(My Sportsbook) - The Indianapolis Colts have been a model of consistency ever since head coach Tony Dungy took over the helm in January 2002, having won at least 10 games every year since then.

Indianapolis moved a game closer to its seventh straight playoff appearance with Sunday's 31-21 victory over the winless Detroit Lions at Lucas Oil Stadium. The game was more interesting than the score actually indicated, but the Colts were able to rely on backup running back Dominic Rhodes and extend their winning streak to seven straight games.

The Colts have now posted seven straight wins in a season for an NFL-record fifth consecutive year.

"You have to win games like this to have long winning streaks and to win 10 or 11 games," Dungy said after the game. "You aren't going to be perfect every game and that's the one thing we do have, too, that when we aren't perfect we have some big-play guys who can make things happen and make up for it. We made those plays you have to make to win."

Rhodes came up with some big plays in the absence of starter Joseph Addai, out with a shoulder injury, by rushing for 86 yards and a pair of scores on 20 touches. Rhodes' second score of the game, with 8:39 remaining in the fourth quarter, broke a 21-21 tie and put Indy ahead for good.

The always-reliable Adam Vinatieri then completed the scoring with a 31-yard field goal for the Colts, who became the third team in league history to win 10 or more games in seven straight seasons. The San Francisco 49ers won at least 10 games from 1983-98 (16 seasons), while the Dallas Cowboys posted 10 or more victories from 1975-81 (seven seasons).

The Colts are the fifth seed in the AFC playoff race at the moment and have Jacksonville and Tennessee on the remaining docket, both from the AFC South. They will put their winning streak on the line -- and try to win again without a few top members of the defense -- this Thursday on the road against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Indy, which has won three in a row on the road, played Sunday without top safety Bob Sanders (knee) and star middle linebacker Gary Brackett (leg). Linebacker Buster Davis took over for Brackett for the second straight week, while Melvin Bullitt resumed his role as starter for Sanders.

Indianapolis can seal a postseason berth with a victory at Jacksonville, which will be trying to play spoiler since its season was over months ago. If Tennessee is still fighting for homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, expect its December 28 matchup with the Colts to be an aggressive one.

"We've got a short turnaround now," Dungy added. "We need one more game to get ourselves in the playoffs. It's a team that beat us here (23-21 in Week 3). I know they would like to keep us out, so we have our work cut out for us. We'll continue to work, come back to practice on Tuesday and get ready to go."

NOTES: Colts longtime wide receiver Marvin Harrison had two catches Sunday to move past Tim Brown for third on the NFL career list. Harrison has 1,095 receptions and is seven shy of passing Cris Carter...Indy improved to 43-12 at home since Dungy became the head coach...Manning passed Vinny Testaverde (3,787) for sixth on the NFL's all-time career completions list. He completed 28 of his 37 pass attempts for 318 yards and a score versus the Lions...Wideout Reggie Wayne had 104 yards on seven catches and owns 74 receptions for 1,022 yards for his fifth straight 1,000-yard season. Tight end Dallas Clark caught a career-high 12 passes for 142 yards and a touchdown Sunday to become the first tight end in team history to catch 10 or more passes in a game.

INJURIES: Indianapolis did not suffer any serious injuries on Sunday. It was without Sanders, Brackett and Addai. Antonio Johnson and Josh Thomas played at defensive tackle for the injured Keyunta Dawson and Eric Foster.

WEEK 16: The Colts pay a visit to the Jaguars on Thursday to try to avenge a Week 3 loss at Lucas Oil Stadium. Jags kicker Josh Scobee booted a 51-yard field goal in the waning seconds of the fourth quarter for a 23-21 win. Indianapolis is 11-4 in the all-time series, with a 5-2 mark on the road.

LOSS SETS UP PIVOTAL MATCHUP FOR TITANS

The AFC South-champion Tennessee Titans have already locked up a first-round bye in the postseason, but are still in search of homefield advantage throughout the AFC playoffs after last Sunday's tough loss in Houston.

While the Texans are playing for their first winning season in franchise history, it seemed Tennessee was just going through the motions and perhaps believed it could just show up and win on reputation. "Wrong again, Flanders", as Homer Simpson would say to his jovial neighbor.

Titans head coach Jeff Fisher may have been a bit too confident late in the game, when he decided to go for it on fourth down rather than try for a Rob Bironas field goal. Bironas kicked a field goal in each quarter but was pulled off the field by a gambling Fisher late in the contest. Kerry Collins then overthrew Justin McCareins and Houston took over from there.

