Travel to Nashville for a prime time division showdown

For the first time in three years Skai Moore Color Rush Jersey , the Indianapolis Colts head into the final game of the season with its playoff destiny in its own hands. and leave victorious, and Andrew Luck will have a chance to lead his team into the playoffs for the first time since 2014. Lose and go home. It is incredible to see a young team come together so quickly after a horrible start. A successful run to the playoffs would make this Colts team the third in history to do so after starting a season 1-5. This will be the biggest stage most of the young players have ever been on in the NFL. It will be the first playoff level game that Frank Reich, Nick Sirianni, and Matt Ebeflus will coach in their respective positions.If the Colts can do anything close to what they did in Week 11, Indianapolis should come out on top. Marcus Mariota was unable to finish that game and he is expected to miss this one. Derrick Henry wasn’t carving up defenses earlier this season but he hasn’t faced a run defense as good as the Colts during his recent streak either. The Washington Redskins are 17th, the Jacksonville Jaguars are 18th and the New York Giants are 23rd. The Colts are 8th against the run and just held Saquon Barkley to 43 yards on 21 carries, after they held Ezekiel Elliott to 87 rushing yards in a shutout.The Titans have the 7th ranked defense in total yards allowed, 6th in passing yards allowed and 14th in rushing yards allowed. They also won’t have their best defensive lineman, as Jurrell Casey has been placed on injured reserve. That clear advantage for the Colts is somewhat neutralized because starting center Ryan Kelly will not play for Indianapolis.In many respects, this game should be a match-up of strength against strength. The Colts have the 7th most productive offense in the NFL but the Titans have one of the best overall defenses. The Colts run defense is strong and the Titans like to run the ball. They are division rivals who are very familiar with one another. The Colts have an offensive minded head coach in Frank Reich, while the Titans have a defensive minded head coach in Mike Vrabel.This game has all of the elements that point to an exciting and prime time worthy match-up. Let’s take a look at the keys to a Colts victory.NO UNFORCED ERRORSThe Colts dominated the Titans earlier in the season and have been trending in the right direction. Tennessee’s most important offensive and defensive players will not be playing in this game. Andrew Luck will be facing off against a backup quarterback. The Colts should be favored.The biggest reason the Colts have lost winnable games this season is due to self-inflicted wounds. Think back to batted passes for interceptions early in the season, dropped passes that ended drives, and a ridiculous attempted throw away that resulted in an interception that nearly cost them the game against the Giants. These are avoidable mistakes and they are ones that any team in the NFL can take advantage of to turn the tide in a game.If Colts receivers will catch the damn ball, if Andrew Luck will make smart reads and decisions and avoid the temptation to try to force plays to his favorite receivers, and if Colts ball carriers can make ball security the top priority, the Colts should be in good position to win. If these things don’t happen, the door will be opened for the Titans to get the home crowed going and pull out the win.SHUT DOWN THE GROUND GAME/MAKE GABBERT THROW TO WINIndianapolis has been able to suffocate opponents at the line of scrimmage throughout much of the season. The Colts run defense is predicated on speed and penetration on the defensive line. Penetration clogs running lanes and causes confusion. Speed capitalizes on hesitation and redirection.The speed of the Colts defense has made it hard for ball carriers to get to the edge. It has tended to limit running backs as receivers because there is very little opportunity for yards after the catch. Tennessee lacks major receiving weapons and will have to rely on Gabbert if the Colts can do their job on early downs and take Henry and Lewis out of the game.A game that becomes a shootout between Luck and Gabbert favors the Colts heavily.STAY BALANCED ON OFFENSEOne of the big tendencies for Frank Reich this season has been to abandon the run early if things aren’t going the way he would like. Don’t get me wrong, I like the odds of Andrew Luck wearing down a defense and finding a way to win football games as much as the next person. However, what really make life difficult is a balanced game plan that keeps opponents on their toes.A heavy use of quick release passes to