Coming off their bye week, the Indianapolis Colts will travel to Kansas City for a Week 12 matchup with the Chiefs.
A win is needed by the Colts to keep pace in a crowded AFC playoff race.
Before the week of practices for these two teams begins, let’s highlight three storylines to watch for as the next several days unfold.
Does Charvarius Ward return to practice?
Ward has missed the last four Colts’ games while on injured reserve with a concussion. He is, however, eligible to return to practice this week. Shane Steichen said that on Wednesday, he would have more of an update on Ward.
The pairing of Ward and Sauce Gardner at outside cornerback completely changes the complexion of that position group, and to a degree, the defense as a whole. If you’re an opposing quarterback, where are you going with the ball?
Along with the individual production that each player brings to the table, Ward and Gardner’s abilities to be left on an island will also allow Lou Anarumo to call a much more aggressive game overall, which will benefit other players and position groups on defense.
Can Colts deliver latest playoff blow to Chiefs?
If the Colts are able to beat the Chiefs on Sunday, Kansas City will be 5-6 on the season. That doesn’t take them out of the AFC playoff race by any means, especially with the players and big game experience this Chiefs team has, but getting to the postseason does become more difficult.
Although the Colts are 8-2 on the season, three games better than the 5-5 Chiefs, Indianapolis is entering this game as the road underdog.
Despite Kansas City’s record, this is still the Patrick Mahomes-led Chiefs who will be playing this game at home. For an up-and-coming Colts’ team, a win on Sunday would be another notch in their belt as they pursue the top seed in the AFC and further establish themselves as a true contender.
The recent turnovers are just a blip on the radar, right?
For more of the year, turnovers by the Colts’ offense haven’t been a problem. In fact, Indianapolis has mostly been quite good at not giving the ball away. But over the last two games, that hasn’t been the case.
Indianapolis would turn it over six times against Pittsburgh and then twice against Atlanta, but it could have been four turnovers had the Colts not recovered two fumbles.
Losing the turnover battle is an easy way to end up losing a game. The Chiefs will enter this game tied for 10th in turnover differential.
This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: Colts vs. Chiefs: 3 storylines to watch throughout the week
