Houston Texans

Houston Texans vs. Indianapolis Colts: Staff predictions

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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The Toro Times writers give their gut feelings about how the first meeting of 2016 between the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts will play out

The roof is falling again. Houston suffered their second loss of the season and again it was ugly. The Minnesota Vikings made life difficult for the Texans and they have had a full week to soak all that in now.

Their chance at redemption will come at home and it will be played out in prime time. The team that should feel their wrath on Sunday Night Football will be none other than the Indianapolis Colts.

Last season the Colts and Texans split the season series. Houston lost on Thursday Night Football early last season, but later got their revenge with their first ever win in Indianapolis.

This season they are once again fighting for positioning with the Colts (2-3) trailing the AFC South leading Texans (3-2).

So will Houston defeat their biggest rival and stay all alone in first place in their division? That’s exactly what we are going to try and figure out for you right here.

Oct 9, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver Braxton Miller (13) against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. The Vikings defeated the Texans 31-13. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

Writer: Josh McSwain

Game: Indianapolis Colts (2-3) at Houston Texans (3-2)

Outlook: The Texans haven’t beaten the Colts at home since 2012. Andrew Luck is back after not facing the Texans last season, and he’s playing really well. This season he has 10 touchdowns to just three picks and for his career against the Texans he is 5-1 with 14 touchdowns to just three picks. For a Texans secondary that is dealing with lots of nagging injuries to Johnathan Joseph, Quintin Demps and Kareem Jackson; that’s bad news.

The Texans are 3-0 at home this year, but against the Bears, Chiefs and Titans you need to take that with a grain of salt. Beyond the health of the secondary the Texans have big problems almost everywhere else. They don’t generate much pressure on the quarterback and struggle to stop the run. On offense Brock Osweiler is erratic and Lamar Miller has been a disappointment so far. However against a defense as poor as the Colts, they should be able to make some plays. The offense is going to have to make some plays in order to win this game, and there will be no excuse not to against a poor Colts defense that is dealing with secondary depth issues of their own.

Therefore, I expect there to be some big plays in this game, from both teams. The NFL has had some bad primetime games so far this season, but this won’t be one of them. It turns into a shootout with both DeAndre Hopkins and Lamar Miller having big games for Houston. But when it comes down to it, which QB do you trust more–Luck or Osweiler? Unfortunately, the answer for me is undoubtedly the former.

Final Score: Indianapolis 34, Houston 31

Oct 9, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins (10) looks down during the second quarter against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

Writer: Randy Gurzi

Game: Indianapolis Colts (2-3) at Houston Texans (3-2)

Outlook: The Texans are a much better team at home this season which is the good news. The bad news is this is already their fourth home game in six weeks, meaning they will end the season with a lot of road games. They need to make the most of the contests at NRG Stadium, and it would help even more to do it against the second place Indianapolis Colts.

The two teams split the series last year, with the home team dropping each game. For Houston, they are hoping to avoid another prime time debacle, after laying an egg earlier this season on Thursday Night Football against the New England Patriots. They have gone 1-1 since then, but quarterback Brock Osweiler has been awful and the offense is just plain bad.

What will help them is the fact that Indianapolis is terrible against the run. They are also terrible at stopping the pass. Oh and their run game is pretty flawed. So really Houston needs to focus on stopping the pass and they should get a win here. Easier said than done though as Indy is great at moving it through the air.

This one will be close, but Houston finds a way to get through this week still in first place.

Final Score: Houston 26, Indianapolis 23