The Indianapolis Colts face their final playoff opponent this week, the New York Giants. These two teams are not all that far apart despite what their records show. The Colts, standing at 4-10-1 and currently on a five-game losing streak. Meanwhile, the Giants are 8-6-1 and coming off a close loss to Minnesota.
The Colts and Giants play a similar style. And the Giants are currently being built in a similar fashion to the Colts. Both teams want to run the football, control the clock, take some shots and play tough defense.
Here are three bold predictions for the game.
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The case to extend Jonathan Taylor takes another blow
The Colts have a couple of interesting contract decisions upcoming, wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. and running back Jonathan Taylor. Pittman is an important piece to this offense. Taylor is also a vital piece to the offense, however, running backs are more easily replaced. And the Colts just happen to already have his replacement on the roster.
Zack Moss was acquired before the trade deadline in a deal with Buffalo. His last two games have seen an increase in productivity with a total of 146 rushing yards on 36 carries. This week will see him have his best game as a member of the Colts. The Giants’ rushing defense allows an average of 145.9 yards again. This week sees Moss go for over 100 yards rushing and score his first touchdown of the season.
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Nick Foles, again, shows everyone why he’s a backup
Nick Foles is set to be the Colts’ starting quarterback for the remainder of this disastrous season. Foles’ first game as the starter saw him get his 28th career loss. And he did it in a “glorious” fashion. He completed 58.6% of his passes for 143 yards with three interceptions and seven sacks. With another week of taking all of the starter snaps, Foles should have a better performance.
Unfortunately, Foles is a career 62.4% passer while tossing 82 touchdowns and 46 interceptions. And while the Giants only have five interceptions on the season, they will add to that total. Foles will toss another interception or two to help secure another Colts loss.
The two unsung heroes continue their strong seasons for the Indianapolis Colts
Grover Stewart is having a Pro Bowl-caliber season, despite not getting the Pro Bowl nomination. He’s having a career season with four sacks, 67 tackles, nine tackles for loss and six quarterback hits. This week sees him add to those totals. The Giants have given up 47 sacks on the season, the fifth-most in the NFL.
Saquon Barkley’s rushing carries have decreased in the last few games but his efficiency has increased. Unfortunately, this week Stewart and company shut down Barkley on the ground.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the ball, rookie Bernhard Raimann has been coming along as he’s gotten more reps. Last week’s game wasn’t the best for Raimann but, to be fair, he was going up against one of the best pass rushers in the league in Khalil Mack.
This week, Raimann will go up against another rookie, Kayvon Thibodeaux. Thibodeaux hasn’t had the impact in the rushing department that the Giants were hoping for. However, he is not to be underestimated. He could still wreck the Colts’ game plan.
But if he’s going to have any success in the pass-rushing department, he’ll have to put on his best performance as both Raimann and Braden Smith will have great games blocking the Giants’ edge rushers one on one. And with this week’s opponent not having nearly the quality of rushers as last week, Raimann will have his best game on the season.
This game isn’t going to be a lot of fun to watch unless you’re a fan of either team. Expect a lot of running the ball, stout defense, and punting. And in these games, the team with the better quarterback usually ends up winning, a majority of the time.