For the third time this season, the 3-3 Indianapolis Colts will attempt to make their way over the .500 mark on Sunday, taking on the 2-3 Miami Dolphins at Lucas Oil Stadium.
As was the case a week ago for the Colts against Tennessee, Miami is also coming off their bye week, meaning that they have the rest advantage as well as additional time to prepare for this matchup.
Back under center for the Colts is Anthony Richardson, who will be making his first start since Week 4 after he sustained an oblique injury in that game. The Dolphins, however, will still be without quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and the offense has struggled to get going this season while he’s been sidelined.
For a closer look at this matchup, click here.
A daunting part of the schedule is upcoming for the Colts. After they play Miami, in consecutive weeks, Indianapolis will play Houston, Minnesota, Buffalo, the New York Jets, and Detroit–which makes this game with the Dolphins all the more important.
But before we get ahead of ourselves, who is going to win this week’s game? Let’s take a look at who the experts are picking.
ESPN
Two of ESPN’s three staff members making predictions picked the Colts in this game. In fact, by ESPN’s FPI model, which runs hundreds if not thousands of simulations, the Colts have a 72.2% chance of winning and do so by 8.9 points.
CBS Sports
Pete Prisco of CBS Sports is picking the Colts. He notes the defensive issues both teams have against the run, so Prisco is taking the Colts because they have the better rushing offense.
Pro Football Talk
Both Mike Florio and Chris Simms are picking the Colts to win this game. In short, both are choosing Indianapolis because of the struggles Miami has had without Tagovailoa.
Sports Illustrated
The Monday Morning Quarterback crew consists of six members, all of which are picking the Colts to win this game.
NFL.com
As has been the trend, the five NFL.com staff members are picking the Colts over the Dolphins. Dan Parr was a bit on the fence with his pick, noting the uncertainty about what the expect from Richardson, but he ultimately picked the Colts because of the issues the Miami offense has had without Tagovailoa.
