The Indianapolis Colts are one of the NFL's unlikeliest 2-0 teams, defeating the Denver Broncos 29-28 on Sunday to remain undefeated.
The Colts rode Daniel Jones and Jonathan Taylor to victory, but they also got a little luck on their way to the win. Indianapolis kicker Spencer Shrader kicked the game-winner as time expired, but got a second chance thanks to a Broncos penalty.
As a result, the Broncos lost a heartbreaker, while the Colts' thrilling start to the season extends to a second-straight game. Here's a look at the strange way that Indianapolis collected its second victory.
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Broncos leverage penalty, explained
Looking to win their second game of the year, the Colts got the ball back down two late in the fourth quarter after Broncos kicker Will Lutz missed. Indianapolis drove down the field and was able to set up a long, 60-yard field goal for young kicker Spencer Shrader.
On the attempt, Shrader pushed it wide and seemingly gave Denver the win. However, the officials called the Broncos for a leverage penalty, giving Indianapolis one more opportunity.
A leverage penalty is a personal foul penalty, which means the Colts gained 15 yards on the call, allowing Shrader a much more reasonable 45-yard attempt.
Shrader nailed the second try, giving the Colts a one-point victory.
The insane Broncos-Colts finish, with Kevin Harlan appropriately on the CBS call to capture the madness. 🏈🎙️ #NFL pic.twitter.com/aPWPTqrfBX
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 14, 2025
After the game, Broncos head coach Sean Payton said the loss was due to more than just the final penalty.
"We did a lot of things late in that game to keep us from winning," he said. "It will be painful to watch that film."
Referee Craig Wrolstad said in a post-game pool report that Eyioma Uwazurike "put his hands on the right guard and pushed off him to elevate himself in the air in order to try to block the kick." Wrolstad explained that the rules call for the game to be extended to one untimed down despite the clock running out on the play.
Broncos head coach Sean Payton spoke on the penalty that cost them the game. He said that they had a miscommunication on the play that they wanted to run and his players' wires got crossed. Payton said that from what transpired, that the call was correct on the field and it was leveraging.
Here's Sean Payton's full discussion of the leveraging call/FG playcall today.
— Luca Evans (@bylucaevans) September 15, 2025
Said a common block would be to push down with one player and then jump with another. Issue w/Tillman was he himself pushed off a Colt for leverage. https://t.co/xOnRDz0r3O pic.twitter.com/nB8OX7aVrZ
What is a leverage penalty?
A leverage penalty on a field goal attempt is when a defensive player pulls down and jumps over either a teammate or an offensive player in an attempt to block the kick. In this case, Eyioma Uwazurike pushed off the Colts long snapper while trying to block Shrader's kick.
This penalty is not called often, but it occasionally comes into play on field goal attempts.