Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck hit a speed bump in his road to expected stardom last year, struggling with injuries and ineffectiveness. He hopes to right the ship in 2016 and will get a tune-up in Week 3 of the preseason against the Philadelphia Eagles. Luck could be in line for a big day during his most extensive playing time of the exhibition slate against a revamped Eagles defense in NFL gambling.
This Week 3 preseason matchup will be held on Saturday, August 27th, 2016, at 7 p.m. ET at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana.
NFL Odds at BookMaker.eu
Philadelphia Eagles +3
Indianapolis Colts -3
Over/Under 42.5
Odds Analysis
The Colts hope to be in the running for the AFC South title, as they are expected to compete with the Houston Texans for the crown. This dress rehearsal will be a good one against an Eagles squad which isn’t expected to make the playoffs in 2016. Indianapolis makes sense as the slight favorite, and the over-under total isn’t super high since backups are expected to play the second half, and that’s when the scoring generally drops.
Quarterback Rotation
Colts quarterback Andrew Luck should get the start Saturday and is expected to play for a little more than a half this game. Everything hinges on how well he does this season so all eyes will be on No. 12 at Lucas Oil Stadium Stadium in what should be his final appearance of the preseason.
A quarterback battle is still brewing for the second string spot between Stephen Morris and Scott Tolzien. Morris is a speedier dual-threat but Tolzien looks to have the more accurate arm. Tolzien has more experience and will look to lock up the spot with a good performance the rest of the way this preseason.
Sam Bradford is expected to get the start again for the Eagles Saturday and could possibly play into the third quarter as well. He finished the night 14-of-19 for 115 yards in last week’s shutout win over Pittsburgh.
Rookie backup quarterback Carson Wentz, the No. 2 overall pick from this year’s draft, is not expected to play again this week after injuring a rib against in his preseason debut against the Bucs so that leaves Chase Daniel to fill in for Bradford. While Bradford isn’t on the same level as Luck, Daniel has the advantage over the Colts backup signal-callers so he could help lead a late-game comeback.
Coaching History
Now entering his fifth season as the Colts head coach, Chuck Pagano has a preseason record of 6-12. After not winning a single preseason game in 2014, he improved by just one game last season, finishing the 2015 preseason at 1-3. He is 1-1 so far this year.
First-year head coach Doug Pederson is off to a 2-0 start this preseason. Pederson surprised some fans in Week 1 of the preseason when he only let Bradford see three plays before yanking him. Given Bradford’s injury history, it might have been the prudent move.
Free ATS Pick
The Colts aren’t the most well-rounded roster in the NFL and can have trouble when Luck isn’t on his game. The defense needs to improve at getting after the passer while the running game on offense also needs to get better. However, Luck is so good that he can affect an outcome of a game greatly by himself. That’s true in even just a half of football, as a fast start by Luck and the Colts could be enough to capture the victory in this third preseason game. The “over” could be the right call when it comes to total points as the first half could see some regular scoring and then the backups may be able to finish the job in NFL gambling.
NFL Odds: Colts 24, Eagles 20
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