Will The Colts Rebound?

Week 11 begins with an intriguing game on Thursday Night Football. The Colts (6-3) go on the road to take on The Titans (4-5). The Colts swept Tennessee last season. They were down in both games, and and had to mount a comeback.

The Colts ran into a bump in the road last week when their offensive line was severely dominated by the Rams defensive front. Luck had a bad game and the Colts were blown out 38-8 at Home. And now they go on the road against a Tennessee team that's still very much alive in the playoff hunt even though they're 4-5. The Colts offense has to adjust without Reggie Wayne. They have to find the formula that worked against Houston. The Titans defensive front isn't as beastly as the Rams, but they have a very underrated defense. They have the 9th ranked defense in the league and 10th in points allowed on the season.

Locker is out for the season after the Jacksonville game and now have Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick is a solid QB. He does make some erratic throws at times, but his decision making and ability to move the ball is good. The Colts pass rush is inconsistent at times, and their "bend, but not break" defense has always been their achilles heel. The Titans will be able to move the ball and gain some yards on the ground. The Colts offense will have to get more production out of their players. Hilton can't make plays on his own. Heyward-Bey is a bit unreliable, and Fleener is inconsistent. They tried inserting Brazill, but he dropped a few passes. Griff Whalen had a solid game and it looks like he's going to be their #3 opposite Heyward-Bey and Hilton.

The Colts offensive line has to get it together. They played poorly last week and couldn't provide pass protection. If Luck can get some protection, he can find his receivers and make the plays. They'll have to use Donald Brown more and target the young receivers early. The Titans can move the ball, but they'll have to be consistent. The Colts have already beaten Jacksonville and Houston. One more and they'll sweep the division on the road. I believe last week was a bump in the road and the Colts will get back on track this week. I respect Fitzpatrick, he's going to play well, but not well enough to lead his team to victory.

Prediction: Colts defeat Titans

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By: Gerald "Showstopper" Prophete

Can Miami pull off the Upset?

 

NFL Week 9 starts off with the Bengals 6-2 Bengals heading to Miami to take on the Dolphins. 

The Bengals are HOT right now. 6-2, the current #2 seed in the AFC, undefeated at Home, beating teams like the Packers, Patriots, and Lions, and they have the 8th ranked defense in the league. Ever since the Cleveland debacle, Dalton has been playing to his potential with 11 TD's and just 3 INT's in the last 4 games with a 61.38 completion percentage. That offense is so dangerous. Dalton not only has AJ Green, but Marvin Jones has come on as a great receiver opposite him. Gresham carries the tight end duties and Sanu runs the slot plays. He's got so many weapons to throw the ball and spread the field with.

Their defensive has only allowed 144 points in the league this season (5th), they give up 225.2 yards per game and are 8th in rushing defense. Their defensive line is great at rushing the passer forcing them into bad throws and disrupting their rhythm. They have a solid defense across the board with 16 sacks on the season and 7 picks overall. That team on both sides of the ball is dangerous.

On the other side of the spectrum, we've got the Miami Dolphins. They have lost their last 4 games. Tannehill has not played well. Ever since losing to New Orleans, he's thrown 6 TD's to 4 INT's, throwing under 200 yards in the last two games. He's definitely struggled in the passing game. I personally believe they were robbed a little in New England, but that's neither here nor there. They've allowed the most sacks this season with a 20th ranked pass defense. All the blame can't be placed on Tannehill though. Wallace has been terribly inconsistent, their running game hasn't really been effective and their top Red-Zone threat in Gibson is out. 

Things just have not gone well for Miami as of late. Their offense has struggled to put up points, their defense gives up 245 yards per game and over 100 yards on the ground. They now face a team that just  absolutely dismantled the Jets by 30 points last Sunday. The Bengals are already 3-0 against the AFC East. It looks like they're going to 4-0. Miami doesn't have the offensive power to score on the Bengals defense. Dalton has weapons going up against a 20th ranked pass defense. Sure, Miami will be in front of their home crowd and will definitely start out aggressive trying to throw the ball down the field early, but once they get figured out, the Bengals will have them beat. Cincy have started out slow on the road this season, but manage to win those close games. 

Miami has fallen off the wagon. The Bengals are FOR REAL. They're looking to keep it that way. 

Prediction: Bengals defeat Dolphins

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By: Gerald "Showstopper" Prophete

TNF: Rams vs 49ers

We've got an interesting one here for Thursday Night Football. The St. Louis Rams host The San Francisco 49ers. Expecting a lot of defense in this game.

I was horribly wrong about both of these teams last week. Well, St. Louis at least. There was always a chance that Indy could win, but I thought the Rams would give Dallas a run for their money. Instead, Dallas blew them out of the water.

The thing is these teams know each other very well. Interested in seeing games within this division. So far the Rams and Seahawks are 1-0 in their division. Last season, both games went to OT. They tied the first time and St. Louis won in OT the second time around. The Rams are a weird team. They'll have a good game against Arizona, but stink it up in Atlanta & Dallas. Leads me to believe they can only win games against division foes. It also leads me to believe they can only play well at Home.

Getting to the game, I've mentioned the Rams Pass Rush and how good it is. That may not have been the case against The Cowboys, they're better than people give them credit for. Bradford is working with some young talent, and their offense is weird sometimes. Austin needs to be a lot more involved in the offense. He's definitely their big play guy. They've got to open up their offense more and make some big plays down the field. St. Louis also needs to show up the run defense. Demarco ran all over them again. The running game also opened up the passing game let Romo throw 3 TD's on them. We saw last week that even Indy's pass rush got the better of Kaepernick on more than one occasion.

The Niners, coming off a blowout loss against Indy are looking to get another win. Kaepernick struggled against this team last season, and even though he's got a new weapon on Boldin, The Rams defense will be on him, especially playing with such energy at home. Kaepernick needs to make smart decisions and run the ball more to open the passing game. Last week, The Colts defense made the right adjustments and The Niners only scored 7 points. Kaeprnick isn't strong against a decent pass rush. He'll make the wrong decisions and he'll look just lost. It could be The Super Bowl curse. You never know.

Tough to call this one. It's really hard to see a team like The Niners losing three games in a row and dropping to 1-3. But The Rams always play them tough and they love playing at home. Tough one to call. I think San Fran is a better team than St. Louis, but the Rams definitely have a shot at beating them. I'm gonna say The Niners finally get a win in OT, 23-20 winners in St. Louis. Wouldn't be surprised in the least if St. Louis pulled the upset.