Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts' Matt Ryan to Lead Lopsided Victory vs. Houston Texans?

Episode Date: September 8, 2022

It's a Locked On Colts-Locked On Texans crossover! What does the beginning of the Matt Ryan Era look like for the Indianapolis Colts, and why is it the biggest deciding storyline in Week 1? The guys a...lso discuss why Matt Pryor, Kwity Paye, and Stephon Gilmore are involved in some of the biggest matchups of the day.Find and follow Locked On Colts on your favorite podcast platforms:📺YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLdpxJspi1hMh5HL7ExpWOQ🎧 Apple https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1151621306🎧 Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/6meP450baAtjX4rTENZ5ij🎧 Audacy https://www.audacy.com/podcasts/locked-on-colts-daily-podcast-on-the-indianapolis-colts-21701🎧 Google https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vUFBZODk1ODUyODkyNQ🎧 Megaphone https://cms.megaphone.fm/channel/lockedoncoltsFollow Jake and Zach's written work on HorseshoeHuddle.com, and give them a follow on Twitter @JakeArthurNFL, @ZachHicks2, and @LockedOnColts! Follow Coty Davis (@CotyDavis_24), John Hickman (@john_hickman12), and Locked On Texans (@LockedOnTexans) on Twitter!Today’s episode is presented by PrizePicks. PrizePicks is daily fantasy made easy. Pick 2-5 players and if they score more or less than their PrizePicks projection you can win up to 10x your money on your entry. First-time users can receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code LOCKEDON. That’s PrizePicks.com – promo code; LOCKEDONSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFLBuilt BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnlineBetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!BriteCoThe guys at BriteCo Jewelry Insurance made buying insurance for your engagement ring, your watch, or whatever so easy you can get covered in 2 minutes on your cell phone. You won't find a better deal on coverage that's so affordable. Go to https://brite.co/lockedonPrizePicksFirst time users can receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code LOCKEDON. That’s PrizePicks.com – promo code; LOCKEDONTuroDitch boring rental cars and find your drive at Turo.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Week one of the regular season has arrived and we are crossing over. Today, Locked On Colts and Locked On Texans get together to talk about how this matchup can be won by both sides. Let's get to it. You are Locked On Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. All right, Colts and Texans fans, thanks so much for tuning in and making us your number one listen of the day. This is your daily podcast covering both your Indianapolis Colts and the Houston Texans.
Starting point is 00:00:55 We're part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Today's episode is brought to you by PrizePix. PrizePix is daily's fantasy made easy. Pick two to five players. If they score more or less than the PrizePix projections, you can win up to 10 times your money on your entry. First-time users can receive 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code LOCKEDON. That's prizepix.com. Promo code LOCKEDON. I'm John Hickman, Cody Davis, Jake Arthur. Talking AFC South.
Starting point is 00:01:27 The matchup is on Sunday versus the Indianapolis Colts. And, Jake, man, you guys had the better record last year. And, of course, we have to talk about the biggest storylines for each of our teams. Want to go ahead and kick it off? Yeah, so, honestly, it's week one. The biggest storyline you got to look at is the Matt Ryan era is beginning. I mean, when you look at Colts and Texans matchups in the past, it's been all about Jonathan Taylor.
