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Week 17: Bills vs. Colts
 at 
Sunday, Jan. 3rd
1:00pm ET
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This game has no drama in it at all since the Colts gave up their undefeated season last week against the Jets. They rested their starters for most of the second half and have no motivation to allow them to play this week. Look for Peyton Manning to make a token appearance but backups should play most of the way at all positions giving the Bills at least a chance at a win.
FACTS AND FIGURES
| Matchup: |
Buffalo (5-10) vs. Indianapolis (14-1) |
| Place: |
Ralph Wilson Stadium |
| Television: |
CBS |
| Announcers: |
Bill Macatee and Steve Beuerlein |
| Spread: |
No Line |
| Series: |
Bills lead 34-30-1 |
| Streak: |
Colts Won 6 |
| Last Meeting: |
Colts 17-16 in Indianapolis (2006) |
| Colts Offense: |
Rush (32nd); Pass (1st); overall (7th) |
| Colts Defense: |
Rush (21st); Pass (18th); overall (16th) |
| Bills Offense: |
Rush (19th); Pass (29th); overall (30th) |
| Bills Defense: |
Rush (32nd); Pass (3rd); overall (21st) |
INJURY UPDATE
The Bills will likely have Ryan Fitzpatrick back for this game as he is recovering nicely from his ankle injury. Trent Edwards is unavailable with an ankle injury. Jonathan Scott suffered an ankle injury as well against the Falcons and will likely miss the finale along with Bryan Scott who missed last week's game with a concussion. Jamon Meredith may be available after missing last week's game with an ankle injury. The Bills have a team record 18 players on injured reserve including Jairus Byrd, Terrence McGee, Kendall Simmons, Demetrius Bell, Eric Wood, Seth McKinney, Keith Ellison, Derek Fine, Kawika Mitchell, Marcus Buggs, Leodis McKelvin, Derek Schouman, and Brad Butler.
The Colts will likely rest any player that has a lingering injury since the game means nothing to them. RB Gijon Robinson suffered a knee injury in the lost to the Jets and will likely sit this week. LB Clint Session (calf), OT Charlie Johnson (foot), DT Keyunta Dawson (Knee), WR Pierre Garcon (Hand), and CB Jerraud Powers (hamstring) all missed last week's game.
Check out our  Bills Daily Injury Page throughout the week for the latest updates on the injured players.
KEY MATCHUPS
DT Marcus Stroud vs. RB Donald Brown:
With Joseph Addai likely to sit most of the game the Connecticut rookie will likely get the majority of the carries. If Stroud can clog up the middle the Bills should be able to hold the league's worst rushing attack down.
Bills Secondary vs. QB Curtis Painter:
You had to feel bad for the young backup QB last week he was booed by the home town fans everytime he took the field. He may like it better this week that he is on the road and going against an injury riddled Bills secondary so it will be interesting to see what he can do.
DE Aaron Schobel vs. LT Charlie Johnson:
The starting offensive line should play more than the rest so Schobel will be lined up against Johnson who will likely give way to Tony Ugoh later in the game.
RB Fred Jackson vs. LBs Clint Session and Gary Brackett:
The club leaders in tackles will look to corral Jackson while they are in the game. Look for Jackson to make a run at a 1,000 yard season (he needs 150 yards) especially after the starting linebackers giveaway to the backups.
WR Terrell Owens vs. CB Keith Hayden:
It would be a shock if this wasn't Owens' last game in a Bills uniform. It would be nice to see him go out with a big game. He will lineup against Hayden and his backup Jacob Lacey.
LT Andre Ramsey vs. DE Dwight Freeney:
Talk about a classic mismatch! Freeney could have a field day against Ramsey. Luckily for the Bills he likely won't play long if at all. If he plays a quarter he can get a few sacks.
GAME PLAN
When The Bills Have The Ball: They will likely try what didn't work last week. They should look to run the ball a lot to keep from having to pass. They will likely feed the ball to Jackson all day long since he is their best offensive player.
When The Colts Have The Ball: They will likely try to just get out of the game in one piece so look for them to run a vanilla gameplan that's simple. Probably a mixture of short passes and a lot of running the football.
BILLS DAILY PREDICTION
How do you predict what is nothing more than a glorified exhibition game? The Bills are packing it in while the Colts are only worried about being healthy for the playoffs. It sounds like an ugly, boring game that can go either way. The way the season has gone for Buffalo why would you expect a win? The Colts backups are likely better than what is left of the Bills starters:
Colts 20, Bills 10
Season Prediction Record: (9-6)
Season Record Against The Spread: (9-6)
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