The Colts finally broke the seal last weekend against the Titans, beating them 27-13.  The Colts are 9-0 at home against the Texans, which should give them confidence tonight.  The Texans lost 28-13 against the Panthers last weekend, as they had a 7-game winning streak snapped.  The Texans punished the Colts 34-7 in Houston in the season opener.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Colts have the ball:  The Colts finally had a good gameplan last weekend when they were a running team first.  Look for the same thing tonight with Donald Brown being the main man, getting help from Joseph Addai and Delone Carter.  The Colts need to have a good running game to help slow the Texans’ pass rush a little bit, and give QB Dan Orlovsky a chance to make some plays in the air.  Reggie Wayne and Pierre Garcon could have a rough time against the Texans tonight as opposing QBs only have a 64.9 QB Rating against them this year.

When the Texans have the ball:  The Colts are going to have to tighten up their chinstraps tonight as the Texans are going to try to push them around in the running game.  Arian Foster and Ben Tate are likely both going to have heavy workloads against a Colts’ D that is allowing 138.7 yards rushing per game and 4.1 yards per carry.  If T.J. Yates has time to throw the ball he’s likely going to be really effective as the Colts are allowing a 104.5 QB Rating so far this year for opposing QBs.

PREDICTION:  TEXANS 23, COLTS 13

The Indianapolis Colts smoked the Titans today behind an outstanding running game and a solid D.  Dan Orlovsky was a game manager today as he completed 11 of 17 passes for 82 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  Donald Brown had his best game of his NFL career today.  He carried the ball 16 times for 161 yards (10.1 avg) with 1 TD run.  His TD run was a 80-yard backbreaker in the 4th quarter for the Colts.  Joseph Addai (11 carries for 20 yards) and Delone Carter (3 carries for 19 yards) also pitched in for the Colts on the ground.  WRs Reggie Wayne (3 rec, 33 yards, TD) and Pierre Garcon (2 rec, 24 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Colts today.  The Colts finished up with 205 yards rushing on 34 carries (6.0 ypc) and they also completed 11 of 17 passes (64.7%) for 82 yards as they had possession of the ball for 28:03.

The Colts gave up a lot of passing yards today, but they also made some huge plays on D to even things out.  LB Ernie Sims (15 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss), LB Pat Angerer (12 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 2 passes defensed and 1 interception), CB Jacob Lacey (12 tackles, 2 passes defensed and a interception that he returned 32 yards for a TD) and CB Chris Rucker (11 tackles and 1 fumble recovery) led the way on D today.  The Titans finished up with 66 yards rushing on 19 carries (3.5 ypc) and they also completed 38 of 56 passes (67.9%) for 322 yards.  The Colts have broken the seal as they are now 1-13 on the season.

The Colts have played better since the bye week three weeks ago, but they still have not won a game.  The Colts lost to the Titans 27-10 in Tennessee in the first meeting between these two teams.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Colts have the ball:  The Colts are going to try to be more balanced in this game, but it won’t work if they continue to fall behind so early in games.  The Colts would like to run the ball with Donald Brown, Delone Carter and Joseph Addai against a Titans’ D that is giving up 121.8 yards rushing per game and 4.3 yards per carry.  The Colts should be able to pass the ball o.k. as long as Dan Orlovsky has time to throw the ball.  He will likely spread the ball around to Pierre Garcon, Austin Collie, Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark and Jacob Tamme in this game.  The Titans are giving up 240.4 yards passing per game this year, so there will be plays to be made by the Colts in the passing game.

When the Titans have the ball:  The Colts must stop Chris Johnson.  When he gets going, the Titans’ offense really performs at a high level.  The Colts are going to have to get after whoever starts at QB for the Titans (Matt Hasselbeck or Jake Locker), because if they have time to throw the ball, they are going to have success.  The Titans love to stretch the field throwing the ball to WR Nate Washington.  WRs Damian Williams and Lavelle Hawkins are also stepping up, so the Colts’ secondary is going to be tested once again this Sunday.

PREDICTION:  TITANS 24, COLTS 13

28-year old QB Dan Orlovksy has been starting slowly in games and finishing strongly in the 4th quarter.  He has played in 5 games for the Colts so far this year and he has completed 61 of 95 passes (64.2%) for 611 yards with 3 TD passes and 2 INTs (84.1 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 1 time for -1 yard so far this year.  If the Colts are going to win a game this year, they are going to need Orlovsky to play a solid game from start to finish.