"I'm not going to put Rob in that position to fail," Fisher said.

Sunday's loss struck a nerve with Tennessee running back LenDale White.

"It's a big win for (the Texans) as an organization," White confided. "(But) no matter what they do, they'll still go home (during the) playoffs. We have a lot to look forward to."

Even though Houston had the last laugh, White is right on point with his post-game remarks. He also has a right to be upset after he and rookie Chris Johnson combined for 91 yards and no touchdowns in Sunday's game.

Tennessee's ground attack is the main reason why the team is 12-2 and in position to accomplish great things this season. The Titans had a two-game winning streak stopped and have split their last four games, a stretch this team is not used to being in.

Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson single-handedly burned the Titans for a career-high 207 yards and a touchdown on 11 catches, and the Tennessee defense watched rookie running back Steve Slaton run for a game-high 100 yards on 24 touches. The unit also lost Pro Bowl defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth, who suffered a sprained left knee late in Sunday's game.

Haynesworth leads the team with 8 1/2 sacks and will miss the rest of the regular season, according to Fisher. He had to be carted from the locker room to the team bus.

The Titans will be in a world of hurt without Haynesworth for this Sunday's game with Pittsburgh in which homefield advantage will be on the line. The 11-3 Steelers just won the AFC North by defeating Baltimore over the weekend and like Tennessee, are in the hunt for the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs. If the Titans defeat Pittsburgh, they would capture homefield advantage.

Tennessee would have clinched this past weekend had it not lost to Houston and the Steelers fell to the Ravens.

After taking on fellow AFC powerhouse Pittsburgh at home, the Titans will wrap up the regular season with a showdown against the AFC South-rival Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.

NOTES: Johnson ran for 65 yards on 13 carries and White contributed 26 yards on eight touches...Johnson became the third rookie in franchise history (Earl Campbell, Eddie George) to reach 1,100 rushing yards in his rookie season...Collins ended 15-for-33 for 181 yards and a touchdown...Stephen Tulloch, Jevon Kearse and Jacob Ford each had a sack for the Titans on Sunday. Kearse registered the 73rd sack of his career...Linebacker Keith Bulluck started his 111th consecutive game on Sunday.

INJURIES: The biggest injury for the Titans was the loss of Haynesworth. He will monitored on a daily basis to see if a return if possible. Defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch was inactive on Sunday and has been bothered by a groin injury for much of this season. Vanden Bosch has missed three other games with the injury and did not finish two more. He will also be out for the last two games of the regular season. The Titans are already without reserve tackle Kevin Vickerson for the rest of the regular season because of a four-game suspension for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.

WEEK 16: Pittsburgh is 38-28 against Tennessee during the regular season and ended a three-game losing streak in the series with a 34-7 victory in the season opener for both teams on September 11, 2005.

'DRE IS A HOUSTON HERO

Even if he sat out the last two games, Houston Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson will be headed to his third Pro Bowl. Johnson is having a stellar year with an NFL-high 1,408 yards on 103 receptions, and posted a career-best 207 yards and a touchdown on 11 catches in Sunday's improbable 13-12 victory over the Tennessee Titans.

Johnson was sidelined seven games with a knee injury last season, but never missed a beat once the 2008 campaign started. He has a touchdown catch in three straight games and has recorded 100 or more receiving yards in a game seven times this season. Johnson has also hauled in 10 or more passes in a game six times for the Texans, who are riding a franchise-best four-game winning streak with two favorable matchups on the slate.

"It's been a long road. I didn't think it would take this long when I first got here," Johnson said. "But we're growing and we've learned a lot about ourselves. I think right now, we're starting to find our niche."

Houston and its stud wideout are in search of the first winning season in team history after finishing with an 8-8 record in 2007, currently the best mark ever for the Texans.

While Johnson has been dazzling by pulling passes out of the air, rookie running back Steve Slaton is another reason for Houston's resurgence late in the year.

Slaton has rushed for 100 or more yards in three consecutive games and has carried the ball no less than 21 times in each of the last four weeks. The West Virginia product is second among rookies in rushing yards (1,124) and has eclipsed the 100-yard mark five times in 2008.