Starting point is 00:01:56 I mean, just last year, he had 301 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns in those two matchups. And while I expect him to be a very potent threat, once again, it, we have to know what this Matt era, this Matt Ryan era looks like. He's the biggest jewel in the Colts off season crown this year. And he's what they hope is the missing piece to make them, you know, a deep playoff contender, dare I say, Superbowl threat. I mean, no,
Starting point is 00:02:23 no one really expected the Bengals, so why couldn't it be the Colts, you know? But no, they've got a real mishmash group of receivers, and that doesn't always fit well with a quarterback that's not much of a facilitator, but that's the exact opposite. You know, Matt Ryan is that. He'll spread the ball around. The Colts hope that he'll help these young receivers that again it's a really unheralded group they think that he will help them reach their potential
Starting point is 00:02:50 because of his accuracy his timing and most importantly his leadership which has been arguably the biggest trait that he's shown already in his time with the Colts so what does an Indianapolis Colts offense look like with a guy like Matt Ryan behind it? Yeah, I think the biggest storyline for the Texans right now, I know Cody's going to talk about the run game and how important that is, but I do want to mention that containing Jonathan Taylor
Starting point is 00:03:19 is what's important. You just mentioned how much the Texans gave up to him last season. I don't think you can stop a player like that. I only think you can contain him. But another storyline for Houston, definitely the rookies. Fans, the coaching staff, even the national media, the media members are getting excited for a full dose of Derrick Stingley for four quarters, a full dose of Damian Pierce
Starting point is 00:03:44 and Jalen Petrie for four quarters. And so those three rookies, they've had a great camp, even better preseason moments. I think when you look at our storylines for the Houston Texans here in Houston, there is hope in positions that fans haven't had hope in in a long time, the cornerback position. That hasn't been filled and has a solid player there since Jonathan Joseph. The safety, that's been an issue since the rookie year of Justin Reed.
Starting point is 00:04:14 And the running back, that has been an issue, excluding the one year Carlos Hyde rushed for 1,000. But Houston haven't had a foundational running back since the days of Arian Foster. Now week one, we get an opportunity to see each of those three players play against some top tier talent in Matt Ryan,
Starting point is 00:04:33 who you just gave a lot of credit to. He had a, I think he had a good year last year in Atlanta, won seven games with an office. That was ridiculously bad. Jonathan Taylor. Right. And so Alec Pierce, Michael Pittman,
Starting point is 00:04:46 you guys have offensive weapons that our defensive guys have to get ready for. And defensively, I think Shaquille Leonard, we have to call him Shaquille now, he'll be playing DeForest Buckner, you guys traded for in Rockway. So defensively, what can Damian Pierce do against some live NFL top-tier defensive studs? We're just really looking forward to the rookies for 17 games starting off with you guys.
Starting point is 00:05:14 Yeah, I'm not... Sorry, I was going to say, I'm not supposed to be excited about some rookies from another divisional team, but those guys really are exciting. Stingley has, at his ceiling, he could be a true absolute shutdown cornerback, kind of like a guy that Colts just got with Stephon Gilmore. You know, Damian Pierce could be an exciting running back. Jalen Petra, a do-it-all safety who starred in a really important, unique position in college. So yeah yeah I'm excited to see those guys as
Starting point is 00:05:45 well John with the freshman class I'm gonna go with the sophomore class and yes of course within this sophomore class of course the biggest storyline is can Davis Mills be the Texans quarterback but not just for 2022 but beyond everyone already knows that storyline however when you take a look at this sophomore class there are two players that i'm looking at come sunday one is nico collins on the offensive side of the ball and the other one is roy lopez starting off with nico collins we all know how bad the houston texans wide receiving core was last year it was brandon cooks and that's it he was basically Michael Jackson without
Starting point is 00:06:25 Jermaine and Tito and everybody else in there. He was basically solo. However, going into this season throughout mandatory minicamp, voluntary OTAs, training camp, and even through a couple snaps in preseason, the number one storyline everyone has been talking about has been Nico Collins. He looks the part now. It seems like this is going to be the year where he finds his niche on the NFL level. And look, last year, this is a guy who recorded 446 yards on 33 catches and one touchdown. I want to see those numbers double in 2022. And I honestly do believe Sunday's game is a great opportunity for him to go out there and say, you know what?
