Indystar.com reports; The Indianapolis Colts
don’t know who they will play next, but the team with the NFL’s best record knows when.
The lowest advancing seed from this weekend’s AFC wild-card playoff games will face the top-seeded Colts (14-2) at 8:15 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 16 in Lucas Oil Stadium. The game is expected to be a sell out.
To put it in terms of teams, it will be either fourth-seeded Cincinnati (10-6), the fifth-seeded New York Jets (9-7) or sixth-seeded Baltimore (9-7).
Second-seeded San Diego will host the other AFC playoff game at 4:40 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 17.
AFC playoffs will be carried on WISH-TV (Channel 8) and the NFC games will be on Fox (Channel 59).
NFC games will be played at No. 1 seed New Orleans at 4:30 p.m. on the 16th and at No. 2 seed Minnesota at 1 p.m. on the 17th.
Colts coach Jim Caldwell said he expected all of his injured players who rested or had their workload decreased in the past three games to be ready to go for the playoffs.
This short list of walking wounded includes the sack tandem of defensive ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis; running back Joseph Addai; wide receiver Pierre Garcon; safety Melvin Bullitt; offensive tackles Charlie Johnson and Ryan Diem; and cornerback Jerraud Powers.
“We’re right where we want to be,” Caldwell said today, a day after the Colts closed the regular season with a forgettable 30-7 loss at Buffalo, in which backups played most snaps. “The health of our team is trending in the right direction.”
The coach said the Colts could keep two kickers, because Adam Vinatieri is still dealing with some pain in his right knee. Kicker Matt Stover kicked at Buffalo.
While early yet in the evaluation process of game-day injuries, Caldwell seemed encouraged the team came out of the Bills game without any serious setbacks that could affect the playoffs.
