HOUSTON - The top spot in the AFC South will be on the line when Houston native Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts shoot for their fourth straight win when they take on the Texans at NRG Stadium. Charles Barkley Jersey . The defending division champion Colts have rebounded from a slow 0-2 start with three consecutive wins, including last weekends 20-13 triumph over Baltimore. Indianapolis has also generally dominated the Texans over the years, winning three consecutive games in the rivalry and compiling a gaudy 20-4 overall record against Houston. Meanwhile, the Colts have also excelled on short weeks, winning nine straight games when playing on Thursday despite the lack of preparation time. Its annoying for players, Texans star running back Arian Foster said this week when asked about playing on Thursday. I dont know one player that likes it. I really dont know a fan that likes it, either. I think its just the leagues way of trying to generate more revenue. Nobody is ready to play physically after a Sunday game. But youve got to go out there and do it. No team has figured out how to do it better than the Colts, who are 11-1-1 in Thursday games. The only thing trending in Houstons direction is the fact that the home team has won four of the first five Thursday matchups in 2014. Last weekend Luck passed for a touchdown and ran for another score against the Ravens, connecting on 32-of-49 passes for 312 yards, his fourth 300-yard passing performance in five tries this season. The only negative aspect of the ledger for Luck was two interceptions. Ahmad Bradshaw added 68 yards on the ground but his fumble inside two minutes left nearly cost the game for the Colts. Its huge to survive our mistakes in a sense, said Luck. Its the epitome of a team football game, of a defense lifting us up in a sense. We made our plays enough to get a win obviously. The Texans, meanwhile, are coming off a tough loss in Dallas, losing a Lone Star State matchup with the Cowboys in overtime. Dan Bailey kicked the game-winning 49-yard field goal in the extra frame to lift Dallas. The Texans had scored the last 10 points of regulation to force OT, but punted on the opening possession of the extra session. The Cowboys DeMarco Murray picked up 11 yards on a 3rd-and-1, and on an ensuing 3rd-and-8, Tony Romo lofted a rainbow along the left sideline for Dez Bryant. Texans cornerback Johnathan Joseph had tight coverage on Bryant, who ran a stop-and-go route, but Bryant was able to reach over top of his helmet to make a spectacular grab. It was the play of the game, Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said. I dont know if theres a better guy in the league that can make those kind of contested catches than Dez Bryant. Bailey, who missed a 53-yard field goal on the final play of regulation to snap his streak of 30 consecutive field goals, was able to split the uprights this time from the left hash with 7:45 on the clock. Foster carried the ball 23 times for 157 yards and two scores for the Texans (3-2), who have dropped two of three since beginning the year 2-0. Our defense did a good job of holding us in there, Texans head coach Bill OBrien said. We just didnt do enough offensively. Ryan Fitzpatrick was 16-of-25 for 154 yards with an interception, DeAndre Hopkins caught six passes for 63 yards and Andre Johnson hauled in five balls for 58 yards in defeat. No loss feels good, but, like I said, we have a quick turnaround, OBrien continued. Weve got to get better, and weve got to get better fast because we havent played a division game yet and we have a very big division game coming up on Thursday night in front of our home fans. WHAT TO WATCH FOR Luck and the Colts have gotten fat over the past three weeks thanks to a fortuitous turn in their schedule with two lightly-regarded opponents -- Jacksonville and Tennessee -- followed by a home game against Baltimore. That said you can only play who is put in front of you and Indianapolis has handled its business, outscoring those three opponents by a combined 105-47 margin or by an average of 35-16. The Colts defense, which allowed 409.5 yards per game in the first two games of the season, has settled down and surrendered only 297.3 per game since. The unit mustered just one sack and one turnover in the first two and had generated 11 sacks and nine takeaways during its three-game run with outside linebacker Bjoern Werner registering a career-high two sacks last weekend. The good thing about the Colts is that were very familiar with them, Texans tackle Duane Brown said. Of course you have a different game plan than weve had in years past, but as far as the personnel and things like that we kind of know what to expect. Of course, the real strength of the Colts lies in their QB, Luck, who pilots an offense that is second overall in the NFL with 439.6 YPG and tops in passing offense (321.8 YPG). Luck himself leads the NFL with 1,617 passing yards and 14 touchdowns but the free thrower is also tops in interceptions with six. With seven catches for 77 yards against the Ravens, veteran Indy wide receiver Reggie Wayne (13,950) surpassed Hall of Famer Cris Carter for the ninth-most receiving yards of all-time. Wayne needs 55 yards against the Texans to surpass another Hall of Famer, James Lofton, for eighth place. Wayne will also look to extend his streak of impressive performances against AFC South opponents. Since divisional realignment in 2002, Wayne leads all active players in receptions (376) and receiving yards (5,077) against his own division. The impressive Houston defense is led by All-Pro defensive lineman