The Colts had it in their hands.
Up 13-7 going into halftime, Indy had control of a must-win, de facto playoff game against the Broncos. Moving the ball well and one snap from seizing control, the Colts would get the explosive play they were looking for.
Jonathan Taylor broke off a 41-yard touchdown run to give the Colts a 20-7 lead. Or so they thought.
Upon video review, Taylor was ruled to have dropped the football prior to crossing the goal line. Since the ball rolled into and out of the end zone, the touchdown was waved off and changed to a touchback.
“Obviously, it hurt us,” head coach Shane Steichen said in his post game press conference. “Sometimes that happens in football.”
Taylor’s mental error was the beginning of the end for the Colts.
Instead of leading in their biggest game of the season, it all came crashing down for Indianapolis as they would go on to lose 31-13.
“We blatantly didn’t play winning football today,” linebacker and defensive captain Zaire Franklin said postgame.
Steichen would echo that same sentiment.
“More games are lost than won in this league,” Steichen said. “And you can’t beat yourself. That’s the bottom line.”
Not only would the Colts not score again, but they would continually shoot themselves in the foot. From bone-headed penalties to disastrous turnovers, Indy simply couldn’t get out of their own way.
They ended the game with eight penalties and five turnovers. Down the stretch, the mistakes just would not stop.
The worst of the turnovers was about as bizarre and embarrassing of a play you will ever see.
Steichen dialed up a double-pass, in which Anthony Richardson threw a backwards pass to AD Mitchell. Mitchell attempted to throw it back across the field to Richardson, only for Denver’s Nik Bonitto to swoop in, intercept the attempt, and take it to the end zone. The play was officially ruled a scoop-and-score.
It was the final nail in the coffin. Just like that, Indy’s fate was sealed.
“We’re tired of (beating ourselves),” Richardson said after the game. “Our defense played great for us, and we have five turnovers. You can’t win games like that.”
The Colts defense remained competitive and kept making plays. They did more than enough to put the Colts in a position to win the game. But as has been the case all too often this season, the offense never repaid them.
Three interceptions, six punts forced and a season-low in yards allowed (193) weren’t enough.
The Colts failed to play complementary football. It cost them the game, the season and likely people’s jobs as a result.
The Colts now sit at 6-8, with virtually no shot at the postseason after Sunday’s drubbing. Losses like Sunday’s are impossible to hide from, and often result in significant change.
Ten years since the last AFC South title, the road to success remains a long one, and will undoubtedly come with many, many bumps along the way.
Nobody in Indianapolis is safe. No player, coach or front office executive.
HN's NFL Power Rankings: Week 14
