No Week 3 NFL game involving two 1-1 teams will be more exciting than today’s 4:25 Eastern / 1:25pm Pacific kickoff between the San Francisco 49ers and Indianapolis Colts. The game, carried live on CBS, marks the first game Indianapolis will take the field since their dramatic trade for running back Trent Richardson. It will also mark the first time the 49ers have a chance to regroup from their embarrassing loss to the Seahawks in Week Two. With those subplots, you’ll want to catch it on CBS or make sure you watch 49ers vs Colts live online streaming NFL Sunday football.
You wouldn’t necessarily know by their records or rankings that these two teams both have their eyes on a deep playoff run. The 49ers, just two regular-season weeks removed from last year’s Super Bowl, were favored to go far, but their offensive and defensive rankings are merely “middle of the road.” Their offense, led by quarterback Colin Kaepernick, is rated 18th, while Kaepernick has only delivered the NFL’s 17th-ranked passing game. Their ground attack has fared exactly the same (rated 17th), and the 49ers defense that will try to slow the Colts today is rated 14th.
Fortunately for the 49ers, the Colts haven’t fared much better — except in the rushing department. Indianapolis’ total offense is actually rated higher than the 49ers, coming in two spots better (16th). Their rushing game, rated 5th, is notably better. Oddly, much of that rushing has come from Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, which is a big reason the Colts this week traded a 2014 first-round pick to the Cleveland Browns for running back Trent Richardson. Trent Richardson will now line up in the backfield behind Andrew Luck, putting the first and third picks of the 2012 NFL Draft on the same team, meaning you’ll want to watch 49ers vs Colts live online streaming to see how they fare together.
The trade blew NFL pundits and fans out of the water, but it shows that Indianapolis has every intention to make a Super Bowl run this year. It also should take some pressure off Colts QB Andrew Luck, who would certainly have struggled as the season went on if his backfield had continued to be neutered after Vick Ballard’s season-ending knee injury. Richardson is a major talent, having set a Cleveland Browns rushing record in 2012 and scoring 13 touchdowns, and although he may pose some durability questions, his addition to the Colts shows that Indy isn’t looking to win in the future. They want to win now.
Of course, “now” starts today, with a huge game against what should be a dangerous 49ers team. Having been embarrassed by the Seattle Seahawks in last week’s Monday Night Football game, the 49ers surely want to punch someone in the mouth. That someone sure looks a lot like Andrew Luck and Co. For all the talk about Kaepernick putting up beastly numbers so far this season (40-67 for 539 yards and three TDs), Luck has quietly delivered equally compelling numbers (43-66 for 499 yards and 3 TDs).
If you’re unable to see the 4:25 Eastern / 1:25 Pacific kickoff on CBS, make sure you watch 49ers vs Colts live online streaming. To do so, you can grab DirecTV’s NFL Sunday Ticket package and upgrade to the Max package, or check out gameday-live.com, which generally carries live online streaming NFL Sunday football each week. The 49ers vs Colts is bound to be one of the best matchups of Week 3. Will the Super Bowl 49ers show up today, or the hat-handed-to-them 49ers that lost to the Seahawks last week? This is not a game you’ll want to miss live online streaming or on HDTV.
