INDIANAPOLIS — One game at a time. That’s how the Indianapolis Colts view their current four-game win streak.

After getting off to an 0-2 start, the Colts have dispatched Jacksonville, Tennessee, Baltimore and Houston. Indianapolis is also 3-0 in the AFC South heading into this week’s home game with Cincinnati.

Coach Chuck Pagano is understandably respectful of facing the Bengals, who are coming off a 37-37 home-field overtime tie against Carolina last week.

“We know them so well. It seems like we play them twice a year, every year, always in the preseason. Really good football team. Well-coached, a lot of athletes. They’ve built a big, long, athletic roster on both sides of the football. Got playmakers all over the place,” Pagano previewed.

“You see a guy like (wide receiver Mohamed) Sanu come in and catch 10 balls I think (Sunday) in place of A.J. Green. A bunch of other guys and the quarterback’s playing well. They can run the football. Defensively, got a bunch of guys up front that can put pressure on the quarterback. Athletic guys. Linebackers that can run and hit and secondary personnel that can play, so they’re well-balanced.”

After registering a 33-28 road win over Houston, the Colts spent the end of last week and a workout on Monday trying to iron out their own issues.

“Guys are executing, combination of a lot of things. We’re getting out of the blocks, which is great. Then we have these periods. We have these lulls in between. We talked about it this (Monday). We’ve got to find a way to put people away,” Pagano said.

“In the NFL, you let people hang around and you’re just asking for trouble. We got away with it a couple times. It bit us in the rear early against Philly when we didn’t execute late. That’s a point of emphasis right now.”

Continuing to get better. That’s the key.

“If they sit there and read their press clippings and start patting themselves on the back, that’s human nature coaching and playing. You take your foot off the gas pedal, like I like to refer to, you can get humbled real fast in this league,” the Colts coach said.

“Enjoy it for a short period of time, then it’s move on. We’re always looking. You can look at that tape, and you’re always looking to get better. We want to play better this coming Sunday than we did last Thursday. That’s the goal.”

Heading into the game against the Bengals with a 4-2 record, Indianapolis has built some momentum. But the schedule doesn’t get any easier. At home against Cincinnati this week. And then consecutive road trips to Pittsburgh and the New York Giants.

“You want to play your best ball in December and January. That’s our goal, just get better every single week. Every guy in there has, we call it fire. There’s something on tape that someone’s looking at and they’re trying to take advantage of. Right now, the goal is if you’ve got a little fire that you’ve started,” Pagano said.

“It’s like a secondary guy. If you’re getting beat over the top, getting beat over the top, getting beat over the top, guess what, they’re going to keep throwing at you until you put that fire out. So right now we’re just trying to make sure that we don’t have too many fires started.”

NOTES: P Pat McAfee was named the AFC special teams player of the week for Week 6. In the Colts’ win over Houston, McAfee recovered an onside kick, which led to a touchdown. … OT Xavier Nixon (knee) returned to practice Wednesday, but he will remain on the Injured Reserve/Designated for Return list. … .Among those not practicing Wednesday were CB Darius Butler (ankle) and OT Gosder Cherilus (knee). … Versatile lineman Joe Reitz worked at right offensive tackle Wednesday, filling in for Cherilus. …. G Jack Mewhort (ankle) practiced Wednesday and might be available to play this week.