J.J. Watt, who has two sacks, three batdowns, an interception return for a TD, and an NFL- high 16 QB hits through five outings, and leads the NFL with 12 takeaways. Safeties Kendrick Lewis and D.J. Swearinger both have three forced fumbles, tied for the most in the NFL, and inside linebacker Brian Cushing leads the unit with 45 tackles. Offensively the Texans will continue to rely on their own veteran receiver, Johnson, who needs just 19 receiving yards to become the 15th player in NFL history to reach 13,000, as well as Foster, who leads the AFC since 2010 with 5,210 rushing yards and 45 touchdowns, including 752 yards (125.3 per game) and six touchdowns in six career matchups against Indianapolis. OVERALL ANALYSIS History says the Colts are usually the better prepared team on a short week and there is little reason to expect that to change this time around. Indianapolis has never lost on NFL Networks Thursday Night Football, posting a 7-0 record dating back to 2007 with six of those seven wins coming on the road. You realize once the game starts, its football, said Luck. Theres no use complaining or whining about anything. Its what you do. Sports Network predicted outcome: Colts 24, Texans 17 Theo Walcott Jersey . - Connor Brown and Dane Fox both scored in regulation and in the shootout, as the Erie Otters extended their win streak to 10 games by defeating the London Knights 4-3 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. Jake Livermore Jersey . The Los Angeles Clippers showed them just how ugly that life could be. Jared Dudley scored a season-high 21 points, Chris Paul added 16 points and 17 assists, and the Clippers jumped all over the Bulls in Roses absence for a 121-82 victory Sunday. http://www.englandsoccerauthority.com/chris-smalling-england-jersey/ . Here are some of the best from Week One and some to watch in Week Two: TOP PERFORMERS Anthony Allen, RB, Saskatchewan (176 YDS, 2 TD, 30 touches vs. Hamilton) - Powerfully-built back burst onto the scene in his CFL debut, after a couple of years in the NFL, playing 21 games with the Baltimore Ravens.TORONTO – Harder. Better. Faster. Stronger. St. Louis was all that and more for most of a cold March night. They dealt the sliding Leafs their sixth straight loss – seven in the past eight games – and a very loud exit from the current playoff picture. Once on firm ground toward a second straight trip to the postseason, Toronto now sits 10th in the East, trailing Columbus and Detroit for the final two wild card spots with only eight games left to play. Skidding for nearly two weeks without even a single point they are in danger of fumbling away what seemed like a sure thing. Fear of that reality, it seems, is slowly infecting the group. "Well, certainly were afraid of letting it slip away," Joffrey Lupul conceded after a 5-3 loss to the Blues, the Leafs winless since Mar. 13. "The whole year we thought we were a playoff team and we still believe that now." At this moment, however, they are not. And what once seemed unthinkable as recently as two weeks prior when they stormed through California has now become a very real reality. The Leafs may not make the playoffs and they know it. And that fear of fumbling it away is driving the nerves of a flailing group. Head coach Randy Carlyle observed "tenseness" during the first half of Wednesdays game, one that saw St. Louis completely manhandle their sinking opponents, especially so in a dominant first frame. Big, hard, fast and strong, the best team in the West controlled possession of the puck almost without exception, peppering Jonathan Bernier with 23 shots while scoring the first two of four unanswered. "Its like we were frozen for 30 minutes of the hockey game," Carlyle said. "We didnt pick up the puck and skate with it at all. And thats showing signs of being nervous, tense, [lacking] confidence, not wanting to make a mistake which led to more offensive zone time [for the Blues]." Only when the score tilted at 4-1 did they start to push back and in a well-repeated theme, muster the kind of tenaciousness and enthusiasm required for winning at this time of year. Carl Gunnarsson and James van Riemsdyk scored to slice the deficit to one, but like those rallies in each of the previous five losses, the Leafs ultimately ran out of time. Desperation was just a little too late. "Right now it seems like when we get down then were playing with no fear," Lupul said. "Theres something to be said about being down and not having that fear anymore, but realistically weve got to play like that right from the start. Its more of a psychological thing than it is a physical thing for sure." Whether they can overcome that imposing mental hurdle and recover in time to make the playoffs remains an increasingly uncertain question. With stumbling starts, glaring defensive breakdowns, inconsistent offence and poor goaltending, theyve found ways to lose hockey games in rapid order and are feeling the pressure from it. Losing six straight for the first time since the infamous 18-wheeler collapse in 2012, the Leafs now they sit on the outside of the playoff picture with a daunting weekend set ahead against the Flyers and Red Wings. Their fate could be determined in a matter of days. "Theres reason for concern, but its not completely time to panic," Lupul said. "Were still right there. Weve got a game Friday, we play Detroit [on] Saturday, you win those two games and all of a sudden things look a lot different." Five Points: 1. Berniers Back Even Bernier – making his first start since Mar. 13 – couldnt rescue the Leafs from the Blues. And he tried. The 25-year-old was spectacular early on, turning away the first 20 St. Louis shots in a one-sided opening frame. He eventually ceded four goals on 48 shots. It was just his third loss in regulation when facing 40 shots or more (8-3-2). Bernier had missed the previous five games with a groin injury, rushing back to stabilize the Leafs wobbling crease. "Lot of work, but felt okay," he said afterward. Stretching constantly, in between whistles and during TV timeouts, Bernier was seemingly shy of 100 per cent, but surely felt the need to return with his teams chances of reaching the postseason flailing. Asked if he rushed back from the injury, Bernier said, "You always want to be back as soon as possible." "It was a little sore obviously, but I was just trying to get it loose a little bit in between whistles and timeouts." 