2014 AFC Divisional round picks, Colts vs. Patriots: New England the heavy favorite

The New England Patriots are heavily favored to take down the Indianapolis Colts, though experts aren’t unanimous on the opinion.

by James Brady

Jan 8, 2014, 4:55 PM UTC

Patrick Smith

The New England Patriots will host the Indianapolis Colts in the Divisional round of the NFL Playoffs. New England is the No. 2 seed in the AFC, and boasts a 12-4 record. Indianapolis is the No. 4 seed and is only one win behind with an 11-5 regular season record. The Patriots will be at home, where they have a perfect 8-0 mark this season.

Three of the Colts' five losses came on the road this season, but they also managed to beat some very solid teams away from Indianapolis, including the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs. Andrew Luck hasn't been perfect this season, but he has been coming through in the clutch in recent weeks. The Colts are riding a four-game winning streak, which includes a thrilling 45-44 comeback victory over the Chiefs in the Wild Card round.

Facing Tom Brady and the Patriots at home may be the Colts’ biggest test yet, however. New England will be favored on the books, but what do the experts think?

As it happens, public opinion is not unanimously in favor of the Patriots. SB Nation’s panel of experts favored the Patriots, but there were a couple dissenting opinions. Of the six, four chose the Pats-- Stephen White, Jason Chilton, Joel Thorman and Matt Ufford--while David Fucillo and Ryan Van Bibber chose the Colts to score the upset.

The split is similar over at CBS Sports. They have six experts picking the Patriots to win, including guys like Pete Prisco, Will Brinson and Jason La Canfora. John Breech and Dave Richard are the only two members of the eight-expert panel who are picking Indianapolis.