Starting point is 00:07:12 I am actually going to take that next step as this team's number two wide receiver. Because we know Stephon Gilmore and Brandon Cooks, they're probably just going to cancel each other out on the field. And once again, going back to Davis Mills, if the Houston Texans really took the time to put Davis Mills in a position to go out there and succeed as a starting quarterback, you have to have more than one target in that passing game. And that second target has to be Nico Collins. And look, throughout this whole entire segment, we have talked a lot about Jonathan Taylor. Like we know the damage Jonathan Taylor has done to this organization last year. However, on, I believe it was Monday, both Lovie Smith and John Grenard talked about the enhancements they have made
Starting point is 00:08:01 to their defensive run defense. And it's going to start with second-year prospect Roy Lopez. He's going to play a big hand in helping the Houston Texans stop the run. And look, John can attest to this. It always seems like the Houston Texans have struggled with their interior defense since the departure of DJ Reader. And look, 2022 is a year of promise for this organization and I do believe for somebody can finally step up and help fill that void that DJ reader has left like two three years ago it has to be Roy Lopez. Card I'm so glad you mentioned that you know I kind of
Starting point is 00:08:39 hinted at it earlier but that's a very important in a storyline uh one storyline that i think is very important for both teams that can kind of correlate together is the gm storyline now for chris ballard he is doing everything he can to put a championship contending team together on the fly. We would not have this conversation. I wouldn't add on the fly if Andrew Luck getting retired now three years ago, and it seems much longer than that. And so he's done everything that he can to put together a very respectable team. And this team is always just a quarterback away in the last three years, a quarterback away here, or maybe this piece away.
Starting point is 00:09:25 So he's went out. Not only did I think an upgraded quarterback, no faith in Carson Wentz, more faith in Matt Ryan, but he drafted Jonathan Taylor. Now in this offseason alone, his offseason acquisitions, also the draft. Chris Ballard has a storyline just like Nick Asirio's storyline, and I full NFL draft class, and you drafted some dogs. We really want to see each and every one of these guys paying out for the Houston Texans. Yeah, the Colts under Chris Bauer, they've just kind of been dealt the weirdest hand at quarterback.
Starting point is 00:10:18 And, yes, you want to see them grow and everything, but they've gotten really good at treading water and not falling into a complete meltdown. You know, they've kept themselves relevant and competitive. They got to the playoffs with with Philip Rivers in 2020 and probably should have won that game against the Bills. Took a step back with really inconsistent quarterback play. And now it is the hope that, you know, with they added a guy like Matt Ryan, they can take the next step and build off where Philip Rivers left off. But yeah, you guys also mentioned the young wide receivers to Alec Pierce is one to look forward to for the Colts. He's kind of in a similar situation as as Nico Collins.
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Starting point is 00:11:42 point B. Test drive the new electric vehicle that you've had your eye on to see how it fits in your everyday life. Many Turo hosts can even deliver the car right to you. Every trip is backed by liability insurance. Terms, conditions, and exclusions apply. Ditch boring rental cars and find your drive at Turo.com. All right, fellas. So we've kind of talked about these main storylines and the real things that it's going to take for each side to win this thing. But kind of looking at it at a more micro level, what are some of the key matchups that you're looking at that might actually make the difference in this game? In the trenches, the Texans front versus the Colts front. The Colts have rushed for 120 more yards in each of the last three seasons versus the Houston Texans. Two of those – well, I'm sorry.
Starting point is 00:12:36 The Colts have rushed for 120 or more yards as a team in each of the last three seasons. Two of those seasons, they were top 10. The Colts have also rushed for an average of 162 yards per game in their last four meetings against Houston. So for Houston, the trenches matter. They got to get at it early and often. Levy Smith talked about early in the week how game tackling is important,
Starting point is 00:13:04 especially when you have a back like Jonathan Taylor, everybody's favorite fantasy pick. Gang tackling and flowing to the ball quickly is super important. But I think Roy Lopez, Malik Collins, Kurt Hennish, Jonathan Gnard, Jerry Hughes, like all of those guys up front, they have to be basically unblockable throughout the game at times to get an opportunity to bring Jonathan Taylor down. Also, this is a call to the linebackers for the Houston Texans. They've been playing phenomenal throughout the preseason. They have to keep that going as well. Then on the flip side, we got to look at the rookie running back Damian Pierce. He will be paramount for the offensive success, and this team will lean on him heavily.
