Official Texans vs. Colts Game Thread, 12/09/2018

[Arky]

Week 14 of the NFL finds the 9-3 Texans hosting the 6-6 Colts this Sunday in an early game. The Texans are coming off a 29-13 home win over the Browns, the Colts are coming off a 6-0 road loss to the Jags. The Jags were able to bottle up RB's Marion Mack (8/27 yds) and Nyheim Hines and force QB Andrew Luck into a dink & dunk game. TE Eric Ebron and WR T.Y. Hilton were a combined 18/158 yds, no TD's. That would be the blueprint but holding the Colts scoreless for two games in a row will obviously be very difficult. After the shutout, the Colts still rank 8th in the league scoring 27.1 pts/game.

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TV = CBS (channel 11 local), noon CST, Sunday, 12/9/2018

Announcers = Kevin Harlan, Rich Gannon

The line = Texans by 4½ to 5

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Other Sunday viewing in the Houston area:

FOX (late) = Philadelphia @ Dallas, Joe Buck, Troy Aikman

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Prime time:

TNF = Jacksonville @ Tennessee (FOX/NFLN)

SNF = LA Rams @ Chicago (NBC)

MNF = Minnesota @ Seattle (ESPN)

[HPF Bob]

Anytime the Colts have a 4th down on their own end of the field, Texan fans should yell "GO FOR IT!!!". What the hell, it worked the last time.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

Anytime the Colts have a 4th down on their own end of the field, Texan fans should yell "GO FOR IT!!!". What the hell, it worked the last time.

Glad to see you back.

[Arky]

Sean Pendergast - NFL, Week 14: Colts-Texans — Four Things To Watch For:

This is a big week for the Luck family — XFL commissioner Oliver and his son, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew — having some sort of effect on the city of Houston. On Wednesday afternoon, Oliver Luck announced that Houston, along with seven other major cities in our country, will be getting a franchise in the eight-team reboot of Vince McMahon's XFL.

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Houston Sports
@HCHSA
You’re in luck. The XFL chose Houston as one of eight cities for franchises in its new league and has announced the team will play at TDECU Stadium on the @UHouston campus!

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11:45 AM - Dec 5, 2018
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The other seven cities, in case you want to begin planning your XFL road trips for 2020, the year in which the XFL will have its on-field launch, are New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa, Washington D.C., and Dallas (woo hoo, a Texas pro football rivalry where the teams will meet more than once every presidential term!)

As someone who loves football and gambling on football — Luck made it clear that, unlike the NFL, the XFL plans to embrace the wagering movement afoot in America now — I will be watching these XFL games. As a wrestling fan, I am very happy that this iteration of XFL football will not be embracing the wrestling-style storylines of the previous version from back in the early 2000s. Let's stay out of each other's lanes, football and rasslin', OK?

For now, though, there is the gold standard of pro football, the NFL, on which to focus, and in that brand of ball, the Houston Texans are, far and away, the hottest team in the league right now, having won nine in a row. (Next closest, as it turns out? Dallas, with four wins in a row.) The streak began with the Indianapolis Colts, and Andrew Luck, all the way back in Week 4, when Frank Reich's controversial decision to go for it on 4th and 4 in overtime on the Colts' side of the 50-yard line, set the stage for an improbable Texans' victory.

Eight wins later, here we are, with the Colts teetering on the brink of their season coming unplugged, although they've battled admirably to get to 6-6. Sunday at NRG Stadium, the Texans will look to push the Colts (and Andrew Luck) off that brink and into the abyss. Here are four things to watch for...

4. T.Y. factor
If you put together an all-time, all-opponent team for the Texans, without a doubt, T.Y. Hilton would be the No. 1 wide receiver. (For the record, a two-headed monster, with Tom Brady's head next to Peyton Manning's head, would be the starting QB and the MVP of that team.) In 13 games against the Texans, Hilton has put up 67 catches for 1,246 yards and nine touchdowns, with a whopping 18.5 yards per catch. His career against the Texans is basically the per game equivalent of a first team All Pro. In the first matchup this season, Hilton riddled the Texans' secondary for 115 yards on just four catches, while playing only about half the game due to injury. Shutting down Hilton, and putting the burden of the passing game in the hands of the other wide receivers is imperative, in part because...

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1. O'Brien, staying in character
Offensively, the keys are pretty simple — protect the football and protect Deshaun Watson. Bill O'Brien has accomplished this during the last month or so, and in particular the last couple games, by establishing the running game early. Lamar Miller has been dynamite the last two games, closing in on Pro Bowl honors with the spate of injuries (James Connor, Melvin Gordon) and indiscretions (Kareem Hunt) at the running back position in the AFC. If you're looking for a big reason the Texans had a tough time holding a 28-10 lead in the first game — Miller and Alfred Blue combined for 80 yards on 27 carries, just under three yards a carry. That's probably another big reason why Deshaun nearly got murdered that week — 7 sacks, 11 QB hits for the Colts. Run the football, protect the football, protect Deshaun. Lather, rinse, repeat.

SPREAD: Texans -4.5
PREDICTION: Texans 30, Colts 20
RECORD: 8-4 SU, 5-7 ATS

More at link.

[Arky]

Texans get on the board first with a 3 yard run by Blue.

Texans 7, Colts 0

2:26 left in the 1st qtr.

[Arky]

Mack runs it in from 4 yards after a 60-yard pass from Luck to Hilton. Tied up.

Texans 7, Colts 7

6:33 left in the half.

Watson not having his best game...

[Arky]

Luck hits Ebron for 14 yards for the TD.

Colts 14, Texans 7

2:57 left in the half.

[Arky]

Vinatieri adds a 54-yard FG as time expires in the half.

Colts 17, Texans 7

Not seeing much focus and effort with the Texans today.... Run game not working - L Miller 6 carries for -5 yards.

[Arky]

Miller runs it in from the 1 in the opening 2nd half drive.

Colts 17, Texans 14

7:38 left in the 3rd qtr.

[Arky]

Colts answer. Luck hits Pascal for the 12 yard TD pass.

Colts 24, Texans 14

3:51 left in the 3rd qtr.

TY Hilton = 6 catches for 136 yards. Ya know, it's not like we've ever seen this guy before...

[Arky]

Watson hits Hopkins for the 7-yard TD pass.

Colts 24, Texans 21

2:37 left in the game.

[Arky]

Final score:

Colts 24, Texans 21

They took the cheese.

[nunusguy]

You are right Arky the focus and effort just weren't there today for the Texans, Colts wanted it more and Luck was hot, on the mark today.

[Arky]

Early line has the Texans as a 6-7 pt. favorite over the Jets next Saturday....

[chuck]

I guess we can take this as a confirmation of the suspicion that the Texans are not a team built to come from behind.