The Indianapolis Colts are unlikely to catch the Houston Texans atop the AFC South division, but another win will move them a step closer to reserving a seat in the playoffs. That’s their goal in Week 16 against the New York Giants, who are out of playoff contention but are still men with pride, so look for them to try trip up the Colts. The Colts are +2,000 to win the AFC title.
Just when the Giants looked liked they finally got it together on offense, they stumbled and had a spectacular faceplant last week in a 17-0 loss at home to the Tennessee Titans. Eli Manning sputtered, completing just 21 of 44 passes for 229 yards with zero touchdowns and an interception. He was also sacked three times for a loss of 16 yards. Manning, however, didn’t have his best weapon in the Titans game, as wide receiver Odell Beckham was out with a quad injury. Beckham is questionable for the Colts game, though, Giants head coach Pat Shurmur said that he’s hopeful the wideout will play this Sunday. In any case, the Giants will look to keep running back Saquon Barkley going. The rookie tailback is coming off a letdown performance against Tennessee in which he only had 31 rushing yards on 14 carries. That said, the Giants don’t have plenty of better options on offense, so they will have to keep feeding Barkley.
The Giants are 6-0 ATS in their last six road games.
Betting on the Indianapolis Colts (8-6)
Like the Giants, Indianapolis was also involved in a shutout game in Week 15, though, the Colts were in winning side of things in that one. Indianapolis took down the then streaking Dallas Cowboys at home last Sunday, 23-0. The Colts used to win game based on Andrew Luck and his arm, but the Colts’ win over Dallas showed they are not at as dependent on the quarterback’s ability to sling the ball as they were before. Luck only had 192 passing yards with zero touchdowns and no interceptions on 16-of-27 completions. Instead, the Colts relied on the legs of Marlon Mack, who run circles around the Cowboys’ defense, rushing for 139 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries. Meanwhile, Indianapolis’ defense was also the start of the show, especially with the way it bottled up Cowboys wide receiver Amari Cooper, who had to bleed for each of his slim total of 32 receiving yards. That’s a strong message to send to the Giants’ receivers, who have often struggled with Manning’s underperformance. Indianapolis is 11th in the league with just 21.4 points allowed per game.
The Colts are 3-1-1 ATS in their last five home games.
