The Indianapolis Colts have struggled recently, but the team had a real chance of getting another victory against another struggling team, the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas had been awful defensively, and head coach Shane Steichen and his offense might have been able to take advantage.
Win or lose, Indy's near future shouldn't change. The team needs to stay committed to a rebuild. One that already started with the trades of left guard Quenton Nelson and defensive lineman DeForest Buckner.
Still, a victory would certainly feel nice for Indy fans. One should be able to look toward a potentially positive future without losing every game along the way. In the end, the loss was more brutal after leading with less than two minutes left. The Cowboys won 27-23.
Winners and losers for the Indianapolis Colts against the Dallas Cowboys
Winner: Edge rusher Caden Curry
Curry is still a bit of a project, but he's playing more and making an impact. In the first half, he had a fumble recovery after Laiatu Latu knocked the ball out of Dak Prescott's hand, and Curry had a sack later. He might not offer elite athleticism, but his motor runs hot.
The rookie might never be an All-Pro, but he is developing into a solid addition to the pass rush. He should only get better after this season.
Winner: Wide receiver Keenan Allen
Allen might not be producing any 100-yard games, but he's been a solid receiver. He also had enough catches against the Cowboys to move him into the eighth spot all-time in receptions. He passed Tim Brown, just another step in what is certainly a Pro Football Hall of Fame career.
Winner: Wide receiver Ashton Dulin
Dulin likely isn't used enough downfield, but the team tried to use him on a deep pass that was well-covered. The receiver was able to show his speed on a screen, though, and with some brilliant blocking, Dulin was able to outrun the Cowboys' defense for a 55-yard touchdown.
Winner: Kicker Spencer Shrader
After a game in which he missed a couple of field goals, and saying the first miss affected the second, Shrader needed to make a 59-yarder to tie the game in the fourth quarter, and he nailed it. The kick would have been good from 65 yards, most likely. He then made one with under two minutes left from 50 yards to push Indy ahead 23-20.
Despite his one bad game, he continues to be arguably the Colts' MVP in 2026. Without him, the team might have zero wins.
Loser: Head coach Shane Steichen
The coach gets a lot of credit for being an offensive mastermind, but maybe people are just being too nice. His play-calling has been lacking this season. On one series in the first half, Jonathan Taylor gained six yards on first down, Seth McGowan picked up three more on second, and what does Steichen do on third? He passes the ball. Like a lot of this season, what Steichen did made no sense.
He's also allowed himself to be too limited by missing wide receiver Alec Pierce. He doesn't even hint at throwing the ball downfield much, allowing defenses to cheat close to the line. A true offensive mastermind would find ways around that instead of not having his quarterