Dallas @ Indianapolis preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 19, 2017 ) Indianapolis 19, Dallas 24

Two of the hottest teams in the NFL try to push closer to playoff berths when the surging Dallas Cowboys visit the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. The NFC East-leading Cowboys ran their winning streak to five games with a 29-23 victory over Philadelphia last week, riding another monster effort from wideout Amari Cooper, who had a career-high 217 receiving yards and three touchdowns -- including the game-winner in overtime.

"I was almost, I guess I would say, astonished that we were able to get that trade," quarterback Dak Prescott told reporters of the midseason acquisition of Cooper, who has a team-leading 642 yards in just six games with the team. "So I guess if you say that, when we're getting a trade, well, what's wrong? And then to get him and see everything turning out and playing out the way it is, we're very, very fortunate." The Colts know all about piling up big yards through the air and quarterback Andrew Luck ranks second in the NFL with 34 passing TDs after tossing two more -- to go along with 399 yards -- in a crucial 24-21 win at Houston last week. The victory kept Indianapolis' AFC South hopes alive and put it squarely in the wild-card race as it looks to snap a three-year playoff drought. "There was a confidence all week," coach Frank Reich told the media in Houston. "What was best about this was, we expected to win this game. We really did."

TV: 1 p.m. ET, FOX. LINE: Colts -3. O/U: 47

ABOUT THE COWBOYS (8-5): Ezekiel Elliott (NFL-best 1,262 yards) has 155 touches over the last five games, including a season-high 40 last week, and has been hampered this week by a shoulder issue. The team termed his absence from practice Wednesday as a "maintenance day" and the third-year pro is expected to be ready to take on a defense that allows 3.8 yards per carry, sixth-best in the league entering Week 14. Prescott threw for a career-high 455 yards against the Eagles and is completing 74.1 percent of his passes since Cooper arrived.

ABOUT THE COLTS (7-6): Roughly half of Luck's 399 yards against the Texans went to star wideout T.Y. Hilton, who is averaging 8.3 catches and 139 yards over his last four games. However, Hilton -- who needs 14 yards to reach 1,000 for the fifth time in his career -- has missed practice this week due to an ankle injury after fighting through a shoulder issue last week. Tight end Eric Ebron has flourished alongside Hilton and set the franchise record for TDs at the position with his 12th last week, leaving him three shy of matching Marvin Harrison's team mark, set in both 2001 and 2004.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Dallas ranks third in the NFL in run defense (86.8 yards allowed per game), while Indianapolis is eighth (102.9).

2. Cowboys LB Sean Lee (hamstring) is questionable after missing the last five games.

3. Dallas took the last three meetings, including a 42-7 rout in 2014 in which Luck threw for 109 yards and two interceptions before being yanked from the game in the third quarter.

PREDICTION: Cowboys 24, Colts 23