Sunday afternoon features a battle of two of the best defenses in the NFL as the Baltimore Ravens (5-2) and Indianapolis Colts (5-2) will do battle at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Kickoff for this one is scheduled for 1 pm ET.
The Ravens come into this one in second place in the AFC North after a crucial loss last week to the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers. In the loss, the Ravens were dominant on defense in the first half, allowing just seven points. However, Ben Roethlisberger and the offense were able to make adjustments and put up 21 points in the second half against the Ravens.
The Indianapolis Colts come into this one having won five of their last six and are tied atop the AFC South standings with the Titans. Their latest victory was a 41-21 over the Detroit Lions.
The Colts only scored in two of the four quarters, but those two quarters netted them 20 and 21 points. They will look to keep it rolling against a tough Ravens team.
The Ravens come into this one as the favorites despite playing on the road. The moneyline sits at -164 for Baltimore to win while the Colts come in at +138. The spread features the Colts +3, and the over/under for total points is 45.
By The Numbers
Defensively, both of these teams are top-5 teams in points allowed. The Ravens currently sit 2nd overall, allowing just 18.9 points to opponents, while the Colts rank 5th overall, allowing 19.4 points per game. Needless to say, points may be hard to come by in this one.
Offensively, the two teams are pretty similar, too. The Ravens rank 8th in scoring, averaging 29 points per game, while the Colts rank 10th averaging 28.3 points per game.
Baltimore Looks To Bounce Back
After a disappointing loss to the Steelers, the Ravens will look to bounce back against a tough Colts team. To do so, they will look to quarterback Lamar Jackson to lead them.
This season, Jackson has thrown for 1,343 yards, 12 touchdowns, and four interceptions. On the ground, he has rushed 66 times for 411 yards and two touchdowns.
In terms of rushing, it will be interesting to see how the offensive line responds after Ronnie Stanley was lost last week for the season with an ankle injury.
Through the air, Marquise Brown (27 receptions, 379 yards, two touchdowns) and Mark Andrews (23 receptions, 275 yards, five touchdowns) have led the team.
Colts Look To Stay Perfect At Home
After starting the season 3-0 at home, the Colts will look to stay perfect at Lucas Oil Stadium. To do so, they will turn to Philip Rivers to lead the offense against the stout Ravens’ defense.
On the season, Rivers has thrown for 1,860 yards, 10 touchdowns, and six interceptions. To date, Rivers’ leading receivers have been Nyheim Hines (26 receptions, 200 yards, three touchdowns) and TY. Hilton (22 receptions, 251 yards).
On the ground, it has been Jonathan Taylor who has gotten the bulk of the work. He leads the team with 100 rushes for 389 yards and three scores.
Despite Taylor’s success this year, Jordan Wilkins got the bulk of the work last week. He rushed 20 times for 89 yards and a score against the Lions, while Taylor only rushed 11 times for 22 yards.
Taking The Colts And The Points
While both of these teams may be solid, this one comes down to the defense for me. Both of these teams have elite defenses and should be able to cause some havoc. With both teams having stellar defenses and capable offenses, I think this one could be close down to the wire.
With that in mind, I am inclined to go with the points and taking Indianapolis +3. It doesn’t hurt that they have been perfect at home. While this one could go either way, the Colts seem like the right play.
