Indianapolis, IN
NFL Week 16 predictions, expert picks: Tennessee Titans vs Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts host the Tennessee Titans in NFL Week 16 action as the Colts cling to slim AFC playoff hopes.
Both teams are coming off dispiriting losses. The Colts (6-8) made two huge blunders (here, here) in a disastrous second half against the Denver Broncos. The Titans (3-11) switched quarterbacks as they lost to the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Colts beat the Titans 20-17 in Week 6, but each team’s quarterback will be different this time around.
Want more Colts coverage? Nate Atkins, Joel A. Erickson and Gregg Doyel track the team all season, and sign up for IndyStar’s Colts newsletter.
NFL Week 16 expert picks, predictions: Indianapolis Colts vs Tennessee Titans
Nate Atkins, IndyStar: Titans 20-17
“The Colts are coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Broncos that erased a clear lane to make the playoffs. That emotional toll will show up on Sunday in a subdued home atmosphere as the Titans come out swinging to prove they’re not the soft team they’ve been accused of lately.”
Joel A. Erickson, IndyStar: Colts 20-16
“Tennessee’s not as much of a wild card with Will Levis on the bench, but the Titans still have one of the NFL’s worst offenses with Mason Rudolph at the helm. The Colts have generally taken care of bad teams this season outside of cursed locations like Jacksonville.”
Gregg Doyel, IndyStar: Colts, no problem
“Colts aren’t very good, but the Titans are a whole other level of bad. Colts win. Won’t be close.”
Pete Prisco, CBS Sports: Colts 24-17
“The Colts are alive in the playoff race − barely. The Titans are done and might be making a quarterback change. The Colts did some good things in losing to the Broncos last week in a game they should have won. They bounce back here. Colts take it.”
Brent Sobleski, Bleacher Report: Titans 22-21
“The well-coached and feisty team that head coach Shane Steichen fielded last season has devolved to the point where a series of blunders now defines its current status. None of this even includes the continuing development of quarterback Anthony Richardson, whose ups and downs are so drastic that a bouncing bumble can be overwhelmed.”
Bill Bender, Sporting News: Colts 21-18
“These teams combined for 11 turnovers last week. Will Levis committed four turnovers in Week 15, and Mason Rudolph was not much better. The Colts committed five turnovers in their loss to Denver. Anthony Richardson had two interceptions. This one literally comes down to who protects the football, and it feels like a one-score game either way.”
Vic Tafur, The Athletic: Titans cover the spread
“The Colts were cruising to a victory last week when Jonathan Taylor dropped the ball before scoring a touchdown, and it was the first of a series of unforced errors. Their playoff chances took a big hit with the loss, though it would have been hard to make it the way Anthony Richardson is throwing the ball. Story time: The stats dudes started charting inaccurate throws in 2000. There have been 777 quarterbacks who have thrown at least 250 passes in a season. At 17.7 percent, Richardson comes in at No. 776. But he will be playing Sunday. The Titans’ Levis will not, being benched Wednesday for Mason Rudolph. Does it matter? Nah. The Titans will be able to run the ball better than the Colts, when you look at the defenses, and would have lost by a field goal and covered with Levis, too.”
Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Colts 26-16
“The Colts need more help than a cat in a roomful of rocking chairs to make the postseason, but they will continue to cling to those hopes as long as St. Elmo continues to make the best shrimp cocktail. By the way, do you need reminded the Colts beat the Steelers earlier this season?”
Mike Florio, Pro Football Talk: Titans 24-21
“The air went out of Indy’s balloons when Jonathan Taylor dropped the ball short of the goal line. Throw in Tennessee coach Brian Callahan’s epic rant in response to a question about the team being soft, and it’s just enough for the Titans to get another win.”
Dan Parr, NFL.com: Colts 24-21
“Here we have two teams that bungled their way to a combined 11 turnovers in their double-digit defeats last week. Sunday’s meeting will probably be at least a little less messy because the Titans made a change at quarterback − benching the giveaway-plagued Will Levis for Mason Rudolph − and I don’t think Jonathan Taylor will ever let go of the ball like he did last week. The unfortunate thing for Tennessee fans is they have already seen this movie and the ending still left a lot to be desired. When Rudolph started three contests earlier this season, he threw at least one INT in each outing and the Titans averaged 14.7 points per game, which is 4.4 points fewer than they average in Levis’ starts. Who will play the cleaner game? I don’t have much confidence that Anthony Richardson is up to the challenge, with four picks in his last two games, but Indianapolis has taken care of business against sub-.500 teams (5-1) and the defense allowed a season-low 3.2 yards per play to go along with three INTs last week. I’m grasping at straws and taking the home team.”
