NFL Wire Notes | Colts play underdog role

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Colts have won a franchise-record 12 consecutive home games and are off to the third-best start of any defending Super Bowl champion.

So why are they five-point underdogs at home for Sunday's game? Blame that, as Indianapolis fans often do, on the New England Patriots.

"They're a good team, they've played great football all year and we've played very, very well," Colts coach Tony Dungy said. "It's going to be a big game."

New England (8-0) has beaten each of its opponents by at least 17 points. Tom Brady has a mind-boggling 136.2 passer rating, new receiver Randy Moss could surpass the franchise's season record for touchdown catches this weekend and a mere two opponents have topped 20 points this season.

Not bad.

Indianapolis is merely off to another 7-0 start, already has three road wins against division opponents and finished a six-day stretch in which it routed Jacksonville and Carolina on the road. The Colts lead the league in TDs rushing (12) and their run defense has jumped from 32nd last season to 13th. In fact, the Colts — yes, the Colts — have allowed fewer points per game than New England, 14.6 to 15.9.

But the focus often seems to be more on New England's chance to go 16-0 than whether the Colts can defend their home turf against an opponent they have defeated three consecutive times.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick, a three-time Super Bowl winner, said he thinks that is no way to treat a champion.

"They've won a lot of games through the years, they won a championship last year and nobody's beat them in a long time," he said of the Colts. "So there's nobody doing it better than they are."

Indianapolis and New England are tied for the league lead in turnover margin at plus-11. The Colts have beaten stronger opponents and have the league's No. 1 pass defense. The Patriots have the No. 1 pass offense.

As Dungy knows from experience, the pundits always seem more enamored of the team scoring more points.

"We went through that at one point in '04 where we scoring a lot of points and we went up there and got three points," said Dungy, referring to a playoff loss in Foxborough.

Packers activate ex-Hawk Robinson

GREEN BAY, Wis. — DeShawn Wynn's season is over, while Koren Robinson's could begin Sunday in Kansas City.

With their roster exemption from the league for Robinson expiring, the Green Bay Packers added the reinstated wide receiver, making room for the former Seahawk on the 53-man roster by placing Wynn, their leading rusher, on season-ending injured reserve.

Coach Mike McCarthy said Wynn has "a significant shoulder injury."

Meanwhile, Robinson isn't guaranteed he will return to action against the Chiefs. He experienced soreness in his surgically repaired right knee during the five practices last week, preventing the Packers from activating him for Monday night's 19-13 overtime win in Denver.

McCarthy said soreness was to be expected after Robinson's one-year suspension for his third violation of the league's substance-abuse policy.

Notes

• Buffalo quarterback J.P. Losman will start Sunday against Cincinnati because Trent Edwards needs more time to recover from a sprained wrist.

• Washington placed cornerback Carlos Rogers (torn knee ligaments) on injured reserve and promoted cornerback John Eubanks from the practice squad.

• Dallas quarterback Tony Romo signed a six-year, $67.5 million contract extension he agreed to earlier in the week.

• The Oakland Raiders waived receiver Mike Williams, who was acquired from Detroit in April. Ex-USC standout Williams was the 10th player drafted in 2005.

• The oldest son of Philadelphia coach Andy Reid was taken into custody again after failing a drug test, prosecutors said. Garrett Reid, 24, surrendered at a probation office.

• Sam Dana, who was the oldest living former NFL player and once played college football alongside eventual baseball legend Lou Gehrig at Columbia, died in his sleep Monday. Dana was 104.

He played using the name Sam "Smoke" Salemi before changing it to Dana in 1945.