Colts hold off Bills to remain unbeaten

Nov 12, 2006, 21:15 GMT

Indianapolis, IN - Peyton Manning threw for 236 yards and a touchdown as Indianapolis held off Buffalo, 17-16, to become the first team in NFL history to open consecutive seasons with nine victories.

Rookie Joseph Addai had 78 yards rushing and a touchdown for the Colts (9-0), who are the only unbeaten team in the NFL. Dominic Rhodes added another 72 yards rushing while Reggie Wayne had four catches for 42 yards and a score.

'There are no easy games in this league,' said Indianapolis coach Tony Dungy. 'Every week is tough and we found that out today. I thought we would be a little sharper today but they had a very good game plan.'

Anthony Thomas had 109 yard rushing for the Bills (3-6), who have lost four of their past five games. J.P. Losman completed just 8-of-12 passes for 83 yards and Rian Lindell kicked three field goals for Buffalo.

'Every time you come in here and get a loss, it's tough,' said Losman. 'We were in it. It's not like we were getting out-manned.'

The Bills took the opening kickoff and went 61 yards on 14 plays before stalling at the Indianapolis four-yard line. Buffalo had to settle for a 22- yard Lindell field goal to make it 3-0 with 8:08 left in the opening quarter.

The vaunted Indianapolis offense finally got things going in the second quarter when Manning capped a nine-play, 58-yard drive by finding Wayne for a one-yard TD to put the Colts on top 7-3 with 11:09 remaining before the half.

Less than three minutes later, the Colts extended their advantage to 10-3 on a 31-yard Adam Vinatieri field goal, but Buffalo was able to get right back in the game thanks to their defense.

With less than a minute to go before intermission, Manning found Ben Utecht but the tight end fumbled and Terrence McGee scooped up the football and raced 68 yards to even things at 10.

The back and fourth action continued into the third quarter. The Colts went back in front when Addai finished a nine-play, 74-yard march by taking it in from five yards out.

But, McGee returned the ensuing kickoff 88 yards to the Indianapolis 12. The Colts defense stiffened however, and Lindell was called on for a 30-yard field goal to draw the Bills within four, 17-13, with 8:47 left in the quarter.

Lindell's third field goal, a 43-yarder with 10:35 left, made things even tighter, 17-16.

Buffalo then had a great chance to take the lead after Nate Clements recovered a Rhodes fumble and returned it to the Colts 41-yard line. A 19-yard burst up the middle by Thomas got the Bills in field goal position but this time Lindell was not equal to the task, missing a 41-yarder.

That would be the last chance for the Bills as Manning and the Indianapolis offense managed to siphon the final 6:22 off the clock to secure the game.

'A very painful loss, to come in here and be that close and not take it at the end,' said Buffalo coach Dick Jauron. 'We just didn't play right up to where we needed to be to win it.'

Game Notes

Manning TD pass was the 262nd of his career and he moved into ninth place on the all-time list.

The Bills still hold a 34-30-1 edge in their series with the Colts, but have lost six straight to Indy since last defeating them in 1999.

Jauron is now 1-1 in his career against the Colts, with the win coming for his Chicago Bears team at Soldier Field in 2000. Dungy is 3-0 all-time against the Bills, including a win while with Tampa Bay in 2000.

© 2006 The Sports Network