T.Y. Hilton of the Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts passing game has been more than underwhelming over the past few weeks. Since speedy wide receiver TY Hilton went down with an injury, the team has averaged just 191.3 passing yards per game.
The Colts are extremely hungry for playmakers at the moment, as lead-back Marlon Mack has already been ruled out this week due to a fractured hand. Not having Hilton as well would extremely limit the team’s ability to move the ball down the field.
However, rumblings out of Indianapolis state that there is a belief that Hilton could be prepping for his long-awaited return to the Colts lineup this Thursday Night vs. the division rival Houston Texans.
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TY Hilton Injury Status for Thursday Night
It’s official, TY Hilton will indeed be active for Thursday night, returning to the playing field after a three-game absence.
When asked by media earlier this week if he would indeed be playing on Thursday, Hilton responded with “If I check all the boxes.” Hilton continued “me, how I feel; the doctors, trainers; and then Frank (Reich) and Chris (Ballard) have their say.” Apparently, the boxes were checked.
Despite Hilton’s diminutive size, the speedy wideout has proven to be extremely durable throughout his lengthy NFL career. Hilton had never missed more than two games in any of his previous seven NFL seasons prior to this injury.
It is worth noting that due to the short week, the Colts only held walk-through practices leading up to Thursday night’s contest. With that said, Hilton has gone on record stating “I don’t need practices…It’s just how my body feels.”
The Colts opponents this week, the Houston Texans, will be as prepared as they could be for Hilton in Week 12. Here’s what Texans defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel had to say when discussing the prospects of Hilton’s availability on Thursday.
“Yes, he’s going to play, he’s probably counting on it, and I’m, well not necessarily counting on it or looking forward to it, but you’ve got to prepare for him to play because he’ll show up.”
Fantasy Fallout From Hilton’s Return
While the Colts have struggled to push the ball down the football field of late, adding Hilton back into the mix would be adding an influx of talent and production. Hilton has been a Texans destroyer during his time with Indy. The wideout has played 15 games against Houston over his career, and over that time he’s accumulated over 1,000 receiving yards while averaging five-plus receptions, 101+ yards, and nearly a touchdown per contest.
The Texans have also been one of the worst defenses in the NFL this season in terms of defending the wide receiver position. Houston currently allows the sixth-most fantasy points to opposing wideouts.
With history on his side and an opponent who was torched for nearly 500 total yards just one week ago, Hilton is an automatic start in your fantasy lineups now that he is active and good to go.