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Little incentive for Titans, Colts

Dec 23, 2008 - 4:34 PM Tennessee (13-2) at Indianapolis (11-4), 1:00 pm EST

INDIANAPOLIS (Ticker) -- One of the most anticipated matchups of the season has been relegated to also-ran status.

Two of the best teams in the AFC meet Sunday when the Tennessee Titans visit the Indianapolis Colts. Only one problem: The game means absolutely nothing to either team.

The Titans wrapped up the AFC South title, the No. 1 overall seed and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs following a 31-14 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers last weekend.

With a first-round bye secured, Tennessee has little motivation to do anything other than rest its key players for its playoff opener - which could come, coincidentally, against the Colts.

Indianapolis also has nothing to play for after locking up the top wild card berth following a 31-24 victory over Jacksonville - its eighth consecutive win.

The Colts will visit the AFC West winner in their playoff opener and, if they should win, could be staring at a trip to Tennessee the following week.

Still, after nailing down a seventh straight playoff appearance and posting 11 wins for an NFL record-tying sixth straight seasons, the Colts are not looking ahead.

"You never take winning for granted," Colts quarterback Peyton Manning said. "It's hard to win one game and its extremely hard to win eight in a row like we did."

Indianapolis showed its mettle in the win over the Jaguars, rallying from a 10-point deficit by scoring 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.

"They played well, but I'm proud of our guys for fighting," Colts coach Tony Dungy said. "We said at halftime that we are just going to have to play longer and harder than they did and we made some plays right there at the end to win it."

The Titans could echo Dungy's sentiments after scoring the final 21 points to win its showdown against the Steelers in a matchup featuring the league's top two defenses.

Rookie Chris Johnson and LenDale White rushed for touchdowns in the second half for Tennessee, which played without All-Pro defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth.

"This was the message to the team this week: This was a momentum game for us," Titans coach Jeff Fisher said. "This was not a statement game by no means, but it was a momentum game. We needed to build momentum for the playoffs."

Tennessee won an earlier meeting against the Colts, 31-21, which marked the last time Indianapolis has lost.