Starting point is 00:13:49 Again, quoting the head coach, Lavey Smith, this is a run team that ain't going to stop now with season one underway. Damian Pierce, I can see him having between 18 to 23 carries in game one. And look, I'm going to keep it in the trenches as well, but I'm looking at the offensive side of the ball. I'm looking at the offensive line because, yes, this is a running team. Yes, we are expecting Damian Pierce to be ran to the ground, not just on Sunday, but throughout this whole entire season. However, it doesn't matter how good Damian Pierce is
Starting point is 00:14:24 because if the Houston Texans do not create holes, create gaps for him, then at the end of the day, it's not going to do anything. Not only that, they are going up against one of the best defensive front units in the Indianapolis Coast. Jake, you know that more than I do. And when I take a look at the Coast defensive line unit, I'm sitting there thinking to myself, one, how are the Houston Texans offensive line? How are they going to handle this? Yes, you have Laramie Tunsil, who is, you know, a pro bowl left tackle. But this is a guy who hasn't played since October. You know, you have Titus Howard back on the right side. And this is also a big year for him because, you know, this is his final year of his rookie contract, and he's looking for a big payday. Then you also have Justin Britt, who has been, you know,
Starting point is 00:15:12 he's been good at times, but at the end of the day, we are starting to see Justin Britt show his age. So when I take a look at this Houston Texans offensive line unit, I truly do believe that this is the most important matchup, because if they are able to contain the coast defensive line unit, then we could see Davis Mills and Damian Pierce move this ball downfield. But if they give up some pressures, it's going to be a long day for the Houston Texans. Yeah, I was, you know, of course, I'll keep with the theme. I was kind of looking at
Starting point is 00:15:45 the trenches to, um, starting out, just looking at offense first. Yeah. Right. That's where the game is won and lost. Um, so the Colts have a new left tackle and Matt prior. And just from the last couple of years, when I think of these Texans games, sure, they've been lopsided for the most part, but I think Houston's pass rush has been better than expected against the Colts you know I think of guys like Jonathan Grenard and you know Jacob Martin when he was there those guys have had some success against the Colts so I'm wondering how's Matt Pryor at left tackle going to look against Jerry Hughes a newcomer and Jonathan Grenard who has given the Colts issues in the
Starting point is 00:16:25 past. Likewise, they have a new right guard as well in Danny Pinter. I know it's kind of a new interior defense. You guys are getting worked in there. But, you know, Pinter has had some struggles this summer in training camp with pure power guys. He struggled with some of the Colts own guys, but when the Detroit Lions, for example, came in for joint practices, Ali McNeil manhandled him. So if Houston has any guys that are just straight up junkyard dogs,
Starting point is 00:16:56 just powerful guys on the interior, that could give the Colts some fits right up the middle. So that's something I was looking at. On the other side of the ball, Titus Howard, you guys mentioned, Quidipe. right up the middle. So that's something I was looking at on the other side of the ball. Titus Howard, you guys mentioned Quiddy pay. This is a big year two for Quiddy pay.
Starting point is 00:17:12 They got Yanni can gawk way. I don't think they really have to worry much about him. He's going to give them eight, nine, 10 sacks, whatever, but they're expecting a big jump from pay this year. And he got a lot of pressures last year. He showed a lot of hustle,
Starting point is 00:17:23 a lot of effort, everything you wanted to see from him. He's a decent run defender. But he just fell off a little bit on his finishes. There were several plays that just nearly missed a sack. So they're hoping those things are completed plays this time around. And Titus Howard, if I'm not mistaken, right tackle, he's been moved around a bit, but right tackle is probably his best spot.
Starting point is 00:17:48 Is that right? Yeah, 100%. Okay, yeah. So it's an interesting matchup for me with Quidipe and Titus Howard. So that could be one to look at for sure. And then you mentioned this a little bit earlier, Cody, Stephon Gilmore and Brandon Cooks. Those guys have history.
Starting point is 00:18:04 They've won a Super Bowl together in New England. If they do cancel each other out, then that presents an opportunity for Nico Collins or someone to come up and make some plays. The Colts have Brandon Faison and Kenny Moore out there as well. Kenny Moore is outstanding. Faison can be beat. He's not really a household name yet, but big opportunity for Nico Collins there as well. So those are some of the things that kind of keep me up if I'm one of the coaches on the staff right now. Jake, quick question. I read earlier that I think was it the head coach,
Starting point is 00:18:49 he said that Shaquille isn't 100 but he should be able to go at 80 are you worried at all about darius leonard shaquille leonard no i'm actually not because this is like the first time since since his rookie summer that he's like healthy and pain-free, they've kind of figured out his, his issues. He had an ankle thing that's been bothering him for like three years. Right. And it turns out it's tied into a calf.
