Sportsbook action has been devoid of NFL odds for too long. But take heart, ye loyal NFL sportsbook fans the preseason is just around the corner. There has been plenty of off season moves being made and one team that will have plenty of question marks to answer when the sportsbook action gets underway is the Indianapolis Colts.
Sportsbook fans were hardly surprised when coach Superbowl winning coach Tony Dungy walked away from his post. But it created a lot more questions than it answered and new coach Jim Caldwell not only has massive shoes to fill, but he’s a tough road ahead as the season draws near. The Colts have been the winningest team in the NFL online sportsbook since Peyton Manning took the helm, but there are plenty of personnel issues that need to be resolved if the team is going to continue to dominate the NFL online action.
Manning is still as good as ever and whatever he’s lost in arm strength or physical prowess he’s made up for in football intelligence. But his receiving corps seems to get less talented every year and that could be a real drag on this team’s success in 2009. Marvin Harrison is probably a 60 catch guy now and Reggie Wayne is going to see a lot more double coverage in the up coming season. Still, Manning always finds a way to make his third and fourth options sportsbook superstars.
The real concern aside from how the team will react to the new coaching administration in the 2009 online sportsbook season is how the defense will hold up. This has always been a weak spot for the Colts and injuries seem to always plague this unit every sportsbook season. If Dwight Freeney and Bob Sanders could ever take the field together this would be a completely different unit and much more successful one in the odds.
Strangely enough the running game is also a big question mark for the Colts entering the 2009 season. With top runners like Erick Dickerson, Marshall Faulk and Edgerin James over the past few years the running game has been a sportsbook main stay for the team, but not this year. Rookie Donald Brown will compete with incumbent Joseph Addai to run behind a beat up O-line.
The Colts should still make the playoffs and maybe even make a post season run in the online online sportsbook odds, but the team is definitely showing cracks in its once invincible armor.