If you blame the Broncos’ loss on the call at the end, you’re doing it wrong

INDIANAPOLIS — In a pique of frustration, you, the Denver Broncos fan, might want to place all the blame for your team’s 29-28 loss on a single call at the end, an infrequently-whistled leverage penalty against edge rusher Dondrea Tillman that gave Colts kicker Spenser Shrader a second chance and bailed Indianapolis coach Shane Steichen out for his cataclysmic failure of end-game management that called to mind the “46 Left Hash” brain fart of Nathaniel Hackett at Seattle three years ago.

You might want to do that.

But it should never have come down to that. To the Colts having the football with a chance to win on a field goal. Or perhaps even being within one score in the final moments.

“We had a number of opportunities to not be in that position late, and unfortunately, we shot ourselves in the foot too many times,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said.

The Broncos had two chances to put the Colts into checkmate in the fourth quarter. One possession that began at midfield after pressure forced Daniel Jones into his second read and a fourth-and-2 incompletion with 13:06 remaining, and another that followed a fourth red-zone stop in the game with 8:37 remaining, forcing the Colts to settle for a 28-yard Shrader field goal that left the Broncos up 28-26.

A touchdown after either possession would have put the Broncos up two scores.

On the drive after the fourth-down stop, a Tyquan Lewis roughing-the-passer penalty as Bo Nix heaved the football downfield under pressure gave the Broncos a gift first down at the Colts 35-yard line, but three plays later, his pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage, resulting in the fourth interception in two weeks and the 10th Nix pick in the last eight games after he threw just two in his previous 12.

The series following the field goal was an exercise in self-immolation. For six plays, the Broncos did the right things, smartly matriculating their way downfield, converting a third-and-1 with a three-back formation that sent J.K. Dobbins over the right side of the line and moving into Indianapolis territory with a 12-yard Nix pass to Evan Engram.

Then, Dobbins ripped downfield for a 23-yard pickup to move the Broncos to the Indianapolis 20 with just under five minutes remaining. The Colts were on their heels. Denver’s punches were landing late — just as they were last week as the Broncos wore down the Tennessee Titans.

And then … Dobbins spiked the ball.

It was a five-yard penalty. And in yardage, it wasn’t as costly as the 15-yard face-mask infraction that followed on the subsequent play. But with that, the Broncos’ forward thrust evaporated.

“We’ve gotta be smart. You can’t spike the ball,” Payton said.

The Broncos rallied and had another chance to push the lead to five points, but Wil Lutz — a kicker who came into Sunday 55-of-58 as a Bronco from inside of 50 yards — hit the right upright from 42 yards.

And with that, the Colts needed only a field goal to win.

“There’s no way we should have lost that game,” right tackle Mike McGlinchey said. “We had probably six or seven opportunities in the second half to end it, and we didn’t.”

But that only explains the offense.

AND THEN THERE IS THE BRONCOS DEFENSE …

… which didn’t force a punt and has now allowed over 450 yards in four of its last eight games dating back to last Dec. 1.

In Week 1, it dominated — against a team featuring a rookie quarterback starting on the road. The Broncos saw first-hand last year how this can be a daunting task. For No. 1 overall picks — such as Cam Ward — this has been historically disastrous, and Ward fared no better than those who came before him in the common-draft era.

There STILL has not been a top overall pick at quarterback to play start to finish and lead his team to a road win in Week 1 of his rookie season; the only winner in that scenario who started — John Elway in 1983 — was famously benched for Steve DeBerg. The Broncos discombobulated Ward, but that’s what a defense is supposed to do to a rookie behind a struggling line.

Indianapolis’ Daniel Jones has six previous years of experience, a sturdy wall in front of him and some talented skill-position players at his disposal, particularly rookie tight end Tyler Warren — who found openings despite the Broncos throwing myriad coverages at him, including the use of cornerback Pat Surtain II — and running back Jonathan Taylor, whose 165 rushing yards were the most for a running back against Denver’s defense in 32 games.

Taylor shredded the Broncos — again. This time, he didn’t do the Broncos the favor of dropping the football before crossing the goal line as he did last year.

And without such a gift dropped in their laps, this outcome turned out differently than the game last December in Denver.

In 2024, the Broncos’ win over the Colts proved to be the most decisive game in sending them to the postseason. Flip the result, and Indianapolis would have snatched the final wild-card spot, with Denver staying home. The momentum turned on Taylor’s gaffe; that’s how momentous his mistake was.

There was no such reprieve this time for the Broncos.

Instead, the Colts got the second chance, and Shrader slammed it through the uprights.

But it was a second chance that didn’t have to happen. Because the Broncos had so many chances to drop the hammer on the Colts, and failed every time.

This wasn’t a loss because of a single call — whether it was justified or not. This one was on the Broncos.

“Coach [Sean Payton] said it best after the game: ‘You’ve got to learn to win,'” McGlinchey said. “But in order to do that, you gotta stop losing.”

These young Broncos haven’t quite done that — at least not to the point where they can avoid letting a winnable contest like this one slip away.

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