Now that the Indianapolis Colts have clinched the number one seed in the AFC Playoffs, the question for bettors is are they still going to try to go undefeated? Head coach Jim Caldwell insists that going unbeaten in the regular season is not his team’s top priority. However, he also said that all starters that are healthy will play Thursday night in Jacksonville. As of now, the Colts have five starters on defense listed as questionable including sack masters Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis. It is still uncertain if these players will play or not but it could have a huge impact on the outcome of this game.

The Jacksonville Jaguars, meanwhile, are clinging for their playoff lives. They stand at 7-6 straight up and will most likely have to win all three of their remaining games in order to make the playoffs. Odds makers have installed Indianapolis as small three point road favorites and the public is all over Peyton Manning and the Colts. Nearly 75% of the betting action has come in on Indy, yet the line hasn’t moved from minus three. In fact, a few Las Vegas sports books have dropped the number to 2.5.

The Indianapolis Colts have been an ATS machine this year going 9-3-1 against the number and have also covered all six of their road games thus far. These two teams met the first week of the season in Indianapolis and the Colts failed to cover as 6.5 point favorites as they escaped with a 14-12 win. Peyton Manning was extremely accurate as he went 28 of 38 for 301 yards. He tossed one touchdown pass but was also intercepted once as well. The Colts struggled to run the ball very effectively in that game as they were only able to gain 71 total yards rushing.

The rushing attack has been the one glaring weakness of this Indianapolis team as they only average 88 yards per game on the ground. Of course, they make up for the lack of a run game by boasting the league’s top passing attack. Manning and company are averaging just over 296 yards a game through the air. Reggie Wayne, Pierre Garcon, and Dallas Clark have been making big plays all year long.

Pass defense has been a major weakness all year long for this Jaguars defense and they will have their hands full when they face the top ranked passing offense in the Colts on Thursday night. The Jaguars currently rank 26th in passing yards allowed and 20th in the league in points per game. If they don’t find a way to contain the excellent skill position players of the Colts, it could be a long night.

Offensively, Maurice Jones-Drew has been the catalyst thus far. Jacksonville averages nearly 128 yards rushing per game which ranks them 9th in the NFL. Jones-Drew has emerged as a star now that he doesn’t have to share carries with Fred Taylor and will be relied upon heavily in this contest.

The Indianapolis front seven is giving up over 110 yards rushing per game and if they are missing key players due to injury, Jones-Drew could have a monster day. Quarterback David Garrard has done a nice job of managing games so far this season and if he can make a few plays down the field on play action it could open up running lanes for Jones-Drew. The health of the Indy front seven could very well decide the outcome of this game.

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