This Week
The New England Patriots visit their most bitter AFC rival and defending Super Bowl Champion Indianapolis Colts in the RCA Dome in Indianapolis IN. Kickoff is at 4:15 p.m. This is the first ever meeting in NFL history between two teams at least 7-0.
The Patriots are 4-0 on the road this season and 6-0 in the AFC. The Colts are 3-0 at home and 5-0 in the AFC.
Here are the rosters for the Patriots and Colts.
The Line/Prediction
As of Thursday the line on the game from Yahoo Sports is Patriots -5. The over/under is 56.5.
My prediction is Patriots 34, Colts, 28. Give the points and take the over. I am 8-0 against the spread and have called the over/under seven out of eight times in 2007.
Tickets
The Colts are reporting the game as a sell out.
Tickets to the game, if available, may be purchased through Ticketmaster. You can check the availability here. Many times tickets are released in the last 48 hours prior to the game.
Getting To The Game
If you’re lucky enough to be going to the game in the Indianapolis make sure you check out the links.
There is no weather information as the game will played indoors.
The Colts will be collecting canned foods and non-perishable food items as they team up with a local supermarket , Meijers, and Gleaners Food Bank for the second year and the “Sacking Hunger” program. Items will be collected outside the RCA Dome from 2:15 p.m. until kickoff two hours later. If you’re going to the game, show them what makes Pats fans great and donate some items.
Click for stadium directions, parking and stadium information, and a RCA Dome seating chart.
Tailgating
Here’s a little addition for this week and the rest of the season game previews. I’ve always loved this site and I’ve even tried some of the recipes.
Here’s a bunch of different tailgating recipes from Tailgaiting America. There’s something there for everyone and every type of meal or snack.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
Television
CBS is televising the game, and it is cleared for nearly the entire country. The play-by-play duties will be handled by Jim Nantz with Phil Simms doing game analysis. You can check here to see if you are getting the game from CBS and look for your local CBS Station.
Radio
The Patriots Rock Radio Network broadcasts the game from flagship station WBCN-FM 104.1 in Boston. Gil Santos handles the play-by-play and former Patriot Gino Cappelletti does the color.
It all starts with Gary Tanguay, Scott Zolak and Andy Gresch and the pregame show at 1 p.m. along the network.
The post game starts after the final gun and continues for three hours.
Check this out for the low down on the Patriots Rock Radio Network and stations in your area.
If you are outside of the broadcast area of the stations on the Patriots Rock Radio Network you can purchase NFL Field Pass which allows you to listen to any NFL game live. You can also pick which teams broadcasters you want to listen to.
All NFL games are also available on Sirius Satellite Radio. The Patriots radio call is available on Channel 122, the Colts radio call is available on Channel 123.
The game can be heard nationally on Westwood One. Bill Rosinski and Dan Reeves will call the game.
Last Week
The Patriots kept their record perfect and improved to 8-0 with their first win over the Redskins since 1972 winning in Foxboro, 52-7. The Colts also kept their record unblemished beating the Panthers on the road 31-7.
History
This is the 71st meeting between the Patriots and the Colts and the 8th since 2003.
New England has had more success against the Colts then any other team in the AFC they have played at least 10 times with a .614 winning pct over the Baltimore/Indianapolis franchise.
The Patriots are 17-7 against Indy since 1993 and have won 14 of the last 19 with the Colts winning the last three meetings including last seasons AFC Championship Game, 38-34.
The Patriots are 13-7 in the RCA Dome and have won the last two regular season meetings in Indianapolis.
Patriots lead the all-times series 43-27 (including playoffs).
Connections
- Patriots head coach Bill Belichick began his NFL coaching career as a special assistant for the Baltimore Colts in 1975 under head coach Ted Marchibroda.
- Patriots assistant head coach/offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia was the offensive line coach for the Colts from 1989-90. Outside of those two seasons, Scarnecchia has been on the Patriots sidelines for each year since 1982.
- Patriots special teams coach Brad Seely got his first NFL coaching job as the special teams and tight ends coach of the Colts from 1989-93.
