Sunday, December 20, 2020, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1 p.m. ET
Texans at Colts Betting Preview: Texans (+7/-108), Colts (-7/-112)
Houston Texans
The heartbreak of the Texans’ loss to the Colts on Dec. 6 extended into last weekend when Houston (4-9) seemed to lack competitive fire in a 36-7 defeat to the Bears. Now comes a rematch against a Colts team they kept out of the end zone in the second half two weeks ago.
Quarterback Deshaun Watson passed for 341 yards against the Colts earlier this month and ran for another 38 so he is well aware he can move the ball against Indianapolis. Without his late-game fumble near the goal line, the game could have belonged to Houston.
Watson is second in the NFL with 3,761 yards passing but he has been sacked 39 times, third most in the league. The running game has an abysmal 1,121 yards, fewest in the NFL.
Indianapolis Colts
Wide receiver T.Y. Hilton is back with four touchdown receptions in his last three games, including two last week against the Raiders and one two weeks ago against the Texans. The veteran did not have a TD over his first 10 games.
Tied atop the AFC South at 9-4 with the Titans, the Colts close with the Titans, Steelers and Jaguars. Only the Steelers’ game is on the road. Veteran quarterback Philip Rivers has multiple scoring passes in each of his last four games and has done it six times in the last eight games.
Colts punter Rigoberto Sanchez is the feel-good story of the week after returning to practice two weeks after surgery to remove a cancerous tumor. His status for Sunday remains in question.
Texans at Colts Betting Pick for Week 15
Eliminated from playoff contention after their humbling loss to the Bears last week, the Texans can at least use their recent loss to the Colts as motivation. What should be a motivator, though, is reversing their lackluster effort at Chicago when Watson was sacked seven times.
Colts head coach Frank Reich believes his team showed its true identity in last week’s 44-27 victory over the Raiders. Indianapolis has won four of five and figures to have plenty of momentum after collecting 456 yards last week, including 212 on the ground.
Texans at Colts Betting Pick:
Colts 34, Texans 21
Texans at Colts Best Bet for Week 15
Look for Reich to step on the gas in order to see if his Colts team really is hitting its stride with the playoffs approaching and a spot not yet secured. The Texans’ offense figures to be more like it was two weeks ago against the Colts as long as it fixes some of what plagued it in Sunday’s game at Chicago, although getting the running game going would appear to be a tall order.
Texans at Colts Best Bet: OVER 51 total points (-110)