carve up yards along with up-tempo no huddle pace to keep the defense sucking wind is best. Quick release passes followed by body blows with inside zone runs and wham concepts will soften things up nicely. Well-timed shots down the field can capitalize once defenders start taking their first step towards the line of scrimmage.Game situation certainly has an impact on play calling but the offense needs to try to set the tone early and not let up. When the Colts have been able to remain balanced, they have had dominant offensive football games. When the run is abandoned early on, it can be tough sledding.PRESSURE GABBERTMatt Eberflus has drawn up some outstanding blitzes in big games. When the Colts have been able to hit opposing quarterbacks with regularity, things tend to snowball. The defense is high energy and feeds off of success. If the Colts can push their advantage on the interior of the offensive line by using Denico Autry and Margus Hunt in the trenches along with well-timed blitzes by Darius Leonard or Anthony Walker, they can make life exceedingly difficult for Gabbert.A rushed and bruised Gabbert will make mistakes. The team who makes the most mistakes will lose.CONTROL FIELD POSITION/DON’T BLOW SCORING OPPORTUNITIESThe more the Colts are able to pin the Titans deep in their own territory, the harder it will be for Tennessee to get in position to score. This is true for all opponents but given that the Titans have a lot to overcome offensively, it will be particularly helpful. Along with this philosophy is scoring at every opportunity. When the ball is within field goal range, the Colts need to be sure that they don’t throw away chances. There is a far greater likelihood that the Titans will win if they can keep the Colts from scoring on drives where they otherwise should. If the Titans win, it will probably be a low scoring game. With that in mind, be aggressive but be smart. Have faith in your offense and defense but don’t blindly have faith in one side or the other. This is one of those games that, if the Colts lose, you could easily look back at one drive that should have yielded points but was a turnover on downs. Don’t let that happen. Not in this one. With the final stretch of the season coming up, it’s time to look ahead and see how the Colts stand in terms of the salary cap. We’ll break down their positional salary cap spending, how it compares to the NFL average, their projected salary cap number for next season and their notable impending free agents. The figures used are from Spotrac.com and Overthecap.com and are based on the current “Active Roster” players in the NFL. QuarterbacksColts Spending: $25,176 https://www.coltsfanshop.com/Jack-Mewhort-Jersey ,076Percentage of Salary Cap: 12.97%NFL Average: $17,114,528Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Andrew Luck — $24,400,000It all comes down to the production and Luck produces at an elite level in the NFL. He is well worth the money and there isn’t much more to say. Running BacksColts Spending: $1,861,358Percentage of Salary Cap: 0.96%NFL Average: 5,055,948Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Nyheim Hines — $661,137The numbers of this group are quite surprising. It’s the lowest paid offensive or defensive group on the team and considering the amount of production they’ve gotten from the running backs, it’s a fantastic bargain. The group is averaging 4.5 yards per carry and 1242 on the season. Both are average figures compared to the rest of the league, but considering the small amount of money the Colts have in them, it’s a great investment!ReceiversColts Spending: $19,517,647Percentage of Salary Cap: 10.06%NFL Average: $16,093,723Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: $13,000,000This might not be a great investment for the Colts this season. While TY Hilton has done many TY Hilton things this season, the group has been marred by inconsistent play, filled with poor route running and bad drops. Their play has improved in recent weeks, but this group has not lived up to their $19M+ billing. Tight EndsColts Spending: $13,131,981Percentage of Salary Cap: 6.77%NFL Average: $6,833,466Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Eric Ebron — $6,750,000This group is one of the highest paid tight end groups in the NFL, but this group has earned every penny. Eric Ebron is tied for most touchdowns (11) in the NFL and Jack Doyle’s play has been top notch before suffering a season-ending injury. Mo Alie-Cox and Erik Swoope have also been nice pieces. This group has been the best in football, so it’s obviously been a great investment!Offensive LineColts Spending: $22,526,861Percentage of Salary Cap: 