Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans: Prediction, Best Bets, Odds, Depth Charts (9/17/23)

Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans kicks off this Sunday at 1:00pm EST in NRG Stadium as a home game for the Texans. Indianapolis is currently a -1 favorite and -115 on the moneyline while the total is set at 40. Read on for more Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans best bets and predictions as the wrong team may be favored in this AFC South showdown.

Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans Prediction & Best Bet

The Houston Texans opened their season against the new look Ravens offense and were playing within the spread up until the very end. Their young talent on both sides of the ball was on full display as Will Anderson Jr generated pressure in the backfield with ease while CJ Stroud did a decent job at taking care of the ball.

It’s never easy to find success against the Ravens defense and they now get the pleasure of figuring out their offense against the Colts. Stroud will need to be more aggressive as his conservative style will be prone to stalling out. With minimal pressure in the pocket, Stroud will find himself with more time to throw and build a connection with his young receiving core of Nico Collins and Tank Dell. With Noah Brown on IR, expect Tank Dell’s targets to increase as an intriguing young prospect on the outside.

Pretty remarkable grab by former Houston WR Tank Dell in his first preseason game as a Texan. pic.twitter.com/VspsrKzSaw

— CJ Vogel (@CJVogel_TFB) August 11, 2023

As for the ground game, Dameon Pierce should face little resistance in the interior in an effort to gain small chunks at a time. Especially if the pass attack keeps the Colts linebacking unit two steps back, giving Pierce the edge in hitting the gaps before meeting the second level of the defense. Outside of Kwity Paye and DeForest Buckner, the rest of the Colts provided little resistance on the line.

On the flip side, it will be a tall task for the Texans defense to limit the dual threat production of Anthony Richardson. His run game was on full display, mimicking a bull in a China shop as a big-bodied quarterback. The Texans secondary is also battling injuries as both starting safeties may potentially miss some time. Lucky for Houston, Richardson failed to provide any sort of confidence he can be consistent with his arm and the Houston secondary can creep up in an effort to limit Richardson’s running on the outside.

Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans Prediction & Best Bet: Texans +7.5 Wong Teaser Piece

Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans Betting Odds

With so much uncertainty surrounding the rookie quarterbacks for both teams entering this contest, oddsmakers opened the spread as a near pick’em. The Colts were initially pegged as the underdog, opening at +1. Bettors have since flipped the switch, betting them up to -1.5 in some shops. That gives Texans immediate value as a Wong Teaser target, getting the opportunity to take them up to +7.5.

As for the total, points are expected to be scored at a slow pace as oddsmakers opened the number at 41. Bettors have been in agreement, taking the total down to as low as 39.5 as of writing. With a more aggressive pass game in store on Houston’s end, the over brings some intrigue should this continue to drop. The total of 38 is the buy point, making this worth monitoring as we near kick off.

Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans Key Injuries

The Texans and Colts both enter the contest facing injury uncertainty. Especially on the Colts end with Anthony Richardson currently being listed as questionable after sustaining a knee injury late in their week one contest against the Jags.

Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans Key Matchups

Can the Texans continue to limit the opposing ground game?

Deon Jackson and Zack Moss Vs. Texans Front Seven

While the Texans made an effort to beef up their pass rush by selecting Will Anderson Jr to man the outside, it was surprising to see that their rush defense held serve. They contained the Ravens running back duo of Gus Edwards and JK Dobbins to just 54 yards while holding Lamar to 38.

The middle of their line pushed back into the pocket, clogging running lanes and allowing their linebackers to clean up. The Colts rush attack grossly underwhelmed against the Jags with new starting running back Deon Jackson being held to just 14 total yards.

Expecting more of the same against a regressing Colts interior line, the Texans should continue to hold the ground game to minimal production. Factor in the secondary getting to cheat up against a scrambling Anthony Richardson and his running ability should be negated as well.

Indianapolis Colts Depth Chart

QB: Anthony Richardson
RB1: Zack Moss
RB2: Deon Jackson
LWR: Michael Pittman Jr
RWR: Alec Pierce
SWR: Josh Downs
TE1: Kylen Granson

Houston Texans Depth Chart

QB: CJ Stroud
RB1: Dameon Pierce
RB2: Devin Singletary
LWR: Nico Collins
RWR: Robert Woods
SWR: Tank Dell
TE1: Dalton Schultz

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