The Colts left Arrowhead with the same painful result they got a year ago, only this time the finish came at 33-30. Harrison Butker drilled a 40-yard field goal in the closing seconds of overtime to end Sunday night’s heavyweight matchup and send Indianapolis home with another overtime loss to the Chiefs.
That’s now an 0-2 start for the Colts, and the next stretch already feels urgent with Houston coming to town. A 0-3 opening to the 2026 season would be a hole nobody in Indianapolis wants to stare at for long.
Still, this wasn’t anything like last week’s flat showing against Baltimore. The Colts looked far more alive on the road, trading shots with Kansas City throughout a game that never really tilted more than one score either way. For a team that has had a strange knack for pushing the Chiefs, this was another one of those nights where Indianapolis made it a fight.
The opening sequence set the tone. The Colts marched down the field for a touchdown, with Tyler Warren finishing it off on a 1-yard scoring catch.
Then came the familiar sting: Daniel Jones threw an interception on the next drive, the same kind of script that haunted Indianapolis last weekend. This time, though, the Colts didn’t fold.
Jonathan Taylor carried the offense in a big way, piling up 92 total rushing yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries. Indianapolis leaned into him, and it made sense in a game that demanded physicality. Kansas City answered with Kenneth Walker III, who was just as productive, finishing with 117 total rushing yards on 24 carries.
Jones wasn’t flawless, but he was solid enough to keep the Colts in the game. Still working back from a torn Achilles, he completed 22 of 31 passes for 210 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
Patrick Mahomes, though, was operating at a different level. He went 32 of 47 for 382 passing yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.
The Colts secondary had a rough night, and the injuries around it didn’t help. Charvarius Ward and Sauce Gardner were both banged up, with Gardner later returning, but the unit never really found a way to slow Mahomes down. Undrafted rookie defensive back Kapena Gushiken did flash in relief, making two big plays, but the bigger picture was ugly: Indianapolis gave up 523 total yards for the game, marking the second straight week it allowed 500-plus yards in a loss.
That’s a problem that cuts across the whole defense. Lou Anarumo’s group has work to do at every level, and the current version isn’t close to good enough.
There were some clean moments for Indianapolis, too. Spencer Shrader was perfect, hitting all three of his field-goal attempts, including a long of 49 yards, and all three extra points.
Then came overtime chaos. Laquon Treadwell caught a 48-yard pass from Jones and got the ball all the way to the Kansas City 17-yard line on the Colts’ first possession of extra time, only to have the football punched loose as he got up. It looked like disaster for a second, but he was ruled down by contact after replay, which appeared to be the right call.
The biggest injury concern, though, is Alec Pierce. He reinjured his surgically repaired left ankle/heel late in the first quarter on a non-contact play and could not put weight on it.
Trainers helped him to the medical tent before he was carted off. He was later downgraded from questionable to out and did not return.
And then there’s the decision that will be debated all week: whether the Colts should have gone for it on 4th and 8 from the Kansas City 15 with 3:15 left in overtime, trailing 30-27. The argument cuts both ways, especially when you compare it to the earlier 4th and 4 at the IND 49 with 34 seconds left in regulation and the game tied 27-27. That was the stronger “play to win” spot, in this view, because the distance was shorter and the Chiefs would have had more field to work with if Indianapolis had failed.
By the time overtime reached that point, the offense didn’t look especially trustworthy anyway. The Chiefs were teeing off on Taylor, and Indianapolis didn’t seem sharp enough to bank on converting a tougher fourth down with the field shortened. In the end, the Colts trusted a tired defense against Mahomes and paid for it, even if the alternate path might only have delayed the same ending.
In Other News...
Colts Fans Wont Love What Mahomes Said After That Overtime Call
The Colts left Kansas City with a 33-30 overtime loss that will linger, and not just because Harrison Butker ended it with a final field goal. The game swung on a crucial fumble call against Indianapolis that was overturned after replay review, a ruling that changed the tone of the night and gave the Chiefs a break they needed as Patrick Mahomes kept the offense moving.
Mahomes certainly noticed the break, and he did not try to hide how much it helped. After the game, he addressed the reversal with relief and a little humor, a reaction that Colts fans probably wont appreciate given how much that sequence shaped the outcome. On the field, he was sharp enough to capitalize, finishing 32 of 47 for 382 yards and three touchdowns to help Kansas City escape with the win. [Read more 🡒]
Mahomes Weighed In On The Colts Call Everyone Is Arguing About
The overtime sequence between the Chiefs and Colts had enough drama on its own, but Patrick Mahomes added another layer afterward by weighing in on the officiating decision that had plenty of people talking. The Chiefs quarterback said he was relieved the play was not ruled a fumble against Kansas City, knowing full well how quickly a controversial call can take over the conversation once fans get on social media.
Mahomes also pointed to the bigger issue any time a game ends with a disputed judgment call: teams still have to settle it on the field. For the Colts, that leaves the frustration of a heated moment hanging around longer than they would like, especially in a game that turned on a decision everyone seemed to have an opinion about. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Were Nearly Burned By A Brutal Overtime Rules Mistake
The Colts came dangerously close to turning a routine overtime coin toss into a self-inflicted mess before the extra period even began. Captain Cam Bynum initially said defer, a choice that is not available in overtime, and the moment briefly gave Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs a chance to press their case with the referee before the situation was sorted out.
In the end, the ref went back to Bynum to clarify the decision, and the Colts settled on starting on defense, which meant kicking off to begin overtime. Mahomes later acknowledged he was trying to take advantage of the miscue, a small but telling reminder that in the NFL, even the rules at the coin toss can become part of the strategy. [Read more 🡒]