The Indianapolis Colts will once again be shaking things up this week. After switching from Matt Ryan to Sam Ehlinger and then back to Ryan at quarterback, head coach Jeff Saturday announced Wednesday that veteran signal-caller Nick Foles will be under center when they take on the Los Angeles Chargers in NFL Week 16.
Sports Betting Impact of Nick Foles Replacing Matt Ryan
Per DraftKings, the Colts are currently 5-point underdogs against the Chargers at home on Monday night, with the over/under at 46. The line opened with the Colts as 2.5-point underdogs, with the over/under at 48 before Saturday made the decision to go with Foles for the last three games of the season.
“Just didn’t feel like we made enough plays offensively,” Saturday said of his decision, via ESPN. “It’s no secret. We haven’t converted in the red zone. And ultimately, you’ve gotta make plays in the NFL and we’re not making nearly enough explosive plays.”
On the surface, the Colts are doomed no matter who they have at quarterback. Not only did they face the embarrassment of squandering a 33-0 halftime lead against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 15, losing 39-36 in overtime, but they also lost star running back Jonathan Taylor for the remainder of the season with an ankle injury. That leaves a depleted team that just suffered the worst comeback loss in NFL history to try their hand against a Chargers team that was able to rally to beat the Tennessee Titans in Week 15.
The move for Saturday to go from Ryan to Foles is likely less about the skill set and more about trying to find a spark for an offense that ranks 29th in the NFL with just 16.8 points per game. The last time Nick Foles was on the football field was during a failed experiment with the Chicago Bears from 2020-21. He replaced Mitchell Trubisky in his first year in Chicago midway through the season, going 2-5 with 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions. When the team signed Andy Dalton at the end of that season, Foles appeared in just one game in 2021.
It’s hard to imagine that a rusty Nick Foles will be much of an upgrade over Matt Ryan. And based on the Chargers-Colts betting line, Vegas oddsmakers don’t think so either.
