Indianapolis @ Pittsburgh preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 12, 2017 ) Pittsburgh 20, Indianapolis 17

The Indianapolis Colts are turning heads and continue to look like a contender in the AFC. The Colts will try to push their winning streak to four in a row and check off another win over an AFC opponent when they visit the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

Indianapolis beat Kansas City, Houston and Denver in its last three games by an average of five points and is not afraid to play tight games. "I just think we have tough-minded players who have a mindset of figuring out how to play winning football, and just believing in each other and believing in what we’re doing, and trying to do the little things right," Colts coach Frank Reich told reporters. "I think we're doing, for the most part, those little things that you need to do to win close games, and that's been a good formula for us." The Steelers got off to a slow start but picked things up recently with wins in three of the last four games and opened a three-game homestand by coming from behind to knock off Miami 27-14 last week. "We're more than capable, it's just being able to click," Pittsburgh outside linebacker T.J. Watt told reporters. "We're getting bits and pieces of that. We have yet to have a full, complete game, in my opinion, but we're definitely trending in the right direction."

TV: 1 p.m. ET, CBS. LINE: Colts -1. O/U: 42.5

ABOUT THE COLTS (5-2): Indianapolis is becoming accustomed to executing late with the game on the line, giving the longer-tenured players hope that this season is different than the ones in the recent past. "I've been on teams here, a bad thing happens, and we fold - thinking back to 2017 or whatever. But not this team, man," tight end Jack Doyle told the team's website. "It's a credit to our leaders, Frank (Reich), (quarterback) Jacoby (Brissett) and just the type of people they are first off. The players, the coach and it just - it can rally a team, man, and give you confidence. You want to play for those guys." Brissett owns 14 TD passes and three interceptions on the season and threw for a combined 528 yards in the last two games.

ABOUT THE STEELERS (3-4): Pittsburgh is getting its offense settled behind quarterback Mason Rudolph and put together a consistent performance in Monday's win over the Dolphins, with Rudolph throwing for 251 yards and a pair of scores and James Conner rushing for 145 yards and a touchdown. "He came out hot early and it really kind of sparked us as an offense," Rudolph told reporters of Conner. "Coach (Mike) Tomlin had been talking all week about securing those 10-yard runs, and we need more of them. We're making ourselves more of a complete offense and I think we challenged the offensive line, which had been doing great in that area all week." Conner suffered an injured AC joint in his shoulder late in the win and is questionable for Sunday.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Steelers RB Jaylen Samuels (knee surgery) returned to practice this week and is expected to play Sunday.

2. Colts K Adam Vinatieri was named the AFC's Special Teams Player of the Week after booting the game-winning 51-yard field goal last week.

3. Pittsburgh LG Ramon Foster suffered a concussion last week and is questionable.

PREDICTION: Colts 24, Steelers 20