Starting point is 00:19:14 And also like he had a back procedure in the spring that was supposed to fix all of it. And so he was out all of training camp, but it's mostly like they needed to get him back and like build the strength back up. It's not that he's still hurt or in pain. They just need to get him back in football shape and like get get those injured parts back up where they need to be. So he was a full participant today on Wednesday, which was great. They're not saying he's going to play it, but they're also not ruling him out yet either.
Starting point is 00:19:46 I don't know that they want him to play until he's 100%. They have the benefit of having a pretty good linebacker group, even without him. I mean, he's a huge difference maker, don't get me wrong, but they would survive if he needs to sit out a couple games. So that's probably one of the biggest storylines in Indy this week is Shaquille Leonard going to play? Also, Matt Eberflus is out the door.
Starting point is 00:20:10 How do you guys feel about the defense? Are you confident in the defense and the relationship with Frank Wright and Matt Ryan just a little bit? Yeah, so Matt Eberflus is definitely a quality defensive coordinator. The Colts always had a pretty decent defense under him, always floating around the top 10 to 12. But there were some big areas that they really needed to clean up, and it just seemed like schematically downs, cornerbacks giving up way too much cushion to receivers. You guys have seen it, I'm sure. There's been so many opposing quarterbacks that have completed like 80% or more of their passes against the Colts. The Colts under Ibraflus, I'm sure, without me looking at it, probably have given up the highest completion percentage in the NFL.
Starting point is 00:21:04 Unnecessarily. They needed to play more man and get tougher in those situations. And under Gus Bradley, that's definitely going to happen. He does a lot of cover three man stuff, but he wants to be more dynamic with it too. And another big factor in it is the pass rush is expected to get much, much better under Bradley as well, because it well because it's just an attack front. It's up front.
Starting point is 00:21:28 It's supposed to be a lot like what Robert Sala has run with. You know, he's the Jets head coach now, but with Seattle and San Francisco before then, Gus Bradley when he was in Seattle. So having guys like Yannick Ngakwe and Quidi Pei and DeForest Buckner inside, they're supposed to actually bring a lot more sacks. So the Colts, I think, had 33 last year.
Starting point is 00:21:51 I would expect them to finish a lot closer to 40, if not 40 plus. So those are going to be the two biggest areas. Still going to be a good defense. I personally think they're probably going to get a little, they're probably going to have a little, they're probably gonna have a little drop in run defense just because of how the defensive front is, you know, formed. There's not going to be as much, um, thinking. And so the D the defensive lineman had to do a lot of reading rather than just like attacking. Uh, it is the attack front now. So I think that the run game is going to get a little a little worse
Starting point is 00:22:26 um but if shoot if you get a better pass rush out of that i think most people would be willing to accept that oh i'm sorry you you also mentioned frank reich and matt ryan and yeah so um that relationship so far has been going pretty well um you know, they can't say enough nice things about each other. It kind of seems like Ryan is the exact type of quarterback that Reich wants to run this offense. Deadly accurate, very strong leader, good with his timing. So far, so good. I mean, they still got to get out there and play the games. But I think the playbook is going to be wide open for for right. Having Ryan as his quarterback. Thank you guys for making the locked on Texans and the locked on coats a part of your first listen each and every day.
Starting point is 00:23:16 Now make locked on fantasy football your second listen. Find the intellectual fantasy expert Vinny Iyer, who brings over 20 years of NFL expertise and a unique angle to give you the moves no one else has. Get ready for your fantasy draft with Locked On Fantasy Football. Honestly, if you haven't did your draft by now, I don't know what you're waiting on. The season, like we're recording Wednesday night. The season starts tomorrow.