11.61%NFL Average: $26,090,929Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Anthony Castonzo — $10 J'Marcus Webb Jersey ,800,000Like the tight end group, the Colts offensive line has been amongst the best in the NFL this season. Unlike the tight end group, this group’s spending is below the NFL average. With Quenton Nelson and Ryan Kelly still in rookie deals, the Colts are getting great bargains. This is a young group that should be a bright spot for many years to come.Defensive LineColts Spending: $23,064,359Percentage of Salary Cap: 11.89%NFL Average: $25,190,996Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Jabaal Sheard — $7,500,000The defensive line has had an up and down season. Some weeks they look invisible and others they look very good. Considering the Colts have spent the NFL average on the group and the group has been average for the most part, you can call this one a modest investment. Jabaal Sheard, their largest individual investment, has had a nice season along with rookie Kemoko Turay. The interior defensive lineman haven’t been as strong as the edge defenders, which can hurt the group at times. LinebackersColts Spending: $4,889,232Percentage of Salary Cap: 2.52%NFL Average: $17,671,703Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Darius Leonard — $1,317,782This group has had a fantastic season, led by defensive rookie of the year front-runner and defensive player of the year sleeper, Darius Leonard. He’s a rookie, so his contract is very affordable and considering his play, he should be making 10 times more. Anthony Walker and the other linebackers all make less than 1 million and the group has been steady for most of the season. CornerbacksColts Spending: $5,137,021Percentage of Salary Cap: 2.65%NFL Average: $14,190,952Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Pierre Desir — $1,562,500Considering the amount spent compared to the NFL average, you can definitely say this group has been a good bargain, but overall, this group is average at best compared to the rest of the NFL. This group can definitely benefit by adding a star player in this year’s free agency class and considering the cap space and the amount the Colts have spent on this group Jordan Wilkins Color Rush Jersey , this is very doable and should be something the Colts pursue in the offseason. SafetiesColts Spending: $5,261,136Percentage of Salary Cap: 2.71%NFL Average: $9,537,528Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Malik Hooker — $2,863,615Malik Hooker, on his rookie contract, is one of the best individual bargains in the NFL when talking about safeties. Clayton Geathers has had an underwhelming year and was outplayed early on in the season by Matthias Farley, who was put on Injured Reserve. This group has performed well considering the amount of spending the Colts have put into them, but this is also a group that can benefit from some free agency spending. Special TeamsColts Spending: 4,184,000Percentage of Salary Cap: 2.16%NFL Average: $4,435,608Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Adam Vinatieri — $3,625,000It’s tough to compare special teams spending around the league. The reality of special teams is: do the punter and kicker perform well? If the answer is yes, then the spending is almost irrelevant. This group has performed very well this season. Salary Cap UpdateThe Colts currently have $49,338,629 in cap space according to Over the Cap. With all that money projected to carry over and with the salary cap expected to rise to $190,000,000 next season, the Colts should have approximately $123,610,387 in cap space next season.It’s worth noting that the Colts need to spend a certain amount of money to avoid being in breach of not meeting the NFL Salary Cap floor. In four year increments, starting in 2017 and going until 2020, NFL teams are required to spend at least 89% of their cap space in cash. The league is entering the third year of the four year cycle and the Colts will enter the 2019 offseason having only spent 68.4% of their salary cap. In short, expect the Colts to spend some money this offseason so they don’t have to go crazy next offseason to meet the NFL salary cap floor. Notable 2019 Free Agents Pierre DesirMatthias FarleyClayton GeathersRyan GrantMargus HuntAdam VinatieriAl WoodsAll in all, the Colts are in very good shape! Many of the position groups are performing extremely well compared to the amount of money the Colts have invested in them. This is a strong, young team with a lot of money in the bank moving forward. The team benefits from a lot of great rookie contracts, so I expect the Colts to be very active in free agency over the next couple of years.