Week 5 in the NFL is already upon us and kicks off tonight in Denver with the Broncos and Colts. Tonight’s game features two teams with new quarterbacks that have underachieved so far in the season and will be looking to get back on track tonight in prime time. They’ll also both have to run their offences without their starting running backs, as both Jonathan Taylor and Javonte Williams were injured last week.
The Teams
For Matt Ryan and the 1-2-1 Colts, it’s been a tough start to the year. Ryan is having an especially hard time taking care of the ball, as he’s thrown five interceptions and fumbled nine times. Tonight, he’ll have nowhere to hide with the absence of Taylor. For Indy to get their second win of the season, Ryan and the offence will have to have their best game of the season, especially through the air. Expect the Colts to get the ball to Michael Pittman on the outside and Nyheim Hines out of the backfield a lot today in an attempt to do just that.
Coming off his best game of the season, Russell Wilson will be the focal point of the Denver offence once again tonight. Without Javonte Williams in the backfield, expect that the Broncos to throw the ball more instead of trusting Melvin Gordon and Mike Boone to carry the load at running back. In the passing game, Wilson has weapons at receiver and his favorite seems to be the largest of the group, Courtland Sutton. Outside of Sutton, Jerry Jeudy and K.J. Hamler are both dangerous in their own ways as well.
Defensively, the Broncos and Colts have both already shown the good as well as the bad. Denver’s defence was terrific in week 3, holding San Fransisco to just 10 points. However, they faltered in the very next game against Las Vegas. For Indianapolis, fans are hoping to see the unit that held Kansas City to their lowest total of the season instead of the one that let the Jaguars and Titans score three touchdowns. If one team’s defence can clearly outplay the other, that may be enough to be the difference in this game regardless of offensive performance.
The Pick
When it comes to making a prediction for tonight’s game, we’re going to side with the Broncos. Wilson is still a good quarterback with a definitive edge over an aging Matt Ryan, and Javonte’s absence in the offence won’t mean as much to Denver as Tylor’s will to Indianapolis. Add to that the fact that Denver is playing at home, and this one may not actually be that close. We’ve got Denver to cover the spread and get to 3-2 on this week’s edition of Thursday Night Football.
