Colts early betting underdogs in Week 4 game vs. Steelers

The Indianapolis Colts improved to 1-2 on the season with a win this past Sunday over the Chicago Bears. Next up on the schedule is another matchup at Lucas Oil Stadium, this time with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Currently, BetMGM has the Colts as two-point underdogs, with the over/under set at 40 points.

Even as the home team, the early betting lines tell us this will be a tough matchup for the Colts.

The run defense for Indianapolis was much-improved against the Bears, but can they do it again? The Steelers are averaging just 3.6 yards per rush, which ranks 28th, however, they are persistent, ranking second in rush attempts per game and 12th in rushing yards per game.

The inability to slow the run game, as we saw in Weeks 1 and 2, has a negative trickle-down effect to the rest of the team, allowing the Steelers to control the time of possession and stay ahead of the sticks, opening up passing game opportunities and manageable third downs.

Although the passing game was still up and down in Week 3, the Colts did seem to establish what should be their offensive blueprint moving forward, which is getting both Jonathan Taylor and Anthony Richardson involved in the run game.

Excluding kneel-downs, the two carried the ball 28 times and rushed for a combined 128 yards with two scores from Taylor.

Similarly to what was just described above, having a run game to lean can be a quarterback’s best friend and take some of the playmaking burden off Richardson’s shoulders.

Getting the run game going, however, won’t be easy against a Steelers defense allowing just 3.5 yards per attempt–the second-lowest rate in football through three games.