On Sunday, the Denver Broncos authored a cruel, bizarro-world sequel to John Elway‘s “The Drive,” a legendary moment that has haunted opposing teams for decades. Only this time, they were the ones left staring blankly as the Colts snatched victory from the jaws of a sure defeat. The final, gut-wrenching act was a special teams horror show, a penalty that turned a missed 60-yard field goal into a gimme 45-yard game-winner for the Colts- the final score: Colts 29, Broncos 28. And in the aftermath, head coach Sean Payton seemingly pointed at the entire locker room.

“Obviously, a disappointing loss,” Payton began, his tone setting the stage for the blunt assessment to follow. “We did a lot of things late in that game to keep us from winning. It will be painful to watch that film… We had a number of opportunities to not be in that position late.” The narrative was clear: the players, not the plan, failed in the clutch.

The stats back up his brutal honesty, painting a picture of a team that simply couldn’t close. As noted by Romi Bean, the Broncos’ final three offensive drives all ended in Indianapolis territory. Those drives resulted in a punt, an interception, and the now-infamous missed 42-yard field goal from the typically reliable Wil Lutz that clanged off the upright. “We shot ourselves in the foot too many times,” Payton stated, a phrase that perfectly encapsulates a fourth quarter of self-inflicted wounds. It was an off-the-rails affair where victory was there for the taking, and the Broncos politely declined.

Payton’s dissection wasn’t limited to the offense. He seemed equally perplexed by a defense that, at times, was a study in contrasts. “I wanna watch the tape. Our coverage at times was sticky and then at other times wasn’t as good,” he said, searching for an explanation for a unit that was gashed for 473 total yards. He knew the Colts’ game plan was coming, yet his team still got burned.

Systemic cracks exposed beyond one penalty for Payton’s team

“Obviously it was gonna be a pass first game for them, run second. And yet they hit us with a long run late in the game.” That long run was part of Jonathan Taylor’s dominant 165-yard day, a performance that broke a tie with Colts legend Eric Dickerson and left Broncos linebackers grasping at air.

While the leverage penalty on Dondrea Tillman will live in infamy as the technical cause of their loss, further analysis reveals a more systemic failure. The offense, while earning a solid B grade by the Broncos Post for its first-half explosion and Bo Nix’s three touchdowns (proving Houshmandzadeh right every day), and a clever game plan that effectively used J.K. Dobbins (76 yards on 14 carries), completely vanished in the second half.

The defense, graded at a C-, was on its heels all afternoon, stout in the red zone but utterly gashed between the 20s, making Jonathan Taylor look like a hall-of-fame and allowing Daniel Jones his first 300-yard game in over a year.

And this is what makes Sean Payton’s post-game frustration so complex. His coaching grade, an A-, reflects a scheme that was largely working. He had corrected the offensive woes from Week 1 (made his decision on Bryant), calling a masterful first half that had the Colts defense on its heels.

His plan to control the clock with Dobbins was working. But a coach’s job is also to have his team prepared to finish, and the litany of late mistakes—the ill-timed penalties, the missed assignments, the critical missed kick—falls on a culture that isn’t yet conditioned to win.

And in the quiet film room this week, that painful truth will be on replay, a stark reminder that in the NFL, you’re only as good as your ability to finish. For the Broncos, that lesson was delivered with the cruelest possible ending.