Colts-Titans betting odds
via BetMGM
Favorite: Colts by 3.5 points
Colts are 8-6 against the spread, failing to cover in five of their past six games; the Titans are 2-12 ATS.
Over/under: 42.5 total points
Six Colts games have gone over, seven under, and last weekend’s game was a push; eight Titans games have gone over, six under (three of the last four have gone over).
Moneyline: Colts -190, Titans +155
When do the Colts play the Titans in NFL Week 16?
1 p.m. ET Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis
How to watch Colts vs Titans in NFL Week 16
CBS, with Tom McCarthy (play-by-play), and Ross Tucker and Jay Feely (analysis).
How to stream, watch Titans-Colts game for NFL Week 16
The Colts-Broncos matchup will stream on Paramount+ at 1 p.m. ET Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024. The app is available in the Apple App Store or on Google Play. Fans can also download NFL+ in the Apple App Store or on Google Play.
How to listen to NFL Week 16 Titans-Colts game on radio, streaming
Radio: 93.5, 97.1, 107.5 FM in Indianapolis, with Matt Taylor (play-by-play), Rick Venturi (analysis) and Larra Overton (sideline reporting)
Streaming: SiriusXM Channels 231 and 813
What a deal!: Watch Colts-Titans on Fubo
Colts-Titans common opponents
The Colts (4-7) beat the Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets and New England Patriots, and have lost to the Houston Texans twice, as well as the Jacksonville Jaguars, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Detroit Lions and Buffalo Bills.
The Titans (3-7) beat the Dolphins, Patriots and Texans, and have lost to the Bears, Jets, Packers, Bills, Lions, Vikings and Jaguars.
Colts-Titans at Lucas Oil Stadium
At Lucas Oil Stadium: Tickets start at $23 on StubHub
Colts 2024 schedule
all times ET
Sept. 8: Texans 29, Colts 27
Sept. 15: Packers 16, Colts 10
Sept. 22: Colts 21, Bears 16
Sept. 29: Colts 27, Steelers 24
Oct. 6: Jaguars 37, Colts 34
Oct. 13: Colts 20, Titans 17
Oct. 20: Colts 16, Dolphins 10
Oct. 27: Texans 23, Colts 20
Nov. 3: Vikings 21, Colts 13
Nov. 10: Bills 30, Colts 20
Nov. 17: Colts 28, Jets 27
Nov. 24: Lions 24, Colts 6
Dec. 1: Colts 25, Patriots 24
Dec. 15: Broncos 31, Colts 13
Dec. 22: vs. Tennessee, 1 p.m., CBS
Dec. 29: at N.Y. Giants, 1 p.m., Fox
Jan. 5: vs. Jacksonville, TBD
The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission on June 17 gave AES the nod to raise electricity rates enough to earn an additional $71 million each year, a decision that drew reproof from Indiana lawmakers who called it another blow to cost-burdened consumers.
The approved rate represents less than half of the $192 million increase that AES initially requested. It’s also less than the $91 million increase proposed in an October settlement agreement between AES, the city of Indianapolis and major electricity consumers like Kroger and Walmart.
But the new rate is still significantly more than what the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor, the state agency representing ratepayers in the case, recommended in September. The OUCC’s proposal would have capped AES’s annual operating revenue at $21 million less than the current level.
The rate increase authorizes AES to earn a total of nearly $2 billion each year, or an estimated $384 million in profit.
The higher base rate comes as a double whammy for Indianapolis-area households, who are already paying more for electricity this summer after AES temporarily raised rates to account for higher-than-anticipated fuel costs during last winter’s storms. The increase also arrives against the backdrop of inflation, which rose to a three-year high last month, and surging gas prices due to the war in Iran.
Gov. Mike Braun wrote in a Wednesday post to X that he was “deeply disappointed” by the IURC’s approval of the rate increase.
“Hoosiers have spent years tightening their belts and making tough financial decisions,” Braun wrote. “It’s time for utility companies to do the same.”