- Patriots quarterback Tom Brady made his first NFL start against the Colts and completed 13 of 23 passes for 168 yards in a 44-13 victory on Sept. 30, 2001.
- Patriots linebacker Rosevelt Colvin grew up in Indianapolis and attended Broad Ripple High School in the city. He went on to attend Purdue University, where he was a three-year starter. Colvin and his wife Tiffany own two UPS Stores in Indianapolis.
- Patriots tackle Matt Light earned four letters at Purdue University (1996, 1998-2000), earning All-Big Ten conference first-team honors in 2000.
- Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri played for the Patriots for 10 seasons from 1996-2005 and is New England’s all-time leading scorer with 1,158 points and also holds the team record with 263 successful field goals.
- Colts defensive tackle Dan Klecko was drafted in the fourth round of the 2003 NFL Draft by the Patriots and played in 29 games with three starts for New England over three seasons from 2003-05.
- Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney was born in Hartford, Conn., and attended Bloomfield High School, where he was a SuperPrep, Prep Football Report, USA Today, New Haven Register, Hartford Courant and Blue Chip Illustrated All- American selection.
Other News
This is the link to head coach Bill Belichick’s Wednesday press conference on the Colts. You can also see what Indianapolis head coach Tony Dungy had to say about the game in a conference call with the New England media.
The Patriots are the first team in NFL history to win it’s first eight games by 17 or more points.
This is Tom Brady’s 102nd consecutive start. It is the third longest streak among NFL quarterbacks behind only Peyton Manning and Brett Favre.
The Patriots are still without wide receivers Chad Jackson and Troy Brown who are on the PUP List. They are eligible to practice and can be activated during this time but after Week 9 must either be activated or placed on the IR for the season. Here is the injury list for the game.
On Friday afternoon the Patriots placed running back Sammy Morris on the injured reserve list with a chest injury, he is out for the season. Tight End Benjamin Watson is expected to play on Sunday after missing the last three weeks with an ankle injury. Tight End Kyle Brady is also expected to play after missing last weeks game against Washington.
The Patriots are 8-0 for the first time in franchise history.
The Patriots have scored 149 points in the last three weeks. It was the highest three week point total since the 1950 Los Angeles Rams scored 163. Those same Rams hold the NFL record for most points scored per game with 38.8. Currently the Patriots are scoring 41.4 points per game.
NFL Pro Bowl balloting runs through Dec. 11. Fans may vote online at nfl.com/probowl or by sending the text message “PRO” to 7777 from a phone with Sprint wireless service. The AFC and NFC All-Star squads are determined by the consensus votes of fans, players and coaches. Each group’s vote counts one-third towards determining each conference’s 43-man roster.
This winner of this game will most likely get home field advantage in the playoffs. This game is generally considered a preview of the likely AFC Championship game. Regardless of who loses this Sunday, this game is far from a make or break game for either team and the team that ends up with the loss will recover just fine.
News from this weeks opponent:
The Colts have won 12 consecutve games dating back to last season.
Colts RB Joseph Addai was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week. He had 100 yards and 2 TD’s on 23 carries against Carolina.
Head coach Tony Dungy gave the Colts players Monday and Tuesday off this week instead of the usual one day off.
Colts WR Marvin Harrison did not practice on Thursday. He is listed as doubtful for Sunday. The 8-time pro bowler missed last weeks game at Carolina.
Colts TE Dallas Clark says when it comes to the Patriots defense the one thing you can expect is the unexpected:
“That’s kind of their tradition, their m.o. (mode of operation),” Clark said. “Every week they sort of have a little package, or a play – something where they try to throw a little wrinkle in what you do and keep you off-balance. It’s one of those things.”
The Colts are building a new stadium, Lucas Oil Stadium. It is scheduled to open for the 2008 season.
We know everyone loves to tailgate or just make a great dish to eat at home, the Colts have a whole page full of recipes.
Next Week
The Patriots have a bye week. After the week off, they return to face AFC East rival Buffalo Bills on the road in Orchard Park NY. The game will be televised by CBS and heard all along the Patriots Rock Radio Network. Kickoff is at 1 p.m.
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