The New England Patriots take on the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. The game is scheduled to kickoff at 8:30 PM. ET
This is a marquee game of the NFL season. The Patriots will not say that this game is more important than any other, but after the firestorm offseason the Patriots endured, this has all the makings of a revenge game.
The saga known as Deflategate held the football world hostage this offseason. The media vilified Tom Brady and Belichick. The entirety of the football world was chiming in with an opinion on the four-time Super Bowl champions.
The Colts have been surprisingly mum on the Deflategate issue. It’s widely believed that Colts general manager Ryan Grigson tipped off the NFL about the Patriots tampering with footballs. Since then, Brady has overturned his suspension in federal court and is off to a furious start to the season.
In week five, the Patriots (4-0) pummeled the Dallas Cowboys. Brady threw for 275 yards and two touchdowns on the afternoon. The Patriots pulled away in the second half, but in the first half, the offensive line struggled to protect Brady. The Cowboys sacked Brady five times in the first half. The Patriots made adjustments and got the ball out quicker to avoid the rush.
In week five, the Colts (3-2) squeaked out a close victory over the Houston Texans. The 40-year-old Matt Hasselbeck led the Colts to victory and is 2-0 in as many starts this season. Frank Gore lead the ground game with 98 yards rushing on 22 carries.
A player to watch on the Patriots is Marcus Cannon. Against the Cowboys, starting left tackle Nate Soldier went down with an apparent arm injury. He’s now on season-ending injured reserve. In Soldier’s place, Cannon played extremely well. The Patriots have good depth along the offensive line. They have constantly rotated players, but the one constant has been Soldier at the left tackle position. Against the Cowboys, Cannon helped shut down a very good Dallas pass rush, while not giving up a sack in the second half.
A player to watch on the Colts is Andrew Luck. The last two Colts victories, Andrew Luck has been on the sidelines. This Sunday night, Luck is questionable to play, but the hatred between these two clubs is palpable. If Luck can throw in warm-ups, then he’s likely to start. Before being sidelined with an injury, Luck was struggling to play efficiently. On the season, Luck has five touchdowns and seven interceptions. Luck’s struggles against the Patriots throughout the years have been notable. It will be hard for Luck to get back on track against a motivated Patriots team out for a little payback.
This Sunday Night showdown has all the makings of a revenge game. Behind closed doors, Belichick is not hyping this game anymore than any other. He probably doesn’t have to either. Before the season, the Colts were a favorite of many experts to make the jump in the AFC to contend for a Super Bowl. But a rocky start to the season and a key injury to their franchise quarterback have given pause to those lofty expectations. With the way the Patriots have played, the road to the Super Bowl clearly goes through New England. Before the season, this game looked like a much more even matchup. A motivated Belichick and Brady is bad enough, however, this Colts team will be dealing with a Patriots team out for revenge.
Patriots Vs Colts Betting Odds
BetOnline.ag has the Patriots favored to win this game by 9 points. The over/under on total points scored is 54.5. BetOnline is our top rated NFL sportsbook at the moment. You can read our full BetOnline review here.
My Pick
Expect the Patriots to run the ball with Blount and Lewis and try to establish a smash mouth style that they’ve used in the past against Indianapolis. This isn’t the same Colts defense that the Patriots gashed in the last few meetings, but they’ll have to prove it first. Don’t count on it.
Play: Patriots -9 @ BetOnline.ag
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