2/3. Ready to Start? Scoring first didnt help the Leafs much on this night. They scored the first goal for the first time in eight games with Lupul tucking a Nazem Kadri pass beyond Ryan Miller on a power-play, but it was down-hill from there. Alrready owning possession for much of the period to that point, the Blues tied the proceedings at one when T. Adam Lallana Jersey. J. Oshie squeezed a rebound through the pads of Bernier. They went in front for good on the first of three from David Backes on a power-play, Dion Phaneuf failing to clear the puck adequately. St. Louis had 23 shots for the period, the most Toronto has allowed in any one period this season. "Thats a heck of a hockey team over there," van Riemsdyk said. "The way they play, lines 1-4, [defence] pairings 1-3, theres not much of a falloff. They kept coming. Thats no excuse for us. We have to find a way to get off to a better start." Strong and sturdy, the Blues cycled and cycled and cycled without giving the Leafs even a taste of the puck. "We couldnt break their cycle," Lupul said. "We couldnt get the puck." It was the kind of grinding performance Carlyle would like to see more from his team in Toronto. "They did a lot of things that were trying to convince our hockey club to do as far as hanging onto the puck a little bit more," he said. "We understand were not as big and strong and as physical as some of those teams that are able to do that, but thats more of the style this time of year – if you watch the games – thats whats being played." The Leafs are now 8-20-4 when they trail after the opening period. "Again we played 30 minutes of hockey tonight and showed that we can play, but wheres the 60 minutes?" Carlyle said. "We cannot afford to not start the way weve been starting. We have to have more of an effort or consistent, confident start than weve had in these games." 4. Phaneuf Phaneuf played fewer than 21 minutes and had what may have been his worst game of the season. The Toronto captain was on the ice and largely responsible for three of the first four St. Louis goals, having what Carlyle described as a "rough night". The 28-year-old made his first error late in the first, fumbling away an opportunity to clear the puck on a penalty kill, the Blues regrouping to score the first of three from Backes. Then early in the middle frame Phaneuf lost a puck battle with Alex Steen in the offensive zone. Lagging to get back defensively, he was beaten down the ice by Backes, the Blues captain eluding Bernier for the third St. Louis marker. About 10 minutes after that it was Steen muscling Phaneuf to the ice just outside Berniers crease, shaking free to whistle a backhand just under the bar for a 4-1 lead. Phaneuf was unavailable to media after the game. 5. Six-Game Skid Losing a bunch of close games, prior to Wednesday night, Lupul believed the Leafs had actually played better at points in their slide than in many victories this season. "Absolutely," said Lupul before the loss to St. Louis. "We track scoring chances – our team does – and were out-chancing teams every night. You can look at that and say were doing some things right, but its the time of the year that that doesnt really matter anymore, its all about wins. Youve got to translate that into getting more wins." The 30-year-old observed that the margin for winning and losing at this time of year is "really close". "Its been a topic of discussion in here," he said. "Were generating chances. Were not giving up near as many as we have, but were coming out on the wrong side of the game so that doesnt really matter. "And on the flip side when we were winning games and getting out-chanced we were saying the same thing in here, like come on, what are we doing? But now its the time of the year that it doesnt really matter how you get the job done it just needs to get done." Stats-Pack 1-7-0 – Leafs record in the past eight games. 23 – Shots allowed by the Leafs in the opening period Wednesday, the most of any period this season. 8 – Fights for David Clarkson this season. Pointless now in 23 of the past 25 games, Clarkson fought Brendan Morrow in the second period. 7-23 – Tyler Bozak in the faceoff circle against the Blues, hammered by the combination of Steen and Vladimir Sobotka. 1 – Six-game losing streak for the Leafs this season. 2 – Goals for James van Riemsdyk in the past 12 games, van Riemsdyk notching his 28th this season in defeat. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-3Season: 21% (3rd) PK: 2-3Season: 78.5% (28th) Quote of the Night "Theres reason for concern, but its not completely time to panic." -Joffrey Lupul, following the Leafs sixth consecutive loss. Up Next The Leafs travel to Philadelphia on Friday to meet the Flyers before hosting the Red Wings at home on Saturday. 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