Cincinnati @ Indianapolis preview
Lucas Oil Stadium
Last Meeting ( Aug 28, 2014 ) Indianapolis 7, Cincinnati 35
Cincinnati couldn't have picked a worse time than Sunday to visit Andrew Luck and surging Indianapolis. Bengals coach Marvin Lewis must try and find a way to slow down the No. 1 offense in the league after watching his team get scorched for 80 points and 936 yards the past two weeks. “It won't be an easy task. We'll have to go back to fundamentals," Lewis said earlier this week. “You make sure we’re doing things the correct way all of the time. Make sure we’re getting in the right spots, we’re winning on third down, and that cures most of your ills.”
An offense that leads the league in scoring (31.5) and total offense (444.0) has helped the AFC South-leading Colts put season-opening losses to Denver and Philadelphia behind them. Luck leads the NFL in TD passes (17) and passing yards (1,987) but coach Chuck Pagano doesn't want the team to get caught up in its press clippings. "It's great to be in first place, but if we lose perspective, lose the mindset of process, putting the time in during the week, we're not going to be there very long," he said. "We need to stay focused on the task at hand - getting ready for Cincinnati."
TV: 1 p.m. ET, CBS. LINE: Colts –3.5 O/U: 49.5
ABOUT THE BENGALS (3-1-1): The AFC North leaders yielded 11 points and 353 yards per game in the first three weeks – all wins – and were plus-7 in turnover margin. In the last two games, New England and Carolina averaged 183.5 yards and the Bengals were minus-4 in turnover margin. To make matters worse, linebackers Rey Maualuga (out/hamstring), Emmanuel Lamur (questionable/shoulder) and Vontaze Burfict (probable/head) were banged up last week. Andy Dalton, who has a 116.4 passer rating in two wins against Indianapolis and is fifth in the AFC this season at 98.2, could be without star wideout A.J. Green for a second straight week.
ABOUT THE COLTS (4-2): Luck, who threw for 326 yards and four TDs in last season's 42-28 loss to Cincinnati, is seeking his fifth straight 300-yard passing day as Indianapolis vies for its first five-game winning streak during the Luck era. In the 33-28 win at Houston on Oct. 9, T.Y. Hilton caught all nine targets for 223 yards – one shy of the team record. Despite all the offensive weapons, interior line play will be a key Sunday. Dalton has been sacked just twice all season while the Colts have registered 16 sacks during the win streak – most in the NFL.
EXTRA POINTS
1.The Colts lead the all-time series 16-10, but the Bengals have won the last two.
2. Hilton is on pace for the fifth-most catches (107) and third-most yards (1,611) during a single season in Colts history.
3. Bengals RB Giovani Bernard ran for a career-high 137 yards last week in the 37-37 tie with Carolina - the Bengals' first 100-yard rusher in 22 games - and broke free for an 89-yard TD run, the longest in team history.
PREDICTION: Colts 31, Bengals 27