JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The last time the Jacksonville Jaguars played the Indianapolis Colts, they put up the most points in franchise history in a 51-16 victory at EverBank Field last December.
That was a different Colts team, however. Andrew Luck wasn’t playing because of an injury.
The No. 1 overall pick in 2012 has shredded the Jaguars in his career: He’s 5-1 and thrown for 1,702 yards and 10 touchdowns with three interceptions. The Colts (1-2) have beaten the Jaguars (0-3) by an average of 23.6 points with Luck on the field and smallest margin of victory has been 20 points.
Luck is healthy again and is averaging 304.3 yards per game passing. Indianapolis is the fifth-highest scoring team in the league (81 points). Defensively, though, the Colts are struggling. They’re giving up 31.7 points per game and 305.7 yards passing per game. That should make for an interesting game on Sunday at Wembley Stadium in London because the Jaguars’ offense, as well as quarterback Blake Bortles, is struggling.
Here are six players to watch, courtesy of ESPN NFL Nation Colts reporter Mike Wells.
Offense
WR T.Y. Hilton: He backed up his guarantee of having a big game when he had eight catches for 174 yards and the game-winning 63-yard touchdown reception against the Chargers. Hilton needed that type of performance because he had yet to make much of an impact in the first two weeks of the season. But it can’t stop now for Hilton. He can’t afford to have a letdown game against the Jaguars because the Colts are dealing with injuries at receiver. Donte Moncrief, the team’s No. 2 receiver, is still out with a shoulder injury. Hilton has had at least 100-yards receiving in half of the eight games that he’s faced the Jaguars in his career.
QB Andrew Luck: The Colts franchise player didn’t face the Jaguars in either meeting last season because of a shoulder injury in the first game and a lacerated kidney in the second game. Luck has won five straight meetings against his AFC South counterparts. He’s thrown for 913 yards and six touchdowns so far this season, but he continues to have turnover problems. He’s committed four turnovers -- two interceptions and two fumbles lost -- that have led to 24 points for the opposition over the past two games.
RB Frank Gore: Don’t count the 33-year-old Gore out quite yet. He rushed for 82 yards on 21 carries against the Chargers. Gore looked like he was on his way to being just the second player to rush for 100 yards in a game in the Luck era (2012) when he had 70 yards on 13 carries in the first half. He likely would have cracked 100 yards had the Colts scored to go up by at least 10 points late in the first half instead of San Diego scoring on a fumble return to tie the game, which impacted how the Colts ran their offense in the second half.
Defense
LB Robert Mathis: Has father time caught up with the pass-rush specialist? It’s either that or he’s a slow starter. The Colts are hoping it’s the latter because Mathis has made minimal impact on defense so far this season. He’s only recorded four tackles and has yet to register a sack. The pressure will be on Mathis even more now that fellow outside linebacker Trent Cole has been placed on injured reserve and the Colts have only four sacks through the first three weeks of the season.
CB Vontae Davis: The back-to-back Pro Bowl cornerback made his season debut in Week 3 after being out since early in the preseason with an ankle injury. Davis played on 90 percent of the defense’s snaps in his return. He acknowledged after the game that he’s still working on his conditioning since he couldn’t stay on top of it while dealing with the ankle injury.
S Clayton Geathers: The second-year player is playmaker the Colts badly need on defense. He forced a fumble late in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for the Colts over the San Diego Chargers on Sunday. Geathers also plays the hybrid linebacker role when the Colts use three safeties on the defense because he’s capable of playing in the box against the run and also dropping back into coverage to defend tight ends.