The Houston defense kept the Titans out of the end zone for the first time this season, giving up just four field goals. The Texans shut down Tennessee's vaunted ground attack of LenDale White and rookie Chris Johnson in becoming only the second team this season to defeat the AFC South champions.

Houston has a pair of favorable games ahead with Oakland and Chicago on the horizon, with the Bears posing as the biggest threat in preventing the Texans from finishing with a record above .500. Bears rookie running back Matt Forte is enjoying a fine season and Houston will have to follow a similar scheme from Sunday, when Chris Johnson and White were kept in check.

NOTES: The Texans ended a seven-game slide to Tennessee...Slaton had 100 yards on 24 carries on Sunday...Texans quarterback Matt Schaub passed for 284 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions versus the Titans. He has played well in back-to-back games since missing four straight because of injury...Linebacker Kevin Bentley led the way for the Houston defense with eight tackles.

INJURIES: Texans cornerback Antwaun Molden suffered a season-ending injury against the Titans after he fractured his ankle on a special teams play. Rookie linebacker Xavier Adibi injured his groin and did not return to the game. Adibi had been playing well for injured starter Morlon Greenwood.

WEEK 16: The Oakland Raiders will play host to the Texans on Sunday at the Coliseum and are 3-11 this season. The Raiders have dropped three in a row and are coming off Sunday's 49-26 setback versus New England. Houston has won all three meetings with Oakland, including a 24-17 triumph on November 4, 2007.

JAGUARS POST MORAL VICTORY OVER PACKERS

The 5-9 Jacksonville Jaguars avoided their fifth straight loss at home with a hard-fought victory over the playoff-hopeful Green Bay Packers this past Sunday.

Jacksonville possibly figured that if it can't go to the playoffs, then the Packers were not going to post a second straight postseason berth either. Both the Jaguars and Packers are struggling this season after enjoying excellent results a year ago.

Jaguars quarterback David Garrard has played well sporadically this season, but he was good on Sunday, passing for 238 yards with a pair of touchdown strikes and no interceptions to help Jacksonville win at home for the first time since September. Garrard, who had thrown five interceptions in his previous four games, hit six different receivers from a depleted receiving corps.

With Matt Jones done for the season because of a suspension stemming from an offseason drug charge and Jerry Porter nursing another injury, veteran Dennis Northcutt stepped up with 127 yards and a touchdown on five receptions.

"I think he was just sharper today," Del Rio said of Garrard. "I thought the plan came together nicely. He just played well and we needed that."

Running back Maurice Jones-Drew ended with 48 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries against an uninspired Green Bay defense. Jones-Drew also caught four passes for 22 yards and a score and has 14 total touchdown this season.

Jacksonville talented young safety Reggie Nelson clinched Sunday's win by intercepting a tipped pass by Aaron Rodgers with 40 seconds to play.

The Jaguars, who were pegged by many to contend for the AFC South title, will try to finish out the 2008 season with a respectable record, as Indianapolis and Baltimore remain on the schedule. Both teams are fighting for playoff berths, so Jacksonville has a chance to play spoiler again. The Colts can clinch the No. 5 seed in the AFC playoffs with a win Thursday.

NOTES: Jaguars defensive end Reggie Hayward recorded a pair of sacks versus Green Bay, while rookie Quentin Groves registered one sack on Sunday...Garrard became the first Jacksonville quarterback since Byron Leftwich in 2004 (14 starts) to start 14 games in a season. He had 31 yards on five scrambles...The Jags improved to 22-5 against NFC opponents at home in their 14-year history...Jones-Drew owns 34 career rushing touchdowns, the second-most in team history (Fred Taylor, 62). He has seven rushing touchdowns in the last seven games...Jacksonville is 6-2 when Jones-Drew scores two or more touchdowns in a game...The 127 yards for Northcutt were the second-most of his career and most since he had 165 on October 6, 2002 against Baltimore, while a member of Cleveland.

INJURIES: Porter was inactive on Sunday, but Northcutt filled in nicely. Linebacker Daryl Smith left in the third quarter with a groin injury and did not return. Smith has 69 tackles this season and is expected to miss Thursday's game versus the rival Colts.

WEEK 16: Jacksonville defeated Indianapolis, 23-21, on the road back in Week 3 to end a two-game slide in the series. Josh Scobee's 51-yard field goal in the waning moments of the fourth quarter lifted the Jags to victory, while Jones- Drew rushed for 107 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. The Colts lead the all-time series by an 11-4 margin.