INDIANAPOLIS – The Indianapolis Colts battled back from down 10 in the second half and took control late in the fourth quarter, but the thrill of stealing a comeback win was short-lived as Dak Prescott led the Dallas Cowboys on a game-winning touchdown drive in the final minute to escape with a 27-23 win.
A fifth straight loss ruined a furious rally and wasted another heroic performance from Spencer Shrader, who outplayed All-Pro kicker Brandon Aubrey with the roof open and the wind blowing at Lucas Oil Stadium. Aubrey broke the ice with a 45-yard field goal on Dallas’ opening drive, but finished 2-for-3 on Sunday. Shrader connected on field goals from 47, 59 and 50-yards, but his go-ahead kick to give the Colts a late lead was not kept.
Colts edge rusher Laiatu Latu ran around left tackle Tyler Guyton, got a tight grip on Prescott twice from behind, and got the ball loose for a strip-sack. Rookie edge rusher Caden Curry recovered the fumble and returned it inside the red zone to give Indianapolis an early takeaway. Curry, a Greenwood, Ind. native, had a breakout performance and eventually got his first sack in his first NFL start.
The Colts leaned on their ground game as rookie running back Seth McGowan capped a six-play drive with a 2-yard touchdown to take an early 7-3 lead. McGowan provided a spark for the rushing attack, finishing with 45 rushing yards on six carries and scoring his first NFL TD.
Dallas responded with a methodical, 18-play scoring drive. At the end of the first quarter, an unnecessary roughness penalty from rookie linebacker CJ Allen gave Dallas a first down. Facing fourth-and-2 from the 10, Prescott put a perfect pass on a corner route near the back pylon to tight end Jake Ferguson, who rose above the defender to haul in a touchdown and put the Cowboys back in front 10-7.
Indianapolis struggled to generate any offense in the first half as quarterback Daniel Jones was held to 50 passing yards, while Dallas’ pass rush found a way to destroy the pocket. Cowboys rookie safety Caleb Downs was untouched for a blindside sack to force another punt and had a breakout performance in his first game against his older brother Josh.
Four consecutive possessions for Indy in the second quarter resulted in a punt, which gained a total of 40 net yards and controlled just six minutes of the game clock. The Cowboys closed the first half with a pair of deep drives to receiver CeeDee Lamb, with the latter striking for a 44-yard touchdown to increase the lead to 17-7. Prescott recognized the cloud zone, saw Lamb with his hand up and fired a missile to burn safety Hunter Wohler for an explosive score. Lamb was nearly unstoppable, hauling in 10 catches for a season-high 195 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Jones’ stats swelled late in the third after he hit receiver Ashton Dulin on a screen, then the speedster broke the first tackle before racing 55 yards to the end zone. The game’s most explosive offensive play brought the score within 20-17 and injected life into a restless crowd that had watched its offense struggle for nearly three quarters.
Perhaps the most momentum-shifting play happened early in the fourth. Facing 3rd-and-12, Prescott stayed in the pocket and got hit, but found a wide-open Lamb diving to get the catch inside Colts territory. The All-Pro receiver was never caught or brought down by contact, so he got up and tried to race for the end zone, but lost the football as the turf knocked the ball out of his grasp, allowing rookie Kenneth Harris to recover and seize the momentum. Lamb was initially ruled by contact, but Colts head coach Shane Steichen challenged the game to reverse the ruling.
The Colts’ chance to capitalize unraveled after a 40-yard defensive pass interference penalty against Bland moved Indianapolis into scoring position. Running back Jonathan Taylor was stuffed behind the line of scrimmage by defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and coughed up the football, wasting another scoring opportunity when linebacker Shemar James recovered the fumble.
Midway through the fourth, McGowan broke free on a left zone run for a 36-yard burst to break into Cowboys territory. Shrader kicked a 59-yard field goal to tie the score at 20, then added a 50-yarder to take the eventual 23-20 lead with 1:37 left to play.
On the very first play of Dallas’ last true drive, Prescott launched another missile downfield and receiver Ryan Flournoy hauled in a 46-yard catch over cornerback Sauce Gardner to get the Cowboys immediately inside the red zone. After back-to-back penalties set Dallas at the 1-yard line, running back Javante Williams plunged into the end zone from 1-yard out to score the go-ahead touchdown with 1:08 left.
Despite the Dallas offense piling up 508 total yards, Indy still had a chance to get one last stop on the lead. Instead, the Colts allowed the Cowboys to take the lead back in under 30 seconds. The Colts’ final drive lasted just three plays, featuring an intentional grounding and another incompletion before Jones lofted a terrific pass up the middle of the field, which Caleb Downs picked off to end the last chance to steal the victory.
Taylor was held to just 46 yards on 13 carries. Jones finished 20-of-34 for 180 passing yards, with one touchdown and one interception. For Indianapolis, the comeback showed an ability to fight back when the game appeared out of reach, but several defensive lapses, along with a pair of costly turnovers ultimately overshadowed the effort. The stampede once again left the stadium to boos, listening to cadences of “Here we go”, and “How ’bout them Cowboys” chants.
The Colts will host the 1-7 Miami Dolphins next Sunday inside Lucas Oil Stadium, with kickoff scheduled for 1 p.m.