The Indianapolis Colts head to Los Angeles to play the Rams in their sportsbook season-opening game, and guess who remains conspicuous by his absence. The good news for the Colts is that they are still the favorites to win with or without starting (?) quarterback Andrew Luck. But is there any chance that they will be with Luck? Stay tuned to find out in the thrilling conclusion of today’s episode.
- Date: Sunday, 10th September
- Time: 4:10 PM
- Venue: A. Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California
Colts -3 (-105) 47 (-110) -160 472
Rams +3 (-115) 47 (-110) +140
Is that Irsay or just hearsay?
According to Colts owner Jim Irsay, the team is planning to remove Luck from the PUP (physically unable to perform list, if you’re not into the whole brevity thing) in the next few days. “I would say the odds are most likely he probably won’t open up against the Rams,” Irsay said (Irsaid?) per ESPN.com. “But let me be clear about it: In our own minds, it’s something we haven’t ruled out. We’re going to see where he’s at. It would be awesome.” Luck underwent shoulder surgery in January and missed OTAs, training camp, and the preseason. If he is not taken off PUP by 4 p.m. ET of Saturday he would miss the first six games of the regular season. “Let me be very clear about this,” Irsay added. “He will take the field when he is ready, when he is 100% ready to go. OK? This is for the next 12, 14 years. This is not something that we’re going to hurry or anything along those lines.” Even if they don’t have a timetable, isn’t 12 years a little too long a recovery time? Maybe Irsay is “insane, after all.”
The Colts have won and covered in 80% of their last five road games. The sportsbook total has gone over in seven of Indy’s last eight games on the road.
Facing the Ram-ifications
Rams head coach Sean McVay has been playing it safe with one goal in mind; unleashing his big guns in Week 1 against the Colts. Accordingly, projected starters linebackers Robert Quinn and Mark Barron and cornerback Kayvon Webster didn’t see any preseason action – McVay saving them for the real thing. Backup quarterback Sean Mannion did not even play in the preseason finale, nor did backup receivers Pharoh Cooper and Josh Reynolds. Notwithstanding which the Rams couldn’t keep defensive lineman Dominique Easley and tight end Temarrick Hemingway from sustaining serious injuries. And speaking of key players, McVay is optimistic that defensive tackle Aaron Donald’s holdout will have a happy ending. “I think the level of urgency has certainly raised [sic],” McVay said, via ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez. How much has the level of urgency risen? This much:
As the opener looms, #Rams brass flew to Atlanta on Wednesday for an in-person meeting with reps of star DT Aaron Donald, sources say. 🛬
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 1, 2017
Donald is not as high profile as Le’Veon Bell, but could nonetheless end up the highest-paid defensive player in the league and even, some speculate, the best-paid non-QB.
The Rams are 0-5 straight-up and 0-4-1 against the spread in their last five home games. The sportsbook total has gone over in five of their last six games versus the Colts.