ClutchPoints
The Indianapolis Colts and San Francisco 49ers meet for Monday Night Football at Lucas Oil Stadium. This is one of the last chances the Colts have to re-establish their place in the AFC playoff picture. After starting the campaign strong, going 7-1, the Colts have almost fallen flat on their heads with a current 8-6 record. They are now on the outside looking in.
The Colts must beat this 10-4 Niners squad at home to have a shot at the playoffs. They are one game behind the Houston Texans, who don’t seem to be slowing down any time soon. The Texans will face the Las Vegas Raiders this weekend, and a win would give them a major edge over Indy. The Texans and Colts will play in Week 18, and there is a good chance Houston has at least a 2-game lead over the Colts by then. The Colts have the tiebreaker over the Los Angeles Chargers, but remain two games back of the Bolts.
Daniel Jones getting hurt and missing the rest of the season is a major blow. He had a lot of momentum and seemed to be a top 10 QB before the injury. The Colts got desperate and brought back Philip Rivers for the final stretch of the season, hoping to make a playoff push. Rivers has been the talk of the town, and he actually played very well against the Seattle Seahawks this past Sunday. In what was a simple game plan, Rivers threw for a touchdown to Michael Pittman Jr. and made sure Jonathan Taylor had a good game on the ground.
Rivers set up the Colts for a chance to win as Blake Grupe nailed a 60-yarder for the lead with less than a minute remaining. The Seahawks would then walk off with Jason Myers’s 6th field goal of the game.
Rivers impressed, despite the loss. As the starter once again, Rivers has an opportunity to keep their season alive on primetime. The whole world is going to be watching this game. As long as the 44-year-old doesn’t make many mistakes by turning the ball over, the Colts should be in the game against the Niners until the end.
Rivers has a chance to make a splash against San Francisco.
The SF pass rush is good, but due to injuries, they are not at their elite status that we are accustomed to seeing. Rivers won’t be taking on a defense as strong as Seattle’s; however, the Niners’ defense still can’t be ignored. Nick Bosa and Fred Warner are out, but Dee Winters, Deommodore Lenoir, Bryce Huff, and Malik Mustapha are making plays.
San Francisco allows 227.6 passing yards per game, which is 22nd in the NFL. Rivers will have an opportunity to sling the rock and feed Pittman Jr, Tyler Warren, Josh Downs, and Alec Pierce. The Niners are much better against the run, but not many teams can halt Jonathan Taylor to a slow game. SF allows only 106.1 rush yards per...