Starting point is 00:23:42 By the time you guys hear this later today, and don't be slipping on your pimpin', man. We talked about the keys of victories. We talked about the key matchups, the biggest stories. Well, guys, score predictions. Oh, man. oh man this um i i think this is going to be a game where both teams are going to have to depend on their defense and i say that because when you take a look at the colts um i'm pretty sure and jake once again you'll notice more than i will but it seems like they will probably be still
Starting point is 00:24:21 trying to work through some offensive um you know kinks, especially with Matt Ryan coming in as a new quarterback. And look, this is a guy who has been playing for one city, one team, for what, 14, 15 years. So it's probably going to take him some time to get things going. And then as for the Houston Texans, in the preseason, the offense did not look that good when Damian Pierce did not have the ball in his hands. You know, and according to Pep Hamilton, the offensive coordinator, Davis Mills, and a couple other guys on the offensive side of the ball,
Starting point is 00:24:54 apparently they have this secret offensive game plan that's just going to blow everybody's minds. But, I mean, I'm not expecting the offense to change too much um too much on sunday i'm actually going to take the colts 17 14 um and i once again i just think that this is a game that where the defense is going to have to step up because on both sides on both the texans and the colts both of these teams they are a little bit more established on that defensive side of the ball than they are on the offensive side. Yeah, Jake, really quick before I give my prediction, I forgot to ask you about this. Now, I'm a huge UT fan. Okay.
Starting point is 00:25:35 And y'all got a quarterback. We not going to see him. Why? Y'all got a quarterback in Sam, man, who's balling this preseason. Oh, yeah. a quarterback in Sam, man, who was balling this preseason. I just want to let you know that I know we're talking about the Texans. That's a Texas product, baby.
Starting point is 00:25:52 He is the future of the Indianapolis Colts. He caused a lot of commotion this summer with his performance. There was a lot of people saying to get Nick Foles out of town. They don't need him anymore because they have Sam Elger. Nick Foles,
Starting point is 00:26:08 man, that's one of my favorite players, man. I don't think he get the respect. I don't think he get the respect he deserves, man. Anyway, look at that Nick Foles and Sam Foles. Listen, I think this is a game where we are going to get two competitive teams.
Starting point is 00:26:24 There's some overturn with these rosters, right? A lot of new guys in, old guys out. But not only with the roster, with the coaching staff too. We got a new head coach. We got a new offensive coordinator. You guys got a new DC, switched it up and everything. And so I think that we're going to get two competitive teams that are still trying to figure out what they want to do and what works for them.
Starting point is 00:26:46 Game one. I think Houston is going to perform well against the Indianapolis Colts. However, with that being said, I'm picking the Colts to actually win the division with the Jags as a dark horse. But I would say that I can see this game just being a closer gap than what we've seen the last couple of times we've played the coach. So I'm going to go with 24-17 Indy. Yeah, anything to get the Titans out of the door. Isn't that right?
Starting point is 00:27:18 The Titans' time is done. All right, so you guys are going to think I'm a Homer on this one. So the last two, the two games they played last year is a combined 62 to three. All right. 31 to zero three. I don't think it's going to be quite that bad. And I do think the Texans are better than that.
Starting point is 00:27:40 They're going to be better this year than they were last year, but I still think the difference in it is going to be if the Colts pass rush on defense can force Houston's offense into a turnover or two. It's a really opportunistic bunch. They take it back to the house for touchdowns with regularity. I think, you know, I can't get the score out of my head, 27-10 Colts. And it might be one of those games where it was closer than that actually looks. Maybe it's a late touchdown. Who knows? But that's just the score that keeps coming up to me.
Starting point is 00:28:16 I think Jonathan Taylor will continue to do his thing. And Matt Ryan's the type of player that can, you know, be opportunistic off of that. He can take advantage of those loaded boxes or, you know, make some plays with play action. Matt Ryan's the type of player that can be opportunistic off of that. He can take advantage of those loaded boxes or make some plays with play action. They were able to do that with Paris Campbell last year in the first matchup. So that's kind of how I see it going. Later down the road, maybe the Texans make it even closer in my predictions. You guys definitely made it tough on me to say that score. But no, I'm going to say 27 to 10 Colts on this one.
Starting point is 00:28:48 And you know what? I do want to say two key players that I'm looking forward to, Kamu Grugier-Hill and Christian Kirksey, the Texans linebackers. They got to drop back in coverage. They got to be good in that. They got to be good in man situations. They got to be good in short yards. Well, you guys just need a couple of yards. They got to be good in man situations. They got to be good in short yards where you guys just need a couple of yards.
