Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts live underdogs against Houston Texans

In the first half against the Bears, the Colts started out with a higher pace than normal.

Jacksonville won the offseason and stood poised to compete for the playoffs. Special teams was a definite plus, the offense, mainly quarterback Andrew Luck and receiver T.Y. Hilton, were playing extremely well, and the offensive line and the defense were poor. Without Watt, Luck should have plenty of time to make plays in the pocket.

Instead of raising the bar, however, the division has once again done the limbo.

Nelson appeared in 7 games his rookie season with the Cleveland Browns and this will be his first game action since that time.

The Texans’ first-round pick (21st overall) in the 2016 NFL Draft out of Notre Dame, Fuller has found the end zone twice over his first games, having exceeded the 100-yard receiving mark each of the first two weeks. Both teams rush defense is pretty solid and within 10 yds per game between the two teams and their respective offensive yards are within 60 yards of each other. Meanwhile, the Texas will be without their star player in J.J. Watt for the rest of the season and are now 3-2. “(Defensive end) Jadeveon Clowney is a really, really good football player. Houston’s offense stalled in Sunday’s 31-13 loss to Minnesota when Hopkins and Fuller had no receptions by halftime.

With consistent pressure on the quarterback, the coverage has benefited.

With 33 completions on just 43 attempts for 397 yards and two touchdowns, Hoyer played the best game of his eight-year career. A hamstring injury is also bothering cornerback Kareem Jackson (questionable), while safety Quintin Demps is out with a calf injury and linebacker Brian Peters is out with a quadricep injury. So expect the typical script: Texans jump out to a lead, Colts claw back, and it’s a toss up in the fourth quarter. “When you have it with multiple years with a guy, it makes it that much easier to play with him and easier to read body language, how he comes out of breaks and communication”. The Texans running game is comparable to the Colts with Lamar Miller running for about 74 yards/game.

If the Colts’ outlook looks dire now, try playing out another season without their franchise quarterback. The Texans are 3-2 straight-up and against the spread, while the Colts are stumbling at 2-3 SU and ATS.

Penalties killed the Bears all game, as they stalled multiple drives inside the opposing thirty after being forced into long-yardage situations due to penalties. The Indianapolis defense is vulnerable, but can Osweiler and the still-evolving Texans offense capitalize Sunday night? The key difference maker could very well be the fact that J.J. Watt isn’t on the field for the Texans.