With a ton of distractions in his first NFL camp as a head coach, Shane Steichen likely wants nothing more than to quiet the noise and establish a winning culture with the Indianapolis Colts and that begins Saturday afternoon at Highmark Stadium vs. the Buffalo Bills as decent 3.5-point favorites with a total of 38.
With the much better quarterback rotation, Anthony Richardson likely to see multiple series, and Buffalo resting its big stars, should bettors be laying more than a field goal with the visitors in the matinee?
Here are my free NFL preseason picks and predictions for Colts vs. Bills.
Colts vs Bills odds
Colts vs Bills predictions
Shane Steichen had his hands in the development of Jalen Hurts and Justin Herbert while new Indy OC Jim Bob Cooter helped with Trevor Lawrence last year in Jacksonville. The Colts’ quarterbacks are in good hands and will have the edge Saturday afternoon in Orchard Park.
Bettors moved the Colts from -2.5 to -3.5 as Steichen announced that first-round rookie Anthony Richardson will get the start. It’s always a fast game for rookies as we saw with CJ Stroud on Thursday, but Richardson has the legs to move the sticks and with Buffalo not playing Josh Allen or other key starters and instead leaning on the younger players, there’s a lot to like about the Colts. Even enough to take them at -3.5 on the road in Buffalo, which will likely be loud with the return of Damar Hamlin.
Richardson might not win the game, but Steichan has some decent talents behind him. Gardner Minshew will get the ball second and the fringe starter comes into the preseason already familiar with Steichen’s system as the pair were in Philadelphia last year. Sam Ehlinger will likely be the closer. He got starts last year for Indy, has decent wheels, and has posted decent-to-good preseason numbers over two years.
That trio will face the Buffalo duo of Matt Barkley and Kyle Allen who will be playing behind a thin offensive line and be backed by a defense that made zero upgrades in the offseason and departed with DC Leslie Frazier.
The motivation is high for the Colts’ coaching staff, especially with all the distractions of late and the Richardson/Minshew/Ehlinger trio is worth a field goal vs. Allen and Barkley, in my opinion. The Colts are banged up in the running back department, but all three QBs have solid rushing talent to overcome it.
Bettors can get some better odds by using Caesars’ 25% boost this weekend with the Colts -3.5 at -110, which can be boosted to +114. It has a max of $50 but is an easy way to increase that +EV.
My best bet: Colts -3.5 (-110 at Caesars or +114 with the 25% boost)
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