The Colts were pathetic on both sides of the ball.  The score is a lot closer than the game was as Dan Orlovsky hit TE Jacob Tamme for a 13-yard TD pass on the last play of the game.  Orlovsky completed 17 of 37 passes for 136 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT.  Donald Brown (9 carries for 28 yards), Joseph Addai (2 carries for 16 yards) and Delone Carter (5 carries for 6 yards) led the way on the ground for the Colts in this game.  WRs Pierre Garcon (5 rec, 46 yards), Reggie Wayne (4 rec, 41 yards) and Austin Collie (4 rec, 25 yards) led the way for the Colts in the passing game yesterday.  The Colts finished up with 50 yards rushing on 16 carries (3.1 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 37 passes (45.9%) for 117 yards as they only had possession of the ball for 23:52.

The Colts’ defense was not too good yesterday.  Safety Antoine Bethea (11 tackles and 1 pass defensed), CB Jacob Lacey (9 tackles and 3 passes defensed), LB Philip Wheeler (9 tackles) and LB Kavell Conner (7 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 fumble recovery) led the way for the Colts on D in this game.  Safety Joe Lefeged pitched in with an interception.  The Ravens finished up with 146 yards rushing on 37 carries (3.9 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 31 passes (74.2%) for 212 yards.  The Colts are now 0-13 on the season.

The Colts have shown signs of life since the bye week three weeks ago.  Sure, they have lost their last two games, but they have been competitive in them as the Patriots and Panthers outscored them 58-43.  The Ravens have won 3 games in a row and 5 of their last six games.  It’s going to likely be nasty for the Colts in Baltimore as the fans there still hate them for leaving town.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Colts have the ball:  The Ravens are really hard to run on as they are only allowing 88.8 yards rushing per game and 3.4 yards per carry.  Donald Brown, Joseph Addai and Delone Carter will have to fight for every yard they get this Sunday.  With all of this taken in, the Colts should just let Dan Orlovsky spread out the field and throw the ball 30-40 times this Sunday.  Pierre Garcon, Reggie Wayne, Austin Collie and Jacob Tamme are still solid players and they will be tested big time this Sunday.  Opposing QBs only have a 67.5 QB Rating against the Ravens’ D, so Orlovsky is going to have to be careful with the football.

When the Ravens have the ball:  The Ravens rushed for 290 yards last weekend against the Browns, so Ray Rice and Ricky Williams are likely foaming at the mouth due to this weekend’s matchup against the Colts.  After all, the Colts are giving up 144.2 yards rushing per game and 4.1 yards per carry so far this year.  The Colts’ linebacking unit has been ransacked by injuries as of late.  I don’t see the Ravens only running the ball in this game though as they need to get Joe Flacco back on the right path.  Opposing QBs have a 109.2 QB Rating against the Colts’ D this year, so Flacco could have a good game.  WRs Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith and TEs Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta give the Colts a lot to worry about tomorrow night.

PREDICTION:  RAVENS 38, COLTS 6

The Colts have claimed 31-year old LB Kevin Bentley off waivers from the Jaguars.  He played in 1 game for the Jaguars this year and he had 1 tackle.  Bentley has now played in 133 games in his first 10 years in the NFL and he has 413 tackles, 12 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles, 5 fumble recoveries, 9 passes defensed and 2 interceptions.  The Colts have also signed 24-year old CB Brandon King off the Dolphins’ practice squad.  King played in 4 games for the Colts last year and he had 1 tackle.  The Colts hope that Bentley and King can help them out the last few weeks on D.

The Colts have placed 22-year old rookie DT Drake Nevis on the Injured Reserve List, ending his season due to a back injury.  Nevis played in 5 games for the Colts this year and he had 19 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  Nevis was a 3rd round pick of the Colts last April.  He showed solid potential when he was on the field for the Colts this year, so they hope he gets healthy soon.

Despite the lousy QB play the Colts have gotten this year, 25-year old WR Pierre Garcon is having a career year.  He has played in 12 games for the Colts so far this year and he has caught 55 passes for 805 yards (14.6 avg) with 6 TD grabs.  Garcon already has a career high in receiving yards and he has had at least 125 yards receiving in a game three times already this year.  He has played in 54 games in his first four years for the Colts and he has caught 173 passes for 2,377 yards (13.7 avg) with 16 TD grabs.

The Colts have claimed 26-year old LB Zac Diles off waivers from the Buccaneers.  Diles played in 7 games for the Bucs earlier this year and he could only muster 1 tackle.  Diles has now played in 57 games in his first five years in the NFL and he has 244 tackles, 15 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 3 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 3 passes defensed and 1 interception.  The Colts waived 23-year old rookie TE Mike McNeill to make room on the roster for Diles.  He played in 4 games for the Colts this year but he didn’t catch any passes.