only four interceptions.
Indy, meanwhile, is trending in the opposite direction, having dropped three of four since Week 9 with QB Jacoby Brissett missing two of those losses with a knee injury.
Brissett has been back for the last two games, but two of his top weapons will missing Sunday as tight end Eric Ebron has been placed on injured reserve list and No. 1 wideout T.Y. Hilton is sidelined after suffering a setback with his nagging calf injury in practice this week.
That’s more than enough to tilt the balance in favor of the red-hot Tannehill and the Titans if you weren’t leaning in that direction already.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+1.5) at Jacksonville Jaguars
(Photo Credit: Jason Getz – USA TODAY Sports)
This matchup of 4-7 Florida foes also is a meeting of two teams headed in opposite directions of late as the Bucs have won two of their last three while the Jags have dropped three straight, losing by at least 20 each time.
Tampa quietly owns the league’s No. 3 scoring offense at 28.4 points per game, and only the Cowboys’ Dak Prescott, with 3,788 in 12 games, has thrown for yards than the Bucs’ Jameis Winston (3,391 in 11). Winston also ranks fourth with 22 TD passes but, of course, the problem is interceptions as Winston has tossed 20 — six more than any other QB in the league.
Meanwhile, QB Nick Foles is back at the helm in J’ville, but he’s guided the Jags to only 33 points in his last two starts.
Foles has a capable sidekick in running back Leonard Fournette, but (again) the Bucs quietly own the league’s No. 2 defense against the run. Jacksonville doesn’t have cornerback Jalen Ramsey anymore to help deal with Tampa’s standout WR duo of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, who have both already eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards on the season and have combined for 16 scoring receptions.
Look for the Bucs to prevail in a shootout.
Minnesota Vikings (+2.5) at Seattle Seahawks
(Photo Credit: David Berding – USA TODAY Sports)
It’s another intriguing Monday night matchup as the NFC’s two current wild-card front-runners put their superb records on the line.
Both teams feature QBs (Russell Wilson, Kirk Cousins) playing at elite levels, and well-rounded, top-10 offenses going against shakier-than-most-expect defenses, particularly against the pass, so there should be some back-and-forth action on the scoreboard.
Despite their 9-2 record, though, the Seahawks are stunningly 0-5 ATS against the midweek lines at home this season while the 8-3 Vikings have covered and won in three of their last four road contests.
Take the Purple and the points.
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Brissett has particularly struggled since Week 9 while dealing with a knee injury, and he’ll be up against a tough defense.
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Jacoby Brissett has been efficient since taking the reins in the wake of Andrew Luck’s retirement, but he could be in for a difficult game this week against the Tennessee Titans.
Brissett has particularly struggled since Week 9 while dealing with a knee injury, and he’ll be up against a tough defense.
Ahead of the Week 13 matchup, Tennessee has given up the ninth and eighth fewest points per game and third-down conversions, respectively. Between this and Brissett’s recent setbacks, the Colts could have some trouble on offense.
Indianapolis narrowly won the last clash between the two teams, 19-17 in Nissan Stadium.
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Brissett completed 17-of-28 passes for 146 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.
So far this season, the quarterback has completed 184-of-285 pass attempts for 1,926 yards with 15 touchdowns and four interceptions.
In the Colts’ latest 20-17 loss to the Houston Texans, Brissett failed to throw for a score, completing 16-of-25 passes for 129 yards.
It will be interesting to see how well the Colts perform overall against a much-improved Titans team with a new quarterback at the helm, but it will be particularly curious to see if Brissett can overcome his struggles and get the offense into a rhythm.
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The Titans and Colts are set to kick off at noon CT on Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The Tennessee Titans (6-5) released their final injury report on Friday ahead of the Week 13 matchup with the Indianapolis Colts (6-5) at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The Colts also released their final injury report, which featured two players being ruled out and four players being listed as questionable. The Titans didn’t have the same type of injuries as the Colts, seeing as just one player was given an injury designation.
The only player given an injury designation was cornerback Lashaun Sims, who was ruled out on Friday due to an ankle injury.
It should be noted that running back Derrick Henry was limited on Wednesday and Thursday before practicing in full on Friday due to a hamstring injury. The fact that he practiced in full on Friday means he’s good to go against the Colts.
The Titans have won four of their last five games, which also coincides with the time they switched quarterbacks from Marcus Mariota to Ryan Tannehill.
As both teams prepare for this crucial Week 13 matchup, the Titans won’t be dealing with as many injuries.
