The Indianapolis Colts were flying high with a 2-1 record and a good opportunity to improve to 3-1 last week. However, they lost outright as a touchdown favorite last week to the Oakland Raiders in a loss that has seemingly changed their season\u2019s trajectory. Now they\u2019re a double-digit underdog at Kansas City this week and a loss in this spot could drop them to 2-3, which would really take the wind out of their sails. Can they find a way to compete or at least cover on Sunday?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Colts are a very hard team to figure out, but that works in their favor in this game. Just when you expect them to do well (against the Raiders), they struggle, but just when you expect them to lose (at Tennessee in Week 2 or against Atlanta in Week 3), they win. The Colts gave the Chargers more of a run than many anticipated in Week 1 and played a lot worse than many expected in Week 4 at home against the Raiders. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If there is one thing to point to in Week 4 it could be injuries. Star wideout T.Y. Hilton didn\u2019t play and the team was without linebacker Darius Leonard and safety Malik Hooker. Those are three of the team\u2019s best players. Running back Marlon Mack was also nicked up during the game. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even so, seeing Jacoby Brissett struggle against the Oakland secondary last week – including a pick-six \u2013 is quite discouraging. He had made clutch throws to win games against the Titans and Falcons, but he fell off last week. He averaged just 5.8 per pass attempt and most of his 265 passing yards came once the Colts were trailing big. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The good news is Hilton and Leonard practice on Thursday, and the Colts are going up against a Chiefs\u2019 defense that has allowed at least 26 points in three of its four games so far this season. If the Colts can dominate the line of scrimmage and run the ball, they can certainly score at least 27 or 28 points in this game, which would force the Chiefs to score 40 or more points to cover the spread. That\u2019s how the Colts will have to cover in this game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Chiefs simply do whatever they need to do on offense, whenever they need to do it. Patrick Mahomes isn\u2019t just a talented and creative player; he is a clutch player. That was evident when the Chiefs drove down the field for a winning touchdown in the final seconds on the road against the Detroit Lions, 34-30. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Chiefs have scored at least 28 points in every game they have played this season, and their average is 33.8 points per game. If they can get to that mark on the road against a solid Lions defense, they should top that mark at home against a so-so Colts unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The concern for Indy here is they don\u2019t do anything great on defense. They have just nine sacks on the year and are OK at rushing the quarterback. They\u2019re subpar at stopping the run as they\u2019re allowing 132.5 per game. Overall, the 25.5 points per game they\u2019re giving up ranks them 24th. That\u2019s after playing a number of challenged offenses like the Chargers, Falcons, Titans and Raiders. Kansas City should be able to shred this unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The defenses have a lot more question marks than the offenses. The two head coaches, Andy Reid of Kansas City and Frank Reich of Indianapolis, are two of the better offensive minds in the NFL. This certainly seems like a game which will have at least 65 points, not merely 57.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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