In a roller coaster of a game, the Indianapolis Colts found themselves on the bad end in the final result after the Cleveland Browns scored the game-winning touchdown with just 15 seconds left in the game.
There will be a lot of chatter about that game after the Browns got inside the five-yard line after a pair of highly questionable penalties. Darrell Baker Jr. first got hit with a ticky-tack illegal contact penalty on a play where E.J. Speed forced a fumble and DeForest Buckner recovered it.
On the following play, Baker Jr. was called for defensive pass interference when the ball was clearly uncatchable. It sailed over the receiver’s head into the stands. This loss wasn’t just on the refs. It was self-induced turnovers by Gardner Minshew that led to the Browns getting 17 points off of three of his four turnovers in this matchup. There was also a questionable decision by Shane Steichen to kick a 60-yard field goal, which got blocked by Myles Garrett and led to three points for Cleveland.
It’s woulda, coulda, shoulda, game for Indy but if you take away one of those turnovers or if Steichen elects to punt in that situation, then the contest wouldn’t have came down to the poor officiating on Cleveland’s game-winning drive.
This is a game the Colts should have won. Here are five takeaways from the loss: