You play an entire season and it comes down to one game. The winner of the AFC South battle between the Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans will live to play another game while the loser gets an early start on the offseason. And there are some nervous folks in Nashville considering the status of Marcus Mariota is up in the air after he was hurt last week. Given what’s at stake, it’s hard to imagine Mariota not playing if he can throw a football, and a return to practice during the week was a good sign.
Watch this Week 17 regular season matchup live on Sunday, December 30, 2018, at 8:20 p.m. ET at Nissan Stadium.
Opening NFL Odds at BookMaker.eu
Indianapolis Colts -3
Tennessee Titans +3
Over/Under 43.5
The playoffs start a week early since this matchup is a win-and-in game. And that‘s exactly why it got flexed to the Sunday night prime time NBC slot so the entire country and can witness the excitement of NFL football.
In a rebound season for Andrew Luck and his team, the Colts aren’t even the most surprising club in the division. They started the season with just one win in six games and many of the same problems existed. The defense was awful and opponents were treating Luck like a ragdoll. The Colts went through a miraculous transformation in the middle of the year starting with a 37-5 beat down of the Bills that began a run of eight wins in nine games entering Week 17.
However, the Texans are getting most of the accolades with the division title within reach after opening the campaign with three straight losses. But, the winner of this game can claim the division title if Houston falls at home to the Jags, just in case they need additional motivation.
The big question entering Sunday night is the health of Mariota, who left last week’s game after getting a stinger. It’s been an up and down year for the former Heisman Trophy winner, but he has a chance to produce the team’s highest win total during his tenure and get the Titans back to the postseason. He hasn’t been his best lately, but the Titans have won four straight thanks to timely possessions, Derrick Henry and a stingy defense.
With Mariota throwing for just 360 yards over the last three games without a touchdown pass, the edge at quarterback belongs to the Colts. Luck threw for 357 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a win over the Giants last week, and his 36 scoring tosses put him behind only Patrick Mahomes for the league lead. He shredded the Titans in the first meeting completing 23 of 29 for 297 yards and three touchdowns in a rather easy 38-10 victory.
And Luck has never lost to the Titans going 10-0 in his career starts with 18 touchdowns passes. The Colts will need more from a run game that produced just 49 yards last week. Granted, they were playing catch up most of the game, forcing Luck to throw the football 47 times, but getting positive yards from Marlon Mack will allow the passing game to open up. And you can expect Luck to dial it up since that’s what he’s done all season.
Luck could be without his usual suspects catching the football. Leading receiver T.Y. Hilton continues to deal with nagging injuries while tight end Eric Ebron is in the concussion protocol. That leaves an opening for Carlos Rogers, Ryan Grant and Zach Pascal to have big games. But with the playoffs at stake, expect Hilton to be the go-to guy. “I ain’t missing Sunday,” Hilton said this week. And he’s been able to produce despite a list of nagging injuries. He caught seven balls for 138 yards last week and has 21 catches and 422 yards over the last three games. I’ll take Hilton and his ailments over another healthy receiver any time. So will Luck and the two will team up often on the live betting lines at BookMaker.eu.
Tennessee’s playoff hopes will rest on the legs of Henry, who has literally carried the Titans to a 4-0 record this month. Henry leads all ball carriers in yards and touchdowns in December, scampering for 532 yards and eight touchdowns in the four games. He’s averaging 6.6 yards per carry in that span and we will see plenty of him on the live betting lines at BookMaker.eu.
Colts at Titans Live Betting
The path to victory is simple for the Colts. They need to stop Henry, forcing Mariota to throw the football. If the Colts have success, they should pull away, so play the live betting lines accordingly. Conversely, the Titans can control the tempo with their run game, keeping Luck off the field. Either way, I anticipate a low-scoring game on the final total.
NFL Betting Odds
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