5 Questions with Battle Red Blog: Is this a revenge game?

This is absolutely a revenge game.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this article makes it real: NFL football is finally back!

In Week 1 of 2024 our Indianapolis Colts will host the Houston Texans. Knowing the party was coming to town I sat down with Scott Barzilla aka VBallRetired of Battle Red Blog, SB Nation’s Houston Texans blog. We swapped questions and answers about both the Texans and the Colts and what follows is what I’ve learned about this week’s enemy.

Chris Shepherd: The Texans drafted cornerback Kamari Lassiter in the second round and he looks to be penciled in as the starter at outside corner opposite from Derek Stingley Jr. How has Lassiter looked thus far and do you anticipate DeMeco Ryans doing anything schematically to help out the young player in a position that is notoriously difficult to transition into in the NFL?

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Scott Barzilla: Honestly, no one outside of the traditional football media has seen Lassister as he did not play in the preseason. All we have to go on are media reports and the comments from the coaching staff. All reports are that he plays much faster than his combine time would indicate and he was a lockdown corner at Georgia. I anticipate that they will slide the safeties that direction and leave Stingley on an island. I’m sure you will see Stingley on Pittman fairly regularly, so hopefully that’s enough to help out Lassister. We will see on Sunday.

CS: A season ago the Texans struggled with offensive line play as the majority of the line missed time due to injury. The team added Notre Dame tackle Blake Fisher in the second round in a move that added much needed depth. How has the offensive line looked in camp and the preseason and do you expect that they will be able to handle a very deep and talented Colts defensive line group on Sunday?

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Scott: You are stealing the thunder from my Roses and Thorns article here. In short, this is the biggest area of concern this week for the Texans. Three of the four starting defensive linemen for the Colts played at a Pro Bowl level as measured by Pro Football Focus. Kenyon Green returns from injured reserve last year. He was disappointing in his rookie season, but rededicated himself to his conditioning and came back in much better shape. Reports are good but we won’t know until he plays on Sundays. Juice Scruggs (second round pick in 2023) was slated to play center last year but spent more time at guard. Center is his natural position, so hopefully that is two positions made stronger from last season. However, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t worried.

CS: The Texans added both Stefon Diggs and Joe Mixon to what was already a very good offense a season ago. Colts fans coping with the addition of two very talented players are likely to point out that both Diggs and Mixon are a little older than what is considered ideal for their positions. Given that this is week one how would you respond to that criticism?

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Scott: I was generally in favor of both additions, but I wouldn’t have given Mixon his extension. I think both players are primed to be good in 2024, but I definitely would echo any criticism of both beyond this season. Fortunately, neither needs to be dominant at their position. They are just other weapons in a deep and talented offense. I would share their criticism if they were expected to be the number one and two offensive options, but I don’t think that will be the case.

CS: If you were an offensive coordinator charged with creating a game plan for attacking the Houston Texans defense, what would be your strategy? What weaknesses would you target? What strengths would you avoid? How would you plan to score points?

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Scott: Despite their 2023 numbers, the defense is not really a strong run defense and they jettisoned both starting defensive tackles from last season. I would play old-fashioned smash mouth football against the Texans defense. The strength of their defense is with three really good defensive ends that will wreak havoc in the passing game. If the Colts get stuck in third and longs it could be a very long day. The best way around that is to leave yourself third and shorts with a steady diet of Jonathan Taylor and some RPOs with Anthony Richardson. If you force the Texans to commit that seventh defender to the box then you can beat them over the top later in the game.

CS: FanDuel Sportsbook currently lists the Texans as 2.5 point favorites on the road this weekend. Gun to your head are you taking that bet and what’s the final score going to be?

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Scott: I’ll take the bet and go Texans 28-24. It scares me to be this confident given the history of this matchup and the history of our franchise, but I have a good feeling about this team. There is just too much fire power to keep this offense down and while the Texans defense can be moved on, I think there are enough playmakers to take advantage of a key Anthony Richardson mistake late in the game.

If you’re betting on this game, you can find updated lines at FanDuel Sportsbook.

And with that, ladies and gentlemen, our week one preview with the enemy is in the books. As always I want to thank Scott for working with me and giving us a a look into what the Houston Texans will bring to Indianapolis this weekend. It’s too bad Scott writes about the Texans because otherwise he seems like a really good guy.

Here’s to an injury free game and the official start of the 2024 season.

Go Colts.