When the Denver Broncos host the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday afternoon, they will be chasing their first winning season since 2016. But that isn’t enough.
As winners of three straight games and eight of its last 11, Denver (8-5) currently is the No. 7 seed in the race for the AFC playoffs. The Broncos hold a two-game lead over the Miami Dolphins (6-7) and Colts (6-7).
“I don’t know one person (in the building) that’s thinking about just having a winning season,” Denver coach Sean Payton said. “I think our aspirations are a little higher right now.”
The Colts are two games behind the Houston Texans in the AFC South, but they don’t own the tiebreaker in that matchup. Indianapolis needs a win on Sunday and to finish one game better than the Broncos over the final three games to sneak into a wild-card spot.
A loss makes them playoff longshots, and Colts coach Shane Steichen knows that very well.
“We all know how big this game is; we aren’t going to be oblivious to that,” Steichen said. “The biggest thing is we have to handle our business and we have to prepare the right way to go play a football game.”
Both teams had a late-season bye last week and have prepared for a four-game sprint to the end of the regular season.
“This bye week helped a lot,” Denver cornerback Patrick Surtain II said. “It refreshed our minds and got us off our feet. We played a lot of games before the bye week. It was a good time to refocus and reset.”
The week off showed on Denver’s injury report, with cornerback Riley Moss (knee) being the lone member ruled out this week.
For the Colts, the 21-day practice windows for center Ryan Kelly and linebacker Jaylon Carlies were opened. Kelly was limited all week, while Carlies practiced in full all week. Both were listed as questionable and were downgraded to out on Saturday. They can be activated any time within the next three weeks.
Indianapolis wide receiver Josh Downs (shoulder) returned to full practice on Thursday and Friday but is questionable. He has missed three games this season yet leads the Colts with 53 receptions. Offensive tackle Braden Smith (personal issue) was ruled out, as was wide receiver Ashton Dulin (ankle). The team placed Smith on the reserve/non-football illness list on Saturday and elevated guard Mark Glowinski from the practice squad to the active roster for the game.
Denver rookie quarterback Bo Nix will face a Colts’ defense that has struggled to get off the field on third down, where they rank 23rd in the league. Nix’s top target Courtland Sutton has 63 grabs for 846 yards and five touchdowns.
On the season, Nix has thrown 17 touchdowns with eight interceptions.
Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson was benched for two weeks in early November. He returned by throwing for 272 yards and scoring three total touchdowns (one passing, two rushing) in a 28-27 win over the New York Jets on Nov. 17 and added three more scores (two passing, one rushing) in a 25-24 victory over the New England Patriots on Dec. 1.
Steichen is pleased with the progress of his quarterback.
“I’ve seen great growth in a lot of phases,” Steichen said. “His pocket presence has been really strong the last couple of weeks. He’s delivering the ball where it needs to go. He’s making a ton of plays with his legs which is great. We need to continue that for the next four weeks for sure.”
Richardson, however, will face a blitz-happy Denver defense. The Broncos bring an extra defender 42.1 percent of the time, which is third most in the league. Nik Bonitto has 11 sacks, tied for second in the NFL and Surtain has the top coverage grade on Pro Football Focus at 90.8.
