Previewing the Indianapolis Colts
The Las Vegas Raiders got back into the win column when they basically walked it off against the New York Jets on Sunday, 31-28.
Now they will return to Vegas for a three-game homestand that will likely decide if they end up as a playoff team.
That’s because two of those three games will be against teams ahead of them in the playoff hunt, starting this week against the Indianapolis Colts.
Currently ranked in the top 10 in both points scored and points allowed per game, the Colts are a team that is most at home when they are dominating at the line of scrimmage on both offense and defense.
The Colts have built one of the best offensive lines in football, with four of their five starters taken in the second round or higher.
That group is headlined by two-time All-Pro Quenton Nelson, one of the best road-graders in the league.
Running the ball though has actually been more of a struggle for the Colts this season, as they rank 22nd in yards gained on the ground and a lowly 30th in yards per attempt.
Veteran quarterback Philip Rivers has been able to have a rebound year after throwing 20 interceptions last year, completing 68 percent of his passes with 18 touchdowns.
Defensively, the Colts made one of the biggest additions in the offseason by trading for defensive lineman DeForest Buckner.
Buckner, along with pass rushers Justin Houston and Denico Autry, has formed a fearsome defensive line that thrives off physicality.
That is supported along with the other two levels of the defense as well, with All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard leading the way in the middle and Xavier Rhodes helping at the corner.
In some ways, it feels like a team that Coach Jon Gruden would aspire the Raiders to be. In the meantime, though, they’ll need to find out what they need to do to beat these Colts.
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