Week 2 | September 14, 2025 | Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
Attendance: 63,910 | CBS | Final: Indianapolis Colts 29, Denver Broncos 28
Spencer Shrader’s 60-yard attempt with no time left came up short and right. Denver’s sideline erupted. The Broncos had won. Then a flag hit the turf.
Dondrea Tillman was called for leverage — an illegal technique where a defender uses a teammate as a platform to leap higher on a kick block. Fifteen yards. New spot. The ball moved from midfield to the Denver 28-yard line, putting Shrader back out there from 45 yards.
He put it through without hesitation. Indianapolis Colts 29, Denver Broncos 28.
“Whatever happened in the past, you’ve just got to flush it,” Shrader said afterward. “Keep your eyes down, follow through straight.”
Five field goals on the day. Nine straight made to open the season.
Denver head coach Sean Payton didn’t dispute the call. “We did a lot of things late in that game to keep ourselves from winning,” he said. “It’ll be painful to watch that film.”
Table of Contents
Scoring Summary
| Qtr | Time | Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 11:51 | IND | Shrader 29-yd FG | DEN 0 – IND 3 |
| Q1 | 8:24 | DEN | Mims Jr. 23-yd pass from Nix (Lutz kick) | DEN 7 – IND 3 |
| Q1 | 4:19 | IND | Shrader 33-yd FG | DEN 7 – IND 6 |
| Q2 | 14:12 | IND | D. Jones 1-yd rush (Shrader kick) | DEN 7 – IND 13 |
| Q2 | 10:42 | DEN | T. Franklin 3-yd pass from Nix (Lutz kick) | DEN 14 – IND 13 |
| Q2 | 3:03 | DEN | Trautman 2-yd pass from Nix (Lutz kick) | DEN 21 – IND 13 |
| Q2 | 1:31 | IND | J. Taylor 7-yd pass from Jones (Shrader kick) | DEN 21 – IND 20 |
| Q3 | 11:13 | DEN | Dobbins 5-yd rush (Lutz kick) | DEN 28 – IND 20 |
| Q3 | 5:42 | IND | Shrader 36-yd FG | DEN 28 – IND 23 |
| Q4 | 8:33 | IND | Shrader 28-yd FG | DEN 28 – IND 26 |
| Q4 | 0:00 | IND | Shrader 45-yd FG (leverage penalty, DEN) | IND 29 – DEN 28 |
How Denver Lost a Game It Was Winning
Bo Nix put Denver in control. All three of his touchdown passes came before halftime — a 23-yard connection with Marvin Mims Jr. in the first quarter, then a 3-yard strike to Troy Franklin and a 2-yard toss to Adam Trautman in the second. The Broncos went into the locker room up 21-13.
J.K. Dobbins punched in a 5-yard touchdown run at the 11:13 mark of the third quarter to push it to 28-20. Indianapolis answered with back-to-back Shrader field goals — 36 and 28 yards — to close within two. Then Wil Lutz lined up for a 42-yard field goal that would have made it a two-score game with 3:15 left. It clanged off the right upright.
That missed kick handed Indianapolis everything they needed. Jonathan Taylor carried the ball seven times on the final drive. Daniel Jones threw once. Twenty-six yards. The clock ran to zero. Shrader missed from 60. The flag came. The rest is above.
Full Team Stats
| Stat | Denver Broncos | Indianapolis Colts |
|---|---|---|
| Final Score | 28 | 29 |
| Total Yards | 324 | 473 |
| Passing Yards (Net) | 206 | 306 |
| Rushing Yards | 118 | 167 |
| Total Plays | 54 | 67 |
| Yards Per Play | 6.0 | 7.1 |
| 1st Downs | 23 | 26 |
| Passing 1st Downs | 11 | 16 |
| Rushing 1st Downs | 7 | 6 |
| Penalty 1st Downs | 5 | 4 |
| 3rd Down Efficiency | 4/9 (44%) | 6/13 (46%) |
| 4th Down | 0/0 | 0/2 |
| Red Zone (Made-Att) | 3/3 (100%) | 2/6 (33%) |
| Penalties | 8 for 83 yds | 11 for 68 yds |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Avg Yards Per Drive | 31.7 | 44.8 |
| Time of Possession | 27:53 | 32:07 |
| EPA Per Play (PFF) | +0.062 | +0.138 |
Jonathan Taylor Moves Past Eric Dickerson
Twenty-five carries. 165 rushing yards. A 43-yard touchdown catch that turned a 21-13 deficit into a one-point halftime gap. Jonathan Taylor finished with 215 all-purpose yards and produced his 25th career 100-yard game — breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson for the second-most in Colts franchise history.
The final drive was just Taylor. Seven of eight plays were his carries. He ran the clock out, set up the field goal, and let Shrader handle the rest.
Rushing Stats
| Player | Team | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonathan Taylor | IND | 25 | 165 | 6.6 | 0 | 68 |
| J.K. Dobbins | DEN | 14 | 76 | 5.4 | 1 | 23 |
| Bo Nix | DEN | 3 | 20 | 6.7 | 0 | 18 |
| Troy Franklin | DEN | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 0 | 11 |
| RJ Harvey | DEN | 5 | 8 | 1.6 | 0 | 3 |
| Tyler Badie | DEN | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 3 |
| Daniel Jones | IND | 6 | 2 | 0.3 | 1 | 2 |
| Tyler Warren | IND | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Daniel Jones: No Turnovers, First 300-Yard Game Since 2023
Jones’s second start in Indianapolis:
- 23 of 34 completions
- 316 passing yards — first time over 300 since September 17, 2023, in a New York Giants uniform
- 1 passing TD, 1 rushing TD
- 0 turnovers through two complete games with the Colts
Eight different receivers caught passes. Tyler Warren led the group with 4 catches for 79 yards, including a 41-yard gain. Alec Pierce added 68 yards on 4 receptions. Josh Downs caught 6 of 8 targets for 51 yards. Michael Pittman Jr. contributed 40 yards on 4 grabs.
