Divisional Weekend: Ravens at Colts

Previewing, breaking down, and picking the winners of this weekend’s playoff action. Your picks and game discussion in the comments.

Ravens (9-7) at Colts (14-2)
6:15 p.m. MT
The Line: Colts by 6.5

The Story: Can the Indianapolis Colts regain the fire they enjoyed for fourteen weeks? They haven’t bothered to play a meaningful game — by choice, mind you — in nearly a month, and now they face a red hot Baltimore Ravens team that enjoyed a thorough dismantling of the New England Patriots a week ago.

The Breakdown: I spent a lot of time breaking down the Colts for their December matchup against the Broncos, and if there was one thing I emphasized, it was that the Colts are a lot more than Peyton Manning. They have a blazing fast defense, a decent running game (when they want to), and, oh yeah, they have Peyton Manning. The Ravens’ secondary is certainly suspect, and it doesn’t look good for their CB’s against Reggie Wayne and Peyton’s young duo (not to mention the extremely underrated Dallas Clark). On the other side, the Ravens’ biggest weapon — perhaps their only weapon — is running back Ray Rice.

The Pick: It will take a complete team to knock these Colts out of the playoffs. The Ravens have a good defense, but not a great one. They have an inconsistent passing attack. Joe Flacco can be dynamic, but he can also be rather timid. Either way, it won’t be enough, especially at Lucas Oil Stadium. 28-17, Colts