Indianapolis Colts Reserves Favored By Seven Over Buffalo Bills

NFL News - December 29th, 2009 - Written by Bryan

The Buffalo Bills are finally at the end of the line, finishing out a season they hoped would vault them to the top of the AFC, but instead only relegated them back to the bottom. Terrell Owens has already indicated in a Twitter post that his time in Buffalo is coming to an end, but he will get one more shot to sparkle before he finds a future suitor in the off-season.

He gets a vulnerable secondary this week when the Bills host the Indianapolis Colts, who will likely be benching it's starters halfway through the game.

Still, BetUS Sportsbook has Indianapolis favored by seven, with an over/under of 38, according to Week 17 NFL Betting Odds.

The total may seem a bit low considering the offensive potential of the Colts, but Indianapolis has played the under in nine of it's last 11 Week 17 games, and six of it's last eight in January.

The Bills are 2-10 ATS in their last 12 home games, and 4-11 ATS recently against a team with a winning record.

The Colts have been hammered in local radio waves and blogosphere for their decision to dispatch the starters midway through last week's game against the New York Jets. Not only are they angered by the fact that their team essentially balked at a chance at perfection, but they want a full refund for the pricey tickets.

Indianapolis may have even altered the AFC playoff picture by setting the Jets up with a "win-and-you're-in" scenario while all the other "also in the mix" teams played competitive opponents. Either way, there won't be a whole lot changing this week as head coach Jim Caldwell prepares for the playoffs.

The Colts have already secured the no. 1 spot in the conference and will have a bye in the opening round. It is the seventh-straight year that Peyton Manning has guided his team to at least 12 wins.

Manning is likely the front-runner for the league MVP after the recent struggles of Drew Brees and Brett Favre. Manning is only about 150 yards short of surmounting his career high of 4,557 passing yards in a season, and his 33 touchdowns are already tied for second-most.

Both Dallas Clark and Reggie Wayne have over 1,000 yards receiving this year, and Pierre Garcon and Austin Collie are both over 650.

As mentioned, Buffalo features one of the best pass-catchers in the league in Owens, but a quarterback shuffle has made it impossible to maintain chemistry. Brian Brohm will get his second-straight start after injuries to Trent Edwards and Ryan Fitzpatrick cost them the season.

Brohm was picked twice last week and never found the end zone in a 31-3 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, and Owens only hauled in four balls for 39 yards.

Buffalo has lost two-straight and only won back-to-back games once this season.

It is the first time Indianapolis has traveled to Buffalo since 2003, but the Colts have beaten the Bills in eight of their nine regular-season meetings this decade.