Nov 22, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans quarterback T.J. Yates (6) after throwing a touchdown pass with tackle Duane Brown (76) during game against the New York Jets at NRG Stadium. Houston won 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports
Game: Houston Texans (6-7) at Indianapolis Colts (6-7)
Prediction: This is the big one between these two teams that are locked in a first place tie in the AFC South, one of two divisions with a sub .500 team in first place. The Texans lost by seven to the Colts at home earlier in the season in a battle of back-ups as Matt Hasselbeck led Indy to a win in place of Andrew Luck. The Texans mounted a comeback with Brian Hoyer, who at the time was second on the team behind Ryan Mallett.
Mallett is now gone and the Texans have their third quarterback facing the Colts as Hoyer is banged up. T.J. Yates will get the nod, but things don’t look much better for the home team, as Luck is still sidelined and now Hasselbeck’s status is up in the air. The Colts believe the 40-year old could play, but if not the Texans will be facing Charlie Whitehurst.
In the end, none of the quarterback shuffling will matter. Both teams lost two in a row, but the Colts have been absolutely miserable in their two losses whereas the Texans were competitive against Buffalo as well as for most of their game against New England.
Indy is depending on too many guys who over the hill and it’s caught up to them. In the past two games they surrendered 45 points to the Steelers and 51 to the Jaguars. Their offense has been equally as bad, scoring 26 points total those two games.
The Houston defense is hitting on all cylinders, which means Indy will again score less than 20. If Hoyer were playing for sure I could see another 40-spot on the board, but even with a back up, no one in a Colts uniform can cover DeAndre Hopkins. They also can’t tackle any runners, meaning the Cecil Shorts led wildcat could make a huge impact again if they need to negate the loss of Hoyer.
This one will not be pretty.
Final score: Houston Texans 34, Indianapolis Colts, 17
Next: Click here for our next prediction