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Houston Texans – The Texans knew they had to address their defense in the draft. They were abysmal at stopping the opponent, which cost their high powered offense several victories. The team did go after defense in the draft, taking a lineman, linebacker and defensive back with each of their first three picks.
The defensive backfield is definitely not set though, especially at safety. Both starters played poorly in 2010 and may not be back this year. There are no other qualified starters on the roster, so they will have to work on this in free agency.

21) Kansas City Chiefs – Phil Taylor, Defensive Tackle, Baylor

Stopping the run was a major problem for Kansas City late in the season as they had no run stuffing nose tackle. Taylor fills that role like Vince Wolfork used to do for this coaching staff in New England. At 6’3 and 334 pounds, Taylor eats up a lot of space and will make the unit much better.

22) Indianapolis Colts – Derek Sherrod, Offensive Tackle, Mississippi State

Houston Texans: Defense is the name of the game for the Houston Texans this year after fielding an extremely porous unit in 2010. The shift to a 3-4 scheme under new defensive coordinator Wade Phillips adds to the need to focus on that side of the ball. The team has no true nose tackle and may need help at outside linebacker as well. The secondary has been perennially weak, so another corner or safety to assist last’s year first round pick Kareem Jackson would help.

Now that the NFL Playoffs are here, it is time to dissect the Super Bowl Future odds to see where the value lies.

The key to playing futures is to find a team that is undervalued at double-digit odds, as that always leaves open the possibility of hedging your wager down the line if you so desire, provided you are correct and your team exceeds expectations.

Well, we did not have to look far to find such a team, so here is our one and only Super Bowl future selection for 2010.

The Indianapolis Colts (10-6) did what they had to do by winning their last four games to win the AFC South and make the playoffs, although they hardly resembled the high powered Indianapolis offenses of old the last few weeks, while the New York Jets (11-5) had a nice tune-up for this by routing the Buffalo Bills 38-7 in a meaningless game last week.

The NFL wild card odds list Indianapolis at -2½ at betting odds of -115 at home, with the betting total set at 44½.

The NFL playoffs have arrived, and what stands out in the wild card round is that in three of the four games, the road team has the better record. That should increase the likelihood of several wild cards advancing to the next round, especially with one of the host teams being the Seattle Seahawks, who made the playoffs with a losing record.

The closest game, if the Wild Card odds are to be believed, will be either the Jets at Colts or the Packers at Eagles with both teams at -2.5. The biggest spread is in the Saints at Seahawks with the Saints, unsurprisingly, at -11.

The Indianapolis Colts (9-6) look like a team that will not be denied, as they won their third straight game last week 31-26 at Oakland to put themselves in position where they will clinch the AFC South title with a win here vs. the Tennessee Titans (6-9), who were ripped 34-14 by the Kansas City Chiefs last Sunday.

The NFL betting line for this contest is Indianapolis -10 at home, with the betting total set at 48.

The Indianapolis Colts (8-6) saved their season for the time being by beating Jacksonville 34-24 last week to prevent the Jaguars from clinching the AFC South, while the Oakland Raiders (7-7) kept their playoff hopes alive by trouncing the Broncos 39-23 in Tim Tebow’s debut as an NFL starter.

The NFL betting spread for this contest is Indianapolis -3 on the road, with the betting total set at 48½.

You probably would have won a lot of bar bets prior to the season if you had predicted that the Colts would only be -3 over Oakland in Week 16 with Indianapolis fighting for its playoff life, yet here we are!

The Jacksonville Jaguars (8-5) can clinch the AFC South with a win here when they visit the Indianapolis Colts (7-6), who are not used to playing for their playoff lives after not missing the post-season since 2001.

The NFL betting spread for this contest is Indianapolis -5 at home, with the total set at 48.5 at -110 odds.

The reason that a win would clinch the division is that the Jacksonville Jaguars won the first meeting between these clubs this season, so although a victory would give them a two-game lead in the division, the sweep would essentially make it a three-game lead with two games left.

The depleted Indianapolis Colts (6-6) lost their third straight game last week vs. the Dallas Cowboys to fall to the .500 mark for the year, while the Tennessee Titans (5-7) fell two games below .500 by losing their fifth straight game vs. Jacksonville. You would be hard pressed to find one expert that predicted before this season that these two teams would be where they are now.

The NFL football odds list Indianapolis as 3-point favorites paying -125 on the road, while the betting total sits at 46.