NFL Picks 9/23 – Indianapolis Colts @ Baltimore Ravens

NFL Picks 9/23 – Indianapolis Colts @ Baltimore Ravens

by Thomas Quaynor for Wannamakeabet.com

The Indianapolis Colts (1-1) visit the Baltimore Ravens (2-0) Sunday afternoon at M&T Bank Stadium. Baltimore is an 8.5-point favorite and the total is 44.5. After losing to Jacksonville at home in the season opener, Indianapolis won 31-20 at Houston last Sunday to even their record at 1-1. Baltimore improved to 2-0 after a 27-24 win at division rival Cincinnati last Sunday. These teams last met in October 2021 with Baltimore winning 31-25 in OT at home. Baltimore has won three in a row against Indianapolis and won four of the last five head-to-head matchups dating back to 2011. 

GAME STORYLINES

The Indianapolis Colts have spent the past 4 seasons looking for a viable starting quarterback after the unexpected retirement of franchise quarterback Andrew Luck in August 2019. The Colts have had 7 different starting quarterbacks in the 4 seasons since Luck’s retirement, and have only made 1 playoff appearance during that span. After finishing with a dismal 4-12-1 record last season, Indianapolis landed the number 4 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft and selected Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson. The 6-foot-4 Richardson started just 13 games in his 3 years at Florida but shot up the draft boards after his combine measurables ranked him as one of the most athletic quarterbacks in the history of the draft. Richardson won the starting job in August.

Unfortunately, Anthony Richardson suffered a concussion early in the second quarter of last week’s win at Houston and will miss Sunday’s game. Richardson did have 2 rushing touchdowns in the first quarter of the Houston game before suffering the concussion, he already has 3 rushing touchdowns on the season. Richardson has passed for 279 yards with a touchdown and an interception, and completed 63.8 percent of his passes. Veteran back-up Gardner Minshew II gets the start against Baltimore on Sunday. Minshew completed 19 of 23 passes for 171 yards and a touchdown in relief of Richardson in Week 2. Sunday will be Minshew’s second career start against Baltimore, he lost 40-14 at Baltimore in 2020 with Jacksonville. 

Indianapolis is also dealing with the absence of star running back Jonathan Taylor, Taylor was reportedly upset that Indianapolis did not give him a contract extension in the offseason. Taylor requested a trade when he reported to training camp in July. Indianapolis initially refused to trade him and placed him on the PUP list which means Taylor won’t be eligible to play until Week 5. Indianapolis eventually did attempt to trade Taylor but did not find any offers they liked, so will try to move forward with a disgruntled Taylor.

For almost two years, the Baltimore Ravens and Lamar Jackson had testy contract negotiations and it looked as if Lamar Jackson would leave Baltimore as a free agent. All of this ended last April, as the Ravens signed Jackson to a 5-year, 260-million-dollar deal. With the new mega contract in place and some new weapons on offense, Lamar Jackson will look to replicate his 2019 unanimous MVP season and lead the Ravens to a Super Bowl. Through 2 games, Jackson is 41-55 (74.5%) for 406 yards with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. He’s also carried the ball 18 times for 92 yards. 

Baltimore was dealt a major blow to the offense when starting running back J.K. Dobbins tore his Achilles early in the third quarter of the season opener against Houston. Injuries have doomed Dobbins’s career since his second season when a torn ACL in a preseason game caused him to miss the entire 2021 season. Dobbins also missed the final 10 games of last season with another knee injury. Gus Edwards is expected to be the starting running back for the rest of the year, he had 10 rushes for 62 yards and a score in last week’s win at Cincinnati. 

Tight End Mark Andrews has been Lamar Jackson’s favorite target for the past 4 seasons, he’s also one of the top tight ends in the NFL. Andrews missed the season-opener with a quadriceps injury and battled through an assortment of injuries last season, but when healthy he makes the Ravens offense elite. In 2021, Andrews set the franchise record for catches and yards in a season when he recorded 107 catches for 1,361 yards, along with 9 touchdowns

Baltimore’s wide receiving unit has been viewed as a glaring weakness for the team for several years now. They attempted to address the issue in the offseason by signing veteran free agent Odell Beckham Jr. and drafting Boston College wideout Zay Flowers in the first round (No. 22 overall) of the 2023 NFL draft. Unfortunately, the oft-injured Beckham Jr. suffered an ankle injury in last week’s win at Cincinnati and will miss Sunday’s game against Indianapolis. Flowers has played well in his first 2 NFL games hauling in 13 catches for 140 yards. 

Baltimore’s defense appears to be among the upper-tier yet again this year, continuing a 20+ year tradition of excellence. Leading the way for the defense is a pair of talented youngsters in linebacker Patrick Queen (117 tackles, 5 sacks, 2 interceptions, 1 forced fumble in 2022) and second-year safety Kyle Hamilton (62 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 forced fumble as a rookie last season). Former All-Pro linebackers Roquan Smith and Jadeveon Clowney will also give a huge boost to the defense this year. 

THE PICK

Baltimore has a fully engaged Lamar Jackson along with a strong defense, while Indianapolis will be without their star rookie QB, Lay the points…Baltimore 31, Indianapolis 13