Indianapolis (3-0) at Los Angeles Rams (2-1)
Sunday, 4:05 p.m. EDT, FOX
BetMGM NFL Odds: Rams by 3 1/2
Against the spread: Colts 3-0; Rams 2-1
Series record: Colts lead 23-22-2.
Last meeting: Rams beat Colts 29-23 in Indianapolis on Oct. 1, 2023.
Last week: Colts beat Titans 41-20; Rams lost to Eagles 33-26.
Colts offense: overall (2), rush (3), pass (4), scoring (T-2).
Colts defense: overall (7), rush (8), pass (8), scoring (T-9).
Rams offense: overall (5), rush (T-9), pass (10), scoring (11).
Rams defense:
overall (5), rush (13), pass (6), scoring (14).
Turnover differential: Colts plus-5; Rams plus-1.
Michael Pittman Jr. The sixth-year receiver finally looks healthy after dealing with a back injury most of last season. QB Daniel Jones has looked his direction more often the past couple of weeks and Pittman has responded with two TD catches in the past three games and some strong runs after the catch.
OLB Jared Verse shook off a slow start to the season by getting his first sack and two tackles for loss in addition to forcing a fumble in the loss to the Eagles. The Rams need Verse and edge rushing counterpart Byron Young to turn up the pressure on Colts QB Daniel Jones, who has been sacked on a league-low 2.3% of his drop-backs.
Rams offense vs. Colts red zone defense. With a more effective scoring touch inside the 20 against Philadelphia, Los Angeles could have cruised to a win over the defending Super Bowl champs. However, in four trips into the red zone, QB Matthew Stafford and the offense could only generate one touchdown and two field goals, with four points lost on center Coleman Shelton’s holding penalty that negated a scoring run by Kyren Williams. Indianapolis has allowed touchdowns on all six such opportunities faced this season, so whichever group is able to get on track should have a major edge.
Indy’s biggest questions this week are whether WR Alec Pierce will clear concussion protocol in time to suit up Sunday and the severity of Pro Bowl CB Kenny Moore II’s calf injury. Coach Shane Steichen said he didn’t expect Moore to be placed on injured reserve but also did not provide a timetable for his return. Rookie TE Tyler Warren (toe) played last week despite being on the mid-week injury list. ... Rams LG Steve Avila could return after missing the past two games because of a sprained ankle. RT Rob Havenstein (ankle) and WR Davante Adams (hamstring) missed some practice time this week but should be able to play.
Indianapolis has lost four straight in this series and has not won in Los Angeles — against the Rams, Chargers or Raiders — since 1986 when they defeated the Raiders 30-24. ... These franchises were involved in one of the strangest trades in sports history. The late Robert Irsay bought the Rams in July 1972 then traded his franchise to Carroll Rosenbloom in exchange for the then-Baltimore Colts. Irsay moved the Colts to Indy in 1984. Eleven years later, Rosenbloom’s widow, the late Georgia Frontiere, moved the Rams to St. Louis. The Rams returned to Los Angeles in 2016.
Indianapolis is 3-0 for the first time since 2009 when it opened the season with 14 consecutive wins and won the AFC title before losing in the Super Bowl to New Orleans. ... The Colts have allowed a league-low two sacks this season and have punted just once, becoming the first team since at least 1940 to have only one punt through three games. ... Jones won his first three starts with the Colts after winning just three of his previous 16 starts, all with the New York Giants. ... Pittman needs seven receptions to pass Dallas Clark (427) to take over fifth place on the franchise’s career list. ... Warren has 14 receptions and 193 yards, the most among Colts tight ends in their first three games. ... Indy’s defense is tied for the second-fewest red zone drives allowed this season (six). ... K Spencer Shrader leads the league in scoring (43 points) and field goals (11). … The Rams have 12 sacks, tied with the Broncos for most in the NFL. … Young has come out of the gates quickly, amassing four sacks and six tackles for loss to rank second in both categories. If he gets a sack Sunday, Young would match his career-long four-game streak set last season in Weeks 8-11. … Williams has scored a rushing touchdown in 12 of his past 15 home games. … Thanks in part to creative kickoffs from Joshua Karty, Los Angeles is allowing a league-low 13.5 yards per return. … Puka Nacua and Adams combined have accounted for 73.9% of the Rams’ receiving yards and 66.7% of their catches. Nacua has 29 grabs for 333 yards, and Adams has 213 yards on 13 receptions. … RB Blake Corum has set career highs in rushing yards in each of the past two weeks. He had 44 yards and his first career touchdown at Tennessee and topped it with 53 yards on eight carries at Philadelphia.
Jones has been one of the top surprises in the league through three games, but a good amount of his fantasy value has come from the three rushing touchdowns he scored against Miami and Denver. Taking into account how stingy the Rams were for the first 10 quarters of the season with the frustration the defense feels from the second-half struggles against the Eagles, there might be better options than Jones this week.
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