Passing Stats
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bo Nix (DEN) | 22/30 | 206 | 6.9 | 3 | 1 | 111.3 |
| Daniel Jones (IND) | 23/34 | 316 | 9.3 | 1 | 0 | 107.0 |
Bo Nix Finishes the First Half. Then Denver Stalls.
Nix’s three touchdown passes all landed before halftime. His final numbers — 22-of-30, 206 yards, 3 touchdowns, 1 interception — would look like a winning performance in most games. Troy Franklin set career bests with 8 receptions and 89 yards. Dobbins was efficient on the ground with 76 yards and a score.
But Nix generated nothing in the fourth quarter, Lutz missed the field goal that would have ended it, and then Tillman’s penalty on the final kick finished Denver off.
Full Receiving Stats
| Player | Team | REC | TGT | YDS | AVG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Troy Franklin | DEN | 8 | 9 | 89 | 11.1 | 1 |
| Tyler Warren | IND | 4 | 7 | 79 | 19.8 | 0 |
| Alec Pierce | IND | 4 | 5 | 68 | 17.0 | 0 |
| Josh Downs | IND | 6 | 8 | 51 | 8.5 | 0 |
| Jonathan Taylor | IND | 2 | 2 | 50 | 25.0 | 1 |
| Michael Pittman Jr. | IND | 4 | 5 | 40 | 10.0 | 0 |
| Marvin Mims Jr. | DEN | 2 | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 1 |
| Adonai Mitchell | IND | 2 | 4 | 20 | 10.0 | 0 |
| Tyler Badie | DEN | 2 | 2 | 19 | 9.5 | 0 |
| Pat Bryant | DEN | 2 | 3 | 18 | 9.0 | 0 |
| RJ Harvey | DEN | 1 | 2 | 16 | 16.0 | 0 |
| Evan Engram | DEN | 1 | 2 | 12 | 12.0 | 0 |
| Adam Trautman | DEN | 3 | 3 | 10 | 3.3 | 1 |
| J.K. Dobbins | DEN | 1 | 2 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 |
| Mo Alie-Cox | IND | 1 | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 0 |
| Courtland Sutton | DEN | 1 | 4 | 6 | 6.0 | 0 |
| Trent Sherfield | DEN | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 |
Defense: Bynum’s Interception Kept It a One-Score Game
Indianapolis’s defense gave up 473 total yards and 28 points. Denver moved the ball well enough. But Cam Bynum’s interception inside the Colts’ own 10-yard line cut off a scoring drive that could have pushed Denver out of Shrader’s reach.
On the Denver side, Pat Surtain II — last season’s NFL Defensive Player of the Year — led the team with 11 tackles and 9 solo stops despite leaving briefly in the first half with a left ankle injury. He returned after halftime. Zach Allen was active on the interior with 5 tackles and 3 quarterback hits on 29 pass-rush snaps. Nik Bonitto generated the most pressure of any Denver defender with 5 total pressures, including 2 hits and 3 hurries.
PFF’s top-graded player on defense: Colts safety Nick Cross (86.0 grade, 59 snaps).
Full Defensive Stats
| Player | Team | TOT | SOLO | SACKS | TFL | PD | QB HTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pat Surtain II | DEN | 11 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Talanoa Hufanga | DEN | 10 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alex Singleton | DEN | 9 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Brandon Jones | DEN | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Nick Cross | IND | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Joe Bachie | IND | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DeForest Buckner | IND | 6 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Grover Stewart | IND | 6 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Riley Moss | DEN | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Justin Strnad | DEN | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Mekhi Blackmon | IND | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Zaire Franklin | IND | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Zach Allen | DEN | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Cam Bynum | IND | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Kenny Moore II | IND | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonathon Cooper | DEN | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Xavien Howard | IND | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nik Bonitto | DEN | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Adetomiwa Adebawore | IND | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Samson Ebukam | IND | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Interceptions
| Player | Team | INT | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cam Bynum | IND | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking and Special Teams
| Player | Team | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spencer Shrader | IND | 5/5 | 100% | 45 | 2/2 | 17 |
| Wil Lutz | DEN | 0/1 | 0% | N/A | 4/4 | 4 |
Lutz’s 42-yard miss off the right upright and Tillman’s leverage penalty are the two plays Denver’s coaches will have to explain to their players on Monday.
Two Games In, the Colts Still Haven’t Punted
Through two full games of football this season, Indianapolis has not punted once. That makes them the first team in Super Bowl era history to go through the opening two weeks without a single punt.
The Colts are 2-0 for the first time since 2009. Taylor holds a franchise record. Jones has yet to throw an interception as a Colt. Shrader hasn’t missed a field goal all year.
Denver had the lead going into the fourth quarter, had Lutz set up for a kick to extend it, and had their defense on the field for the final play. All three of those situations broke the wrong way.
The full stat lines from this Broncos-Colts matchup show two offenses that moved the ball freely — 324 yards for Denver, 473 for Indianapolis — but the difference came down to a single missed kick, a single penalty, and a kicker who didn’t flinch when he got a second chance.
Sources: ESPN, AP, Pro Football Focus | September 14, 2025 | Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN
