The two former employers of legendary quarterback Peyton Manning square off on Thursday Night Football this week as the Indianapolis Colts face the Denver Broncos. Fittingly, it will be a battle of two veteran quarterbacks making late career moves to new franchises with Matt Ryan leading the Colts and Russell Wilson now the new face of the Broncos. Here, we assemble a Colts vs Broncos parlay for this matchup of new-look offenses.
Week 4 was a disappointment for both teams, suffering divisional losses that sent them down the standings in the AFC West and AFC South respectively. The Colts laid an egg after their upset win over the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 3, losing to the Tennessee Titans in a game where they started down three scores due to a sluggish first quarter performance.
Meanwhile, Wilson and the Broncos traveled to Las Vegas and got punched in the mouth by the Raiders. Worse for Denver, they lost their lead back Javonte Williams in an injury that forced the Broncos into using mistake prone Melvin Gordon more than head coach Nathaniel Hackett would likely have wanted to.
Luckily for the Broncos, the Colts will be without their star running back Jonathan Taylor on Thursday night. The absence of Taylor will be unlucky for fantasy owners and prop bettors, who now have to handicap a game where both starting running backs are missing.
Luckily for everyone, we have you covered with three of the best bets for Thursday Night Football in one juicy Colts vs Broncos Same Game Parlay.
Pick 1 | Denver Broncos Moneyline (-175) |
Pick 2 | Courtland Sutton Over 64.5 Receiving Yards (-110) |
Pick 3 | Russell Wilson Over 12.5 Rushing Yards (-110) |
Parlay Odds | +425 (Bet $20 to win $85) |
Pick 1: Denver Broncos Moneyline (-175)
The Denver Broncos have been an up and down football team this season as indicated by their 2-2 record after the opening month. What is encouraging for Denver is that the Broncos have kept it close enough in all four games and look to be a competitive squad.
Facing the Colts at home with Indy missing their workhorse running back is a matchup where Russell Wilson and company should be expected to take care of business. Taylor’s presence in the rushing attack is what makes the Colts go, and Denver’s defense should be able to stifle the Matt Ryan led offense without having to worry about one of the best backs in football. Both of these teams haven’t been great so far but the Broncos are a bit better and also have the homefield advantage.
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Pick 2: Courtland Sutton Over 64.5 Receiving Yards (-110)
Courtland Sutton has been thriving with Wilson as his new quarterback, taking his game to new heights after struggling late last season due to the Broncos mediocre group of passers in 2021. With an upgrade at QB, Sutton has taken off and already has surpassed 300 yards on the year along with recording his first touchdown of the season in the loss to the Raiders last week.
Sutton’s yardage numbers were slightly down last week with just 52 yards on five catches against the Raiders, the first game of 2022 where he didn’t record 70 yards or more. I expect Sutton to return to the 70+ yardage mark against the Colts, particularly with the Broncos potentially throwing the ball a bit more due to the absence of Williams at running back.
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Pick 3: Russell Wilson Over 12.5 Rushing Yards (-110)
Russell Wilson doesn’t tuck it and run as much as he used to in his younger days, yet the aging veteran has flashed his former dual threat talents the last two weeks with the odd scamper to move the chains with his feet.
Wilson ran the football six times for 17 yards against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 3 and followed that up with four more scrambles against the Raiders for 29 yards and a rushing touchdown on top. Based on the game logs and the success he found in Week 4 with the touchdown, it looks like Wilson is getting more and more comfortable with calling his own number when the opportunity arises to get a first down on his own.
With Denver’s aforementioned uncertainty at running back, the chance of Wilson running the football increases and at a low number of 12.5 yards it is a low value parlay add-on to bank on him stealing a few first downs with his legs.
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Colts vs Broncos Preview
The Broncos addressed their running back issues with Javonte Williams headed to the IR this week by signing veteran running back Latavius Murray. Murray – a journeyman running back with stints on multiple teams – will be familiar to Broncos fans and their AFC West opponents as a former draft pick of the Raiders when they were back in Oakland.
On the defensive side of the football, both the Colts and the Broncos are also now without a key name along with their running back blues. Indianapolis will be missing Shaquille Leonard with a concussion and broken nose suffered against the Titans, meanwhile Denver had to place pass rusher Randy Gregory on the IR. Bad news for both defensive units, but a likely relief for the quarterbacks for Thursday night.
