Buffalo @ Indianapolis preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 10, 2017 ) Indianapolis 7, Buffalo 13

Despite their disappointing start to the season, the Indianapolis Colts find themselves only two games behind the other three teams in the AFC South in the standings. The Colts hope to gain ground on at least one of their division rivals when they host the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.

Indianapolis split its first two games of 2018 before losing four straight, including a 42-34 road decision against the New York Jets last week. But the other three clubs in the AFC South own 3-3 records, and with a victory over Buffalo, the Colts will climb within one game of at least one of them as Houston and Jacksonville square off in Week 7. The Bills also occupy last place in their division but, like Indianapolis, are just two games behind the co-leaders in the AFC East (New England and Miami). Buffalo looks to avoid back-to-back losses after falling 20-13 in Houston last week with a new quarterback at the helm as Derek Anderson, who was on vacation with his family less than two weeks ago, makes the start in place of injured rookie Josh Allen (elbow).

TV: 1 p.m. ET, CBS. LINE: Colts -7.5. O/U: 43

ABOUT THE BILLS (2-4): Anderson, who was signed on Oct. 9, hasn't made a start in the NFL since 2016 with Carolina and last appeared in a contest on Jan. 7 as he replaced an injured Cam Newton in the NFC wild-card game. "The legs feel good. The arm feels good," the 35-year-old Anderson told the team's website. "Mentally, we're working on putting a lot of hours in just trying to catch up with (the offense)." Buffalo is hoping to receive a strong performance by its defense, which has climbed from 18th in the league against the run to eighth over the last four weeks and leads the league with seven fumble recoveries.

ABOUT THE COLTS (1-5): Andrew Luck looks to join Steve Young (five) and Peyton Manning (four) as the only quarterbacks in NFL history to post four straight games with 300 passing yards and three touchdown tosses within a single season after recording 301 and four last week. Luck enters Week 7 first in the league with 186 completions and second with 16 scoring passes. Adam Vinatieri is moving closer to becoming the NFL's all-time leading scorer as he needs just 10 points to pass Hall-of-Famer Morten Andersen (2,544).

EXTRA POINTS

1. The Bills promoted rookie Cam Phillips from the practice squad and released fellow WR Robert Foster, who had two receptions for 30 yards.

2. Indianapolis placed Marcus Johnson (ankle) on injured reserve and signed fellow WR Dontrelle Inman.

3. Buffalo LB Tremaine Edmunds leads the team and is fourth among all NFL rookies with 47 tackles this season.

PREDICTION: Colts 33, Bills 13