The Philadelphia Eagles and Indianapolis Colts both won division championships last season. This season, they both want to do a lot more. This game is definitely one to watch in week two.
Philadelphia Eagles @ Indianapolis Colts
Monday, September 15th – 8:35 PM ET
Odds: Indianapolis -3
Why The Eagles Will Cover
They knocked a lot of rust and anxiety out of their system in the first game of the regular season. Philadelphia could not have played any worse in the first 16 minutes of its opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Eagles committed two turnovers, both fumbles by a nervous quarterback, Nick Foles. Philadelphia allowed two short-field touchdowns to Jacksonville and found itself in a 17-0 deficit with 14 minutes left in the second quarter. The Eagles could have panicked, but they calmly went about the business of fighting back and cleaning up their act. Philadelphia didn’t allow another point to Jacksonville in that game. Since the Jaguars scored their two touchdowns after Foles’ two fumbles, the Eagles’ defense really didn’t do much of anything wrong in this game. That has to give Philadelphia a lot of confidence in this game versus the Colts. The Eagles also have to be happy that Foles settled down and led the team to 27 points in the second half (with seven other points coming from the Eagles’ defense on a fumble return). Philadelphia endured a test, something which can tear a team apart. Instead, the Eagles pulled together. They’re going to believe they can beat the Colts on the road. Indianapolis, it should be said, stumbled in the first half of their season opener. Andrew Luck, unlike Foles, couldn’t lead a full comeback in the second half. The Colts have to be more consistent, and if they aren’t, the Eagles will be ready to beat them.
Why The Colts Will Cover
They didn’t win in week one, but they also went through a process of finding themselves in much the same way that the Eagles did. The bottom line in terms of understanding why the Eagles are 1-0 and the Colts are 0-1 after two very similar games is this: The Eagles were hosting Jacksonville, while the Colts were visiting the Denver Broncos. If the Colts hosted Jacksonville, they probably would have come back to win after their terrible first half. If the Eagles had visited Denver, they probably would not have come back to win after their own lousy first half of play. These results were a product of the teams’ schedules, and little more. The Colts very nearly tied the Broncos after being behind, 24-0, late in the first half. Not many NFL teams can put that much pressure on the Broncos, and on the road as well, from such a bad position. The NFC is generally stronger than the AFC, but this seems like a game in which the AFC team is actually stronger. Playing at home and needing to win to avoid an 0-2 start, Indianapolis should have more urgency.
Outlook
That last detail about the Colts needing to win to avoid an 0-2 start is really hard to overlook. The Colts are too good to stumble out of the gate. They’ll find a way to win and cover.
Pick: Colts -3
