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Colts: 3 way-too-early predictions based on Indy’s 2021 schedule

By Adam Weinrib

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - SEPTEMBER 27: Darius Leonard #53 of the Indianapolis Colts walks off the field after the game against the New York Jets at Lucas Oil Stadium on September 27, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - SEPTEMBER 27: Darius Leonard #53 of the Indianapolis Colts walks off the field after the game against the New York Jets at Lucas Oil Stadium on September 27, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /
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Spoiler alert: the Indianapolis Colts are winning the Super Bowl.

This season? Well, not sure. But they’ll win it at some point, and you’ll be there.

All kidding aside, the Colts have as good as chance as in any recent season to capture the Lombardi this year, and even the league’s objective analysts believe that, if everything breaks right, they might become the premier threat to the Chiefs in the AFC.

They did steal a key blocker up front from that group, after all. Could help.

In addition to that all-important leak, there was plenty to be gleaned on Wednesday night from the league’s official schedule release.

For one thing, you’ll see an expanded number of primetime games — four, to be exact, and one of every flavor, on Christmas Day Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Thursday. You can thank Jim Irsay for that, as he apparently made a request to the Commissioner.

Th…thanks, man.

After combing through the schedule several times, identifying trap games, mapping out wins and losses in our heads, mapping out those same wins and losses on little scraps of paper, and declaring the Colts alternatively the best team in the league and “totally screwed” depending on the time of day, we think we have a few bold takeaways to declare.

This is a very talented football team. It’s also a high-variance club that might look really bad a few times, and that’s alright. Using recent Colts history as a measuring stick, we have a few out-of-left-field predictions that we think will hold water when push comes to shove.

These 3 Bold Colts Predictions are way too early…and they’re also correct.

Colts
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – JANUARY 09: Russell Wilson #3 of the Seattle Seahawks looks to throw the ball in the first quarter against the Los Angeles Rams during the NFC Wild Card Playoff game at Lumen Field on January 09, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /

3. Russell Wilson Has Most Dominant QB Performance vs Colts All Season

Remember Week 1 of the 2020 season? Almost enough said.

Alright, fine, we’ll say more.

Indianapolis historically struggles to contain mobile quarterbacks, Russell Wilson might be the most power-armed mobile quarterback in NFL history, and Indy’s cornerbacks (um, how do we put this) might need more than a few reps before they can work themselves into a rhythm.

Add every ingredient together, and the Colts might need to enter a shootout if they’re going to take home a Week 1 victory and reverse last year’s disappointing trend of coming out flat.

Who else on the Colts’ schedule can rival Wilson? Matthew Stafford has a cannon, but he doesn’t provide the same dual threat. Tannehill and Tua? Good, not great. Tom Brady? We’ll get to him. We’re operating under the assumption Deshaun Watson won’t play, so definitely not Davis Mills.

That leaves Kyler Murray and Wilson as the prime candidates to embarrass Indy’s patchwork secondary. We’ll give Wilson’s veteran gumption the edge, and we’ll bet that plenty of laps are run at the Colts facility prior to Week 2 against the Rams, also at home.

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