NFL Thursday Night Football Preview – Week 16: Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts
Thursday, Dec. 22
Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts – 8:20 PM
Houston (10-4) had its seven-game win streak snapped by lowly Carolina last Sunday. Having already clinched the AFC South and a playoff spot, the Texans look to stay in the race for a first-round playoff bye and home-field advantage by turning the NFL's second best rushing attack loose on the Colts, who give up an average of 138.7 rushing yards per game. Indy held Tennessee's Chris Johnson to 55 yards last week, though. Arian Foster, the league's sixth-leading rusher with 1,066 yards, will be counted on to take pressure off rookie quarterback T.J. Yates.
Indianapolis (1-13) has a passing offense that averages 180.6 yards per game, ranking 30th in the league. Quarterback Dan Orlovsky will be hard-pressed to surpass that average against Houston, the NFL's second-ranked pass defense. Running back Donald Brown was the star of the Colts' first win of the season, a 27-13 victory over Tennessee on Sunday. He'll need plenty of help to duplicate his 161-yard rushing day against the Texans.