The IURC’s decision also drew fire from the other side of the aisle. In a June 17 news release, five Democrats representing Indianapolis in the state Senate – J.D. Ford, Andrea Hunley, La Keisha Jackson, Fady Qaddoura, and Greg Taylor – chastised Indiana’s Republican supermajority for failing to rein in rising utility costs.
“Hoosiers pay more. Monopoly utilities collect more. And the leaders in the super-majority who promise affordability over and over again show those are just empty words,” the news release said. “Instead, they continue to defend a system that takes more and more out of our paychecks.”
The consumer advocacy group Citizens Action Coalition also slammed the rate increase. Ben Inskeep, CAC’s program director, said the decision left him “less optimistic that this commission is willing to do things differently and to actually hold utilities accountable.”
He said the IURC should have penalized AES for issues that plagued customers after the utility updated its billing system in 2023, including duplicated withdrawals for the same monthly bill.
The rate increase will take effect in two phases, with rates going up in July 2026 and January 2027. AES officials anticipate the hikes “will be less than $5 per month per phase” for a household that uses 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per month, according to a Wednesday news release from the utility.
“The IURC’s decision reflects a thorough, transparent process and balances the need for continued investment in the electric system with a focus on customer affordability,” the news release stated.
Under a state law that Braun signed in February, AES cannot ask for another increase to its base rate until January 2030 — though electricity bills could still go up for other reasons, like the fuel adjustment charge hitting consumers this month.
Three members of the five-member IURC signed off on the rate increase: Andy Zay, David Veleta, and David Ziegner. Commissioner Bob Deig dissented. Commissioner Anthony Swinger recused himself from the decision because he worked on the AES rate case for the OUCC before he was appointed to the IURC by Braun in January.
“None of this was taken lightly,” Zay, the IURC’s chair, said at the Wednesday hearing, adding that the commission and its staff had carefully weighed concerns about affordability. The commissioners did not go into further detail at the hearing.
But the commission’s order shows some of the debates that played out during the rate case. One point of contention was AES’s authorized return on equity — that is, how much the utility can earn each year in profits. Other disputes hinged on how AES forecasts its operating expenses.
The OUCC accused AES of including more than 100 “phantom hires,” vacant positions it did not necessarily intend to fill in its calculations. Last year, AES said that the rising costs of vegetation management, or trimming trees around power lines, also drove the need to raise rates. The OUCC recommended keeping vegetation management costs flat.
One factor that’s not driving higher prices? Data centers.
AES does not currently provide service to any data centers and did not include them in its calculations, AES president Brandi Davis-Handy said in testimony before the IURC.
Tilly Robinson is a Pulliam fellow for the Indianapolis Star. She can be reached at tilly.robinson@indystar.com.
Interactive radar | Weather alerts by county
WATCH LIVE COVERAGE
(WRTV) — A tornado watch has been issued through 1 a.m. EDT Thursday for much of Indiana, the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center said.
The watch area covers 47 of Indiana’s 92 counties, and includes Indianapolis and its surrounding counties.
Counties in the watch area are Bartholomew, Blackford, Boone, Brown, Carroll, Cass, Clay, Clinton, Daviess, Decatur, Delaware, Fountain, Grant, Greene, Hamilton, Hancock, Hendricks, Henry, Howard, Huntington, Jackson, Jay, Jennings, Johnson, Knox, Lawrence, Madison, Marion, Martin, Miami, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Owen, Parke, Putnam, Randolph, Rush, Shelby, Sullivan, Tippecanoe, Tipton, Vermillion, Vigo, Wabash, Warren, and White.
WRTV Meteorologist Ryan Morse says Wednesday afternoon’s rain was the first of two rounds coming to the Hoosier state. A line of supercells were expected to form in Illinois and travel into central Indiana.
In neighboring Illinois, dozens of counties are under a tornado watch until 10 p.m. CDT/11 p.m. EST.
All threats of severe weather were on the table: damaging wind, strong tornadoes, large hail, and flooding.
Severe storms should exit Indiana in the early morning hours.
WISH-TV Meteorologist Keith Gibson says people should have multiple ways of getting alerts and have electronic devices fully charged in case they lose power.
The next chance for rain after these storms could be on Saturday.
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