Indianapolis Colts Stumble In Heartbreaker Against Houston Texans, Plagued by Questionable Calls and Missed Chances
Sometimes, you just have one of those days. You know the kind—you wake up late, stub your toe on the bed frame, and spill coffee on your favorite shirt. For the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday’s 20-16 loss to the Houston Texans was the football equivalent of that. It was a game that felt less like a strategic battle and more like a cosmic joke, leaving the Colts at 8-4 and fans reaching for the antacids.
This wasn’t just any loss; it was a gut punch. As WISH-TV’s Colts guru Heather Lloyd, clad in what she aptly called “mourning clothes,” put it, this was a game they absolutely had to have. Coming off a tough loss to the Chiefs, this was their chance to steady the ship, assert dominance in the division, and build momentum for a brutal schedule ahead. Instead, they tripped over their own feet, the officials’ flags, and maybe a ghost or two in Lucas Oil Stadium.
A Comedy of Errors: How the Colts Fumbled the Bag
The game started with all the offensive firepower of a wet firecracker. The first three possessions? Punt, punt, punt. Quarterback Daniel Jones looked about as comfortable in the pocket as a cat in a bathtub. Receivers were dropping passes like they were coated in butter. And then, the injury bug, that cruel and uninvited guest, decided to crash the party. Sauce Gardner, the star cornerback the Colts just traded a king’s ransom for, went down with a calf injury in the first quarter and never came back. It was a parade of “what else could go wrong?”
Just when things seemed to be turning around in the second quarter, with the offense finally stringing together a drive, the kicking woes reappeared. Michael Badgley, after a hard-earned touchdown, shanked the extra point. That’s his third missed extra point this season, folks. You could almost hear the collective groan from every sports bar in Indy. Going into halftime down 10-6 wasn’t a death sentence, but with a kicker who seems to be guessing, it sure felt ominous.
The Officials Enter the Chat, and Nobody’s Happy
Now, let’s talk about the zebras. Look, nobody expects perfection from referees. It’s a tough job. But Sunday’s performance felt less like officiating and more like a random number generator spitting out penalties. The fourth quarter, tied 13-13, was where things got truly bizarre.
First, the Texans get a free play when the play clock clearly hits zero. No call. But don’t worry, the refs were just saving their flag for a moment later. On a crucial play, they threw a pass interference flag on Kenny Moore II for what appeared to be… existing in the same zip code as the receiver. “He didn’t even touch the guy!?” an exasperated Lloyd pointed out. Even former Colts coach and all-around good guy Tony Dungy couldn’t stay quiet, taking to X to call it “very bad” and lamenting the “blatant disregard of the rule.”
The Texans, gifted with new life, marched down and scored a touchdown. To add insult to injury, their kicker’s extra point attempt looked like it sailed wider than a politician’s promise, yet it was called good. The explanation from referee Clay Martin? The ball was “above the upright,” making it non-reviewable. It was the kind of explanation that makes you want to throw your remote through the TV.
A Trip To the Jacksonville House Of Horrors Awaits
So, where do the Colts go from here? Straight into the belly of the beast: Jacksonville. The Jags are also sitting at 8-4, and the AFC South title is very much on the line. But this isn’t just any road game. For the Colts, playing in Jacksonville is like stepping into a Stephen King novel. They haven’t won there since 2014. It’s a place where good seasons go to die.
Colts Linebacker Zaire Franklin can talk all he wants about not caring about history, and bless his heart for it. But for the fans who have witnessed the meltdowns at EverBank Field—the fumbles, the interceptions, the sheer bewilderment—the anxiety is real. Can Daniel Jones, playing with what feels like a perpetually broken leg, be the one to break the curse? We can only hope. But after a day filled with bad calls, bad kicks, and bad luck, hope is feeling a little thin.
