As the Jacksonville Jaguars (11-4) prepare to face the Indianapolis Colts (8-7) in Week 17, we sat down with Chris Shepherd of Stampede Blue to learn more about the opposing side.

Question 1: The Colts have been wildly entertaining but are 0-2 since Philip Rivers took the reins. What’s your take on the 44-year-old’s return to the NFL, and what does it say about the Colts that they’re continuing to play him over rookie Riley Leonard?

Philip Rivers, to my great surprise, has been very good. When the rumor dropped that the Colts were kicking the tires on him, I was worried that Rivers would look very much like an old man and not an NFL quarterback. What we got is a player with a diminished but adequate arm and tremendous mental ability to play the game, and when you combine those two things, you end up with a pretty good quarterback. And it says a few things about the Colts, most notably that everyone in that building is nervous for their jobs, but I think it says more about who and what Rivers is than anything else.

Question 2: What’s something about this team that isn’t being talked about enough due to all of the buzz Philips attracts?

There’s just not much positive news right now for the Colts.  This is an entire season of “what if,” and it culminated in a 44-year-old Philip Rivers starting at quarterback. If anyone’s interested, I could talk about how well fourth-round rookie tackle Jalen Travis has been playing for the last three weeks at both right and left tackle, but nobody cares about a backup tackle. Things are looking bleak.

Question 3: Indianapolis has a 1-3% chance to sneak into the playoffs by most projection models. Have the fans given up on the season, and do you have any reason to believe the team will too?

Colts fans (correctly) gave up on the season when Daniel Jones went down. They regained hope when Philip Rivers came back. And now they have (correctly) moved on to having no hope outside of hoping for a new front office and coaching staff. Merry Christmas!

Question 4: Who’s an under-the-radar player or two that Jaguars fans should watch for on Sunday?

I kind of cut myself off at the knees talking about Jalen Travis up there, because otherwise I can’t give you a positive under-the-radar player, but what I can give you is cornerback Jonathan Edwards. He’s not good. If he gets matched up against your favorite player, good news, your favorite player is about to do something exciting! I feel bad for Edwards. It’s not his fault the Colts are paying their top three cornerbacks a combined $60 million annually and both Charvarius Ward and Sauce Gardner are out and Edwards has to play.

Question 5: Do you expect the Colts to cover as 5.5-point underdogs, and do you like any props bets for the game?

With the way that defense played I don’t expect them to cover, at all. Philip would be wise to re-retire. I would bet the over on Trevor Lawrence passing touchdowns. Don’t know what it is. Don’t care. Take the over. And no, there’s nothing I “like,” but there are a lot of Jags bets I’d probably take if I didn’t have a strict policy of never betting against the Colts.

Thanks to Chris for taking the time to answer our questions!

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Jaguars fans, let us know your thoughts in the comments below!