5 Bold Predictions for Indianapolis Colts' Week 13 Matchup

Before Week 12, a bold prediction for an Indianapolis Colts game might've been "Andrew Luck won't throw for 300 yards."

I missed the bus on that one. Against the Jacksonville Jaguars too.

Nevertheless, the NFL remains an unpredictable and constantly surprising landscape of action. As such, one of our favorite pieces is ready for another iteration.

Let's take a look at the boldest of the bold. Read on if you wish to know what unexpected happenings are set to happen between the Colts and the Washington Redskins.

Colt McCoy Will Throw 2 Touchdowns

Tim Sharp/Associated Press

Colt McCoy has already seen some action in 2014.

Colt McCoy is already 28 years old. Doesn't that seem bizarre?

After being drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the third round of the 2010 NFL draft, McCoy never really got a legitimate chance to be "the guy."

In 2011 he was the starter for 13 games, so I can hear you, Browns fan, that he had a chance and didn't take it. But let's break down that team for two seconds.

Starting skill players: Greg "Stone Hands" Little, Joshua "MTV" Cribbs (best known as a returner), Mohamed Massaquoi (best known for being unknown) and who can forget Peyton "How Did I Get on the Cover of Madden?" Hillis?

Hillis averaged a Trent Richardson-esque 3.6 yards per carry that season, and Little led the team in receiving with a saddening 709 yards.

Despite the hilariously understaffed offensive weaponry, McCoy threw 14 touchdowns to only 11 interceptions. It was nothing mind-blowing, but many quarterbacks have done worse without being thrown out into the cold—not so for McCoy, who was supplanted in 2012 by the oldest first-round pick in NFL draft history, Brandon Weeden.

I don't need to remind you how that went for Cleveland.

Long-winded point being: McCoy is not so bad. With the right personnel and scheme, there's no reason to believe he couldn't manage a team into the playoffs. He probably won't change your mind about benching Pierre Garcon on your fantasy team this week, but that's somewhat irrelevant.

What he can do is make you pay for loading eight guys into the box and daring him to throw. McCoy will get DeSean Jackson and perhaps Garcon the ball in single coverage given the opportunity.

I see the Colts doing exactly that, expecting Vontae Davis to nullify Jackson as much as possible. It will probably work for the most part, but McCoy will hit a few key throws and get the Redskins into the end zone a couple times.

Alfred Morris Has Less Than 45 Yards

Tony Avelar/Associated Press

Alfred Morris is in for a lousy day at the office.

As indicated on slide one, Colt McCoy is going to be in charge of this offense on Sunday. That means two things.

First, the Colts will do everything in their power to put the onus on McCoy to make plays in the passing game.

And second, they will accomplish that by stacking the box and putting their corners on islands.

Alfred Morris is not a back you would call fleet of foot. He relies on his vision and his offensive line opening up good holes for him to run through.

With a dynamic (albeit struggling) quarterback like Robert Griffin III under center, it's very difficult to commit solely to stopping the running back. This can result in RG3 making huge plays with his legs.

But with McCoy—who isn't a horrible runner but is no RG3—Washington won't worry much about that. Indy will likely feel that it can live with a few scrambles by the quarterback so long as Morris is nullified in the process.

So while he's certainly been on a tear lately—313 yards and three touchdowns in the Redskins' last three games—Morris will suffer his worst outing since Week 6 at the Arizona Cardinals.

Dan Herron Goes over 120 Total Yards and Has a Touchdown

AJ Mast/Associated Press

Herron proved he can do real damage in the NFL in Week 12.

Dan Herron is a man who has been biding his time.

Drafted in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL draft, he had just 31 carries going into Indy's Week 12 matchup against the Jags. At the last minute, Herron was named the Colts' starting tailback.

And, relatively speaking, he shined.

The former Ohio State Buckeye racked up 96 total yards on 12 carries and five catches. He did lose a fumble in Jags territory, but that was a single setback in an otherwise sparkling performance—especially while Richardson was doing his typical work, carrying the ball 13 times for a depressing 42 yards.

This week, against an understated Redskins pass defense—which ranks ninth in the league—the Colts will continue to utilize their newly appointed lead back.

Hopefully that means a further scaling back of Richardson's touches, but only time will tell.

Indianapolis did spend a first-round pick on him, after all. It should give the guy a chance.

Donte Moncrief Leads the Colts in Receptions

AJ Mast/Associated Press

Moncrief has shown he has a bright future with this team.

Last week, rookie Donte Moncrief caught all four of his targets for just 38 yards. However, his four targets were just one less than T.Y. Hilton's five.

Indy is working Moncrief into the offense while removing Hakeem Nicks, who received only one target.

The rookie has shown potential, recording 113 yards and a touchdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers earlier this year. His statistical impact is only a matter of deployment now.

Moncrief is a physical specimen, measuring at 6'2", 221 pounds at the NFL combine. He ran a 4.4 in the 40-yard dash and recorded a 39.5-inch vertical. This guy is close to taking a leap, and there's no doubt that Indy would like him to be comfortable in the offense before it needs him rather than after.

This year's playoffs could be such a place.

Andrew Luck Doesn't Top 300 Passing Yards Again

AJ Mast/Associated Press

Luck has been taking a beating this season.

Indianapolis is protecting its quarterback right now in anticipation of a 2014 playoff run.

Fair enough.

His passing attempts have decreased by seven each of the last two weeks. His yardage has decreased by about 50 yards per week in three consecutive weeks.

On the flip side, his completion percentage has risen each of the last two weeks.

This all makes it fairly evident that the Colts are intentionally playing it safe with Luck. They want to limit turnovers and risk to his physical well-being by calling plays that restrict dangerous situations.

I can't fault them really. Luck has been known to play it a bit fast and loose with ball security. And while his pocket presence rivals that of any quarterback in the league, nobody could make the argument that Luck fears contact.

Indy wants to be sure its best chance at a deep playoff run is in fine health when it takes the field in the first round of the playoffs. One way to do that is to protect Luck from himself as much as possible.

Realistically speaking, it could very well be a coincidence that Luck has been throwing less the last few weeks. However, I don't believe that to be the case.

The Colts will continue to err on the side of caution with Luck's output and stick to the short stuff against Washington.