The New England Patriots are coming off their bye week and will travel to Indianapolis to face the Colts on Sunday Night Football. Each team will be missing a defensive starter for tonight's matchup.
Although they had two weeks of rest, the Patriots will still be without defensive end Chandler Jones (hip), who has been sidelined since Week 8. The team is unsure if he'll be back this season although it was originally believed he would miss six weeks at most. Two defensive backups, defensive end Dominique Easley (knee) and safety Nate Ebner (finger), are listed as questionable and were limited in practice this week.
On the offensive side of the ball, quarterback Tom Brady (ankle) and wide receiver Matthew Slater (shoulder) are listed as probable. Guard Ryan Wendell (knee) and tackle Cameron Fleming (finger) are listed as questionable and were also limited in practice this week. The Patriots (7-2) have won five consecutive games, including a 43-21 victory over the Denver Broncos in Week 9. They look to take their offensive momentum into Indianapolis tonight and battle the Colts.
Indianapolis (6-3) has won six of their last seven games after starting 0-2. They're also coming off of a bye week after demolishing the New York Giants 40-24 on Monday Night Football in Week 9. But they'll be without defensive tackle Arthur Jones (ankle) yet again after he aggravated the injury in the team's Week 8 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Four linebackers - Erik Walden (quad), Victor Butler (hamstring), Josh McNary (ankle) and Henoc Muamba (toe) - are all listed as probable and were full participants in practice this week.
The only worry for the Colts is offensive tackle Gosder Cherilus (groin), who has a chance to miss tonight's game. If he's unable to go, Joe Reitz or Xavier Nixon will start in his place. Wide receiver Reggie Wayne (not injury related) was on this week's injury report as well, but he's expected to play tonight.
Andrew Luck will face Tom Brady on his home turf for the first time in his career. Luck has lost his only two matchups against the Pats, both of which were on the road, losing by a combined score of 102-46. Each game has been a high scoring affair, which is no surprise as to why the over/under is at 57 right now.
Tune into NBC at 8:00 p.m. for coverage of Sunday Night Football.