Denver’s offense has not been nearly as potent as expected when the team made the decision to hire respected offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett as their head coach. The much hyped offensive guru has the Broncos averaging only 14 points per game thus far and the pressure is on both the head coach and quarterback in Denver to start to put points on the scoreboard in bunches.
The Indianapolis Colts are one of the worst first quarter teams in the NFL so far this season as bad starts have contributed to the team’s 1-2-1 start. The Colts have scored just 10 points in the first quarter through four games, ranking them 22nd in the league in first quarter offense. On defense, the Colts have given up 27 first quarter points as the team has to find a way to stop the trend of needing to dig themselves out of early holes in games.
NFL
Indianapolis Colts
Denver Broncos
Team Stats
Passing
Offense/Defense
IND | Passing | DEN |
---|---|---|
355 | CMP | 382 |
574 | ATT | 572 |
61.8 | CMP% | 66.8 |
215.6 | YDS/GM | 233.6 |
6.8 | Y/A | 7.5 |
6.0 | NY/A | 6.5 |
10 | INT | 11 |
41 | SK | 42 |
Defense/Offense
IND | Passing | DEN |
---|---|---|
370 | CMP | 337 |
568 | ATT | 513 |
65.1 | CMP% | 65.7 |
226 | YDS/GM | 191.9 |
7.3 | Y/A | 7.0 |
6.2 | NY/A | 5.8 |
15 | INT | 9 |
51 | SK | 52 |
Rushing
Offense/Defense
IND | Rushing | DEN |
---|---|---|
17 | G | 17 |
479 | ATT | 469 |
2059 | YDS | 2331 |
121.1 | Y/G | 137.1 |
4.3 | Y/A | 5.0 |
19 | TD | 15 |
1.1 | TD/G | 0.9 |
Defense/Offense
IND | Rushing | DEN |
---|---|---|
17 | G | 17 |
518 | ATT | 451 |
2105 | YDS | 1810 |
123.8 | Y/G | 106.5 |
4.1 | Y/A | 4.0 |
22 | TD | 8 |
1.3 | TD/G | 0.5 |
Special Teams
Offense/Defense
IND | Special Teams | DEN |
---|---|---|
29 | Punts/Ret | 31 |
267 | Punt/Yds | 195 |
9.2 | Punt/Y/R | 6.3 |
9 | Kick Off/Ret | 8 |
200 | Kick Off/Yds | 172 |
22.2 | Kick Off/Y/rt | 21.5 |
Defense/Offense
IND | Special Teams | DEN |
---|---|---|
38 | Punts/Ret | 20 |
360 | Punt/Yds | 326 |
9.5 | Punt/Y/R | 16.3 |
15 | Kick Off/Ret | 16 |
391 | Kick Off/Yds | 398 |
26.1 | Kick Off/Y/rt | 24.9 |
Scoring
Offense/Defense
IND | Scoring | DEN |
---|---|---|
17 | G | 17 |
19 | RshTD | 15 |
18 | RecTD | 29 |
33 | FGM | 30 |
41 | FGA | 35 |
23.3 | Pts/G | 24.3 |
Defense/Offense
IND | Scoring | DEN |
---|---|---|
17 | G | 17 |
22 | RshTD | 8 |
21 | RecTD | 28 |
36 | FGM | 30 |
41 | FGA | 34 |
24.4 | Pts/G | 21.0 |
Team Advanced Defense
IND | Defense | DEN |
---|---|---|
15.7% | Bltz% | 35.0% |
4.5% | Hrry% | 4.4% |
8.3% | QB Hit% | 8.2% |
19.6% | QB Prss% | 18.2% |
Injuries
Name | Position | Injury | Status | Updated |
---|---|---|---|---|
Andrew Ogletree | TE | Knee (acl) | Out | 10/06/22 |
Armani Watts | S | Ankle | Out | 10/06/22 |
