Written by Rohit Ghosh
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Monday Night Football: Philadelphia Eagles at Indianapolis Colts
The Philadelphia Eagles soar into Lucas Oil Stadium for a Week 2 matchup that features a couple of teams struggling on opposite sides of the ball. Despite a commendable 34-17 comeback victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 1, the Eagles' offensive line is a nightmare of a situation in terms of consistency. The Colts saw some positives in the fourth quarter of their 31-24 loss to Denver last week, but the main takeaway was the nonexistent pass rush.
Can Indianapolis put enough pressure on Philadelphia quarterback Nick Foles to contain an explosive offense?
What to Watch For
O-Line vs Pass Rush: Going back to the preseason, the Colts defensive unit has a total of three sacks. That’s three in five games. The Eagles o-line had a brutal start to Week 1, allowing five sacks in the first half against the Jaguars. The second half was much better with zero sacks. With a banged up Eagles o-line, the Colts are in for a potentially long, long season if they can’t get to Foles. AccuScore simulations project 3 sacks for the Colts defense.
Key Matchups: Reggie Wayne and TY Hilton will most likely be matched up across Bradley Fletcher and Cary Williams. Don’t let last week’s score fool you - both need to step up this week to contain a corps of top-notch wideouts. Wayne has 120 consecutive games of a catch. According to ESPN.com, his current streak of 72 games with at least three catches is an NFL record.
Game Projection: Picks
AccuScore has the Colts as 61.8 percent favorites to win, covering a -3 spread in about 53 percent of the simulations. The average score after 10,000 simulations is 28-23, with there being a 59.1 percent chance the total combined score stays under 54.
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Top Betting Trends
• The Eagles are 8-2 straight up (SU) in their last 10 games.
• The total has gone OVER in 4 of the Eagles’ last 6 games.
• The Eagles are 4-2 against the spread (ATS) in their last 6 games on the road.
• The Colts are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games.
• The Colts are 4-2 SU in their last 6 games.
• The total has gone OVER in 9 of the Colts’ previous 13 games.
AccuScore vs Vegas Odds
AccuScore data indicates a lower winning probability for the Eagles than even Vegas odds, albeit by a slight margin (+145 vs +160).
Projected Leaders
Nick Foles: 237 yds, 1 TD, 93.6 QB Rating
Andrew Luck: 295 yds, 2 TDs, 96.5 QB Rating
LeSean McCoy: 21 carries, 111 yards
Trent Richardson: 15 carries, 52 yds
Riley Cooper: 4 receptions, 61 yds
Reggie Wayne: 8 receptions, 102 yds