How Indianapolis Colts Can Get Back on Track Without Andrew Luck

The short week was unkind to the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts will be without Andrew Luck when they travel to face the division-rival Houston Texans on Thursday night.

Adam Schefter of ESPN broke the news and the hearts of Indianapolis fans early Thursday afternoon:

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Matt Hasselbeck will start at quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday night when they visit the Houston Texans, according to a league source.

Colts coach Chuck Pagano had said his team will "do the right thing" regarding Andrew Luck and his injured shoulder. The Colts have never described the exact nature of Luck's injury, but have said there is "zero truth" to reports that Luck has a partial shoulder subluxation.

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The news was somewhat surprising, given that Luck took the majority of the practice snaps on Tuesday, according to ESPN's Mike Wells. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com explained during a Monday NFL Network segment that the Colts were hoping Luck would be ready by Thursday:

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"They did some tests on Andrew Luck's shoulder earlier in the week. They found no structural damage to explain why he was experiencing some soreness, just some bruising in his throwing shoulder."

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It is not all gloom and doom for the Colts with Luck sidelined, they still sit atop the AFC South standings at 2-2. There is no good time for the Colts to be without Luck, but letting him get healthy now instead of rushing him back should allow the fourth-year quarterback to be at his best down the stretch.

Matt Hasselbeck

This is not the first rodeo for Indianapolis backup quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. The 40-year-old veteran has made multiple trips around the block, including last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Hasselbeck completed more than 63 percent of his passes versus the Jaguars and finished the game with 282 passing yards and a touchdown in the Colts 16-13 overtime victory.

What was alarming about Hasselbeck's play against Jacksonville is that he threw the ball 47 times. The Colts will struggle to defeat even average teams if Hasselbeck has to carry the load to that extent. An offense built on Luck moving the ball down the field will be forced to adapt.

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

Hasselbeck is not nearly as athletic as Luck. There is nothing the Colts can do about that, but it will be on Hasselbeck to use his QB smarts to read the Houston defense and get rid of the football quickly to avoid unnecessary punishment.

The Jaguars got to Hasselbeck eight times last Sunday and sacked him on three of those occasions. (h/t ESPN). The Colts will now face a Houston defense that has, per ESPN, accumulated six sacks in 16 quarters of regular season action. It is a safe bet the Texans will be sending J.J. Watt into the backfield early and often on Thursday.

Hasselbeck will have to be on alert each time he takes a snap versus the Texans.

Frank Gore

R Brent Smith/Associated Press

Veteran running back Frank Gore was not supposed to be a workhorse for the Colts, but things change quickly in the NFL. Gore is the best back on the Indianapolis roster, and the 32-year-old has 54 carries and 63 total touches this season for average of under 16 touches per game (h/t ESPN). It is early October, so Gore should still be fresh and ready to make an impact against the Texans.

Twenty touches against the Texans. That should be the minimum for Gore on Thursday. The only way Gore shouldn't reach that mark is if he goes down with an injury, or if the Texans' offense surprisingly lights it up against the Colts.

Indianapolis probably isn't beating Houston if either of those things occur.

One worry: Gore has to stop putting the ball on the ground. He has already lost two fumbles this season. Gore, per Wells, explained after the win over the Jaguars that the Colts need better from him:

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“Trying to make something happen instead of playing smart,” Gore said. “I’m putting us in bad situation. [We could have had a] touchdown or field goal. I feel like I’m playing hard, just have to play smarter.”

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Any team starting a backup quarterback must limit turnovers. That burden is going to fall on Gore against the Texans.

Hope

The Texans' defense has been alarmingly average in the first quarter of the season. Houston head coach Bill O'Brien seems to know that neither Brian Hoyer nor Ryan Mallett is a franchise QB. Hasselbeck, Gore and the rest of the Indianapolis offense should do enough on Thursday to sneak past the lackluster Texans.

If they don't and the extra time between games isn't enough to get Luck back on the field, the Colts' playoff hopes will start to look dim.

R Brent Smith/Associated Press/Associated Press

The upcoming run of games for the Colts would be tough even with Luck on the field. Home games against the New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints will be followed by a Monday Night Football showdown at the Carolina Panthers. Indianapolis will be big underdogs in each of those games without Luck.

It will be time for the Colts to start thinking about 2016 if Luck is still sidelined a month from now.

The Colts' offense is meant to revolve around an elite QB. Without Luck, the Colts are not all that different from the Texas or the Cleveland Browns. Those teams could have a big offensive day now and again. All of them also need a Luck under center.

Losing to the Texans on Thursday would not be a fatal blow to the Indianapolis season. The Colts would still, statistically speaking, be fine in the standings. Indianapolis will, regardless of what happens on Thursday, have another chance to beat Houston in December.

Thursday night is mostly about survival for the Colts.

That said, the gap that separates being "back on track" from "contending" is massive. The only thing that closes that gap for the Colts is Luck. Indianapolis remains the best team in the division with a healthy Luck on the field. Without him, the Colts will struggle to avoid a losing season.