Carter O'Donnell | OT | Undisclosed | Out | 10/06/22 |
Jonathan Taylor | RB | Ankle | Out | 10/06/22 |
Julian Blackmon | S | Ankle | Out | 10/06/22 |
Luke Tenuta | OT | Gameday Inactive | Out | 10/06/22 |
Rigoberto Sanchez | P | Achilles | Out | 10/06/22 |
Sam Ehlinger | QB | Gameday Inactive | Out | 10/06/22 |
Shaquille Leonard | LB | Concussion | Out | 10/06/22 |
Trevor Denbow | S | Foot | Out | 10/06/22 |
Tyquan Lewis | DE | Concussion | Out | 10/06/22 |
Wesley French | C | Gameday Inactive | Out | 10/06/22 |
DeForest Buckner | DT | Elbow | Probable | 10/05/22 |
Ryan Kelly | C | Knee | Probable | 10/05/22 |
Name | Position | Injury | Status | Updated |
---|---|---|---|---|
Aaron Patrick | OLB | Head | Out | 10/06/22 |
Christopher Allen | OLB | Foot | Out | 10/06/22 |
Damarea Crockett | RB | Acl | Out | 10/06/22 |
Darius Phillips | CB | Hamstring | Out | 10/06/22 |
Greg Dulcich | TE | Hamstring | Out | 10/06/22 |
Jalen Virgil | WR | Gameday Inactive | Out | 10/06/22 |
Javonte Williams | RB | Knee | Out | 10/06/22 |
Jonathon Cooper | OLB | Hamstring | Out | 10/06/22 |
Justin Simmons | S | Quad | Out | 10/06/22 |
Latavius Murray | RB | Gameday Inactive | Out | 10/06/22 |
Michael Ojemudia | CB | Elbow | Out | 10/06/22 |
P.J. Locke | S | Concussion | Out | 10/06/22 |
Quinn Meinerz | G | Hamstring | Out | 10/06/22 |
Randy Gregory | OLB | Knee | Out | 10/06/22 |
Tim Patrick | WR | Acl | Out | 10/06/22 |
Tom Compton | OL | Back | Out | 10/06/22 |
Caden Sterns | S | Hip | Questionable | 10/05/22 |
Melvin Gordon III | RB | Neck | Questionable | 10/05/22 |
Russell Wilson | QB | Shoulder | Questionable | 10/05/22 |
Billy Turner | OL | Knee | Probable | 10/06/22 |
Dalton Risner | G | Ankle | Probable | 10/05/22 |
K'Waun Williams | CB | Wrist | Probable | 10/05/22 |
Tyrie Cleveland | WR | Hamstring | Probable | 10/06/22 |
Betting Trends
IND | Betting Trends | DEN |
---|---|---|
OVERALL | OVERALL | |
1-2-0 | Win/Loss/Tie | 2-1-0 |
1-2-0 | ATS W/L/P | 1-2-0 |
12.33 | Avg Score | 16.67 |
21.67 | Avg Opp Score | 17 |
AWAY | HOME | |
0-2-1 | Win/Loss/Tie | 2-1-0 |
0-3-0 | ATS W/L/P | 2-1-0 |
10.33 | Avg Score | 17 |
23.33 | Avg Opp Score | 15.67 |
IND | Betting Trends | DEN |
---|---|---|
OVERALL | OVERALL | |
1-3-1 | Win/Loss/Tie | 2-3-0 |
1-4-0 | ATS W/L/P | 2-3-0 |
13.6 | Avg Score | 18 |
22.2 | Avg Opp Score | 19.2 |
AWAY | HOME | |
2-2-1 | Win/Loss/Tie | 3-2-0 |
2-3-0 | ATS W/L/P | 3-2-0 |
16.8 | Avg Score | 19.8 |
17.2 | Avg Opp Score | 14.4 |
IND | Betting Trends | DEN |
---|---|---|
OVERALL | OVERALL | |
4-5-1 | Win/Loss/Tie | 3-7-0 |
4-6-0 | ATS W/L/P | 3-7-0 |
19.9 | Avg Score | 17.3 |
20.5 | Avg Opp Score | 19.4 |
AWAY | HOME | |
5-4-1 | Win/Loss/Tie | 5-5-0 |
6-4-0 | ATS W/L/P | 5-5-0 |
22.3 | Avg Score | 18.8 |
19.2 | Avg Opp Score | 18.2 |