Starting point is 00:29:05 They got to be good in a lot of those areas. But we've seen them be good the last couple of times we've seen them play football. So a tough task for everybody. I've been impressed with Gruger Hill every time. It seems like every time the Texans and Colts play, he just pops off the screen and is making plays, tackles for loss. He seems to always have like 10, 12 tackles against the Colts he's a pretty good player I think and Jake really quick you know what is your you know I don't want to say prediction but how far do you actually think
Starting point is 00:29:38 Matt Reiner is going to be able to take the Colts because I'm looking at this from a standpoint um kind of similar to the year you guys had Phillip Rivers where you guys were good but you know Phillip Rivers could only do so much because of his age and I kind of feel like you guys might be in that same boat yeah I think it's I think it's very similar to the Phillip Rivers season and last year the roster was even better they were just missing really inconsistent or they were missing consistent quarterback play, and they got really inconsistent out of it. They honestly had to hide their quarterback
Starting point is 00:30:11 for a lot of the second half of the season. And so my hope is last year's roster was better. You put in a quarterback who's, you know, who's better along physically than Phillip Rivers was, and you should get a step or two further. I really think the Colts will at least be in the second round of the playoffs. I think they win the division, and I think they should at least win a playoff game.
Starting point is 00:30:36 I think I have them as the third seed in the AFC going into it. Whoever wins the AFC North coming in as the fourth seed. I'm going to stop short of saying they should go to the Super Bowl. I think they're capable. Just looking at everything on paper, if there's no significant injuries or as long as no one just goes AWOL, everything on paper, this should be a very good, well-rounded team. All they need is a solid quarterback to get them there.
Starting point is 00:31:04 It would be a massive disappointment, number one, if they didn't make the playoffs. Like that's going to be an ugly falling out if the Colts don't make the playoffs, just so you guys know. But, you know, it's really hard for me to fathom them not getting one or two playoff wins this year. Well, thank you guys for checking out the crossover AFC South edition. I wasn't at the last full crossover, but I'm happy to make it today.
Starting point is 00:31:32 I'm John Hipkin. Make sure you follow us on Twitter at LockedOnTexans. And subscribe, like, and comment on YouTube as well, LockedOnTexans. And as always, I'm your host, Cody Davis of LockedOnTexans. Please remember to follow me on Twitter at CodyDavis underscore 24. Once again, that's Cody, C-O-T-Y-D-A-V-I-S underscore 24. Yeah, my guy Zach Hicks isn't with us here tonight, but definitely make sure to follow him on Twitter. He's at Zach Hicks too. I am at JakeArthurNFL. And then of course,
Starting point is 00:32:03 the at Locked Onolts Twitter handle there. We would very much appreciate any new follows from you guys. And then for both shows, subscribe to us on YouTube and wherever you listen to podcasts. Absolutely. Hey, Texan fans, I need for you to go and kind of spam their YouTube comments and just drop random Texan facts all in their YouTube comments and just drop random Texan facts all in their YouTube comments and just walk away from the keyboard. No, that's not going to work very well because, I mean, the Texans,
Starting point is 00:32:31 they don't have the best history against the Colts. Just don't even make it Texans fact. Just make it facts about the state of Texas. Who's going to be mad about that? I'm pretty sure we're better than Indianapolis, right? Again, anything to keep the Titans fans out of it, I suppose. Those fans, they can get nasty
Starting point is 00:32:51 in the comments. We do have some true southern hospitality down here in Texas that I feel like the Tennessee fans don't have. Nashville, we got KFC, it was nasty. We got the bourbon.
Starting point is 00:33:06 They probably drinking a lot of bourbon and eating a lot of nasty KFC. Angry at the world that that touchdown, they thought it was a touchdown against the Rams in the Super Bowl 30 years ago. Didn't count. Hey, I've been to Houston a couple times. I can attest it's a nice place. I've always had a good time there. Oh, absolutely.
Starting point is 00:33:25 Oh, thank you. Thank you. Sounds good. Well, until next time, ladies and gentlemen, make sure to check out today's show and the rest of the shows throughout the season. John Hickman, Cody Davis, Jake Arthur. We'll see you guys next time.

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