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INDIANAPOLIS – Waiting Saturday is the biggest game Lucas Oil Stadium has hosted in 9 years.
That’s what happens when you have a ‘win and get in’ contest between the Colts and Texans at 8:15 PM.
Here are some takeaways from the Colts final practice of the week:
- It’s looking very good for the Colts having Kenny Moore (back) in the lineup come Saturday night. That’s huge, considering the challenge at quarterback in C.J. Stroud. Moore tried to give it a go last Sunday against the Raiders, but was ruled inactive after a pre-game workout. He’s’ practiced all week though and is ready to go for Saturday night, having missed just one game all season.
- Ryan Kelly (ankle) made his practice debut on Thursday, so he has a chance to play on Saturday. “We’ll see how it goes,” was the response from Shane Steichen on Thursday about Kelly. The Colts have not ruled out any player for Saturday night’s game, following their final practice of the week, which is a very rare occurrence for them this season. Remember, Kelly exited the first matchup between these two teams at halftime due to a concussion. Therefore, the Colts could have their normal starting offensive line together for Saturday, which is quite the achievement in Week 18.
- Officially, the Colts are listing 6 guys as questionable for Saturday, but 5 of them practiced on Thursday. The 5 questionable, who also did practice on Thursday, are Kenny Moore, Ryan Kelly, Braden Smith, Zack Moss and Quenton Nelson. Chris Lammons is the one who did not. Some gamesmanship with a handful of guys questionable, despite 5 of them practicing Thursday?
- Unlike the Colts, the Texans have an ugly injury report for Week 18. In total, the Texans didn’t have their No. 2 or No. 3 wideouts (Robert Woods and Noah Brown) along with their leading sacker (Jonathan Greenard) practice this week. Officially, Brown and Greenard are OUT for Saturday, with Woods listed as questionable. If the Texans don’t have Woods and Brown on Saturday, then their leading receiver not named Nico Collins would be John Metchie with 15 catches. That would be the equivalent of the Colts missing Alec Pierce, Josh Downs and Samson Ebukam for Saturday. Those are some notable losses, especially the 12.5-sack guy in Greenard.
- On paper, based off skill and health, the Colts should have a clear advantage in the trenches on Saturday. Now, can the on-paper advantage turn into on-field success?
- The one major Colts’ Pro Bowl gripe for me is LB-Zaire Franklin not getting a nod. Franklin didn’t make the team, with Ravens linebackers Roquan Smith and Patrick Queen making it. If you look at those two alongside Franklin, it’s not like the splash plays for the other two are substantially higher than Franklin. How does the league’s leader in tackles not make it when the splash plays are not very different? Even Shane Steichen agrees that Franklin not making it was a surprise. “Yeah, absolutely. He should have made it.” Quenton Nelson is the Colts lone Pro Bowler, becoming the first player in franchise history to make the Pro Bowl in his first 6 seasons. Along with Franklin, the Colts have 3 other Pro Bowl alternates: Michael Pittman Jr., Ryan Kelly and DeForest Buckner.
- Yes, C.J. Stroud is the first starting quarterback the Colts have faced since Baker Mayfield over a month ago. Stroud has looked nothing like a rookie, earning legit MVP consideration earlier in the season. How much will a steep rise in quarterback competition impact the Colts inexperienced secondary?
- Vegas has shifted this line to the Texans being the slight favorite, after the Colts opened up the week as a small favorite. Why the change? Heavy money clearly is coming in on the Texas because the injury report all of a sudden favors the Colts, versus the Texans. Now, Houston has won 7 straight road AFC South games, which is a crazy number considering their lack of winning over the past few years.
- In case you missed it, there are 4 paths for the Colts to make the playoffs (including some tie drama!). You can find those here.
- Back in Week Two, the Colts had arguably their finest performance of the season, in beating the Houston Texans 31-20. Does Shane Steichen have DeMeco Ryans’ number?
