A huge blunder by Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor perhaps sums up best his team's trip to Colorado to play the Denver Broncos on Sunday at Empower Field at Mile High.

Indianapolis was looking to give its dimming playoff chances a shot in the arm with a win in Denver but the opposite came true for the Colts, who ended up losing to Sean Payton's squad to the tune of a 31-13 score.

With the Colts leading by six points with over 12 minutes left in the third quarter of the Denver game, Taylor broke out of the backfield with the ball, seemingly on his way to score a 41-yard touchdown. However, dropped the ball just milliseconds before he could actually cross the goal line.

Jonathan Taylor's blunder changed the complexion of Colts-Broncos game

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson (5) runs through the tackle of Denver Broncos defensive tackle D.J. Jones (93) and defensive end John Franklin-Myers (98) in the second quarter at Empower Field at Mile High.
Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
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The former Wisconsin Badgers star thought he scored a touchdown in that play. The officials did too. But replays showed that Taylor let go of the ball a little too early, thus negating the touchdown. That bad decision on the part of Taylor led to a touchback and a turnover — a great missed opportunity for the Colts to extend the lead and further deflate Denver's hopes.

Denver capitalized on that error, torching the Colts for 24 unanswered points. Taylor finished the contest with 107 rushing yards on 22 carries, but the game will be remembered more for his error than anything he did versus the Broncos.

The Colts started the game looking good, as they scored the first 10 points of the game and entered halftime with a six-point advantage. But a poor second-half performance on both ends of the field led to the collapse of Indianapolis, which dropped to two games under .500 with a 6-8 record through 15 weeks in the 2024 NFL regular season.

If the Colts are to somehow still make the NFL playoffs, they will have to be a wild card, as the Houston Texans have already locked up the top spot in the AFC South division.

Coming up next for Taylor and the Colts is a matchup against the Tennessee Titans back home at Lucas Oil Stadium in Week 16. Indianapolis also has games against the New York Giants and the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 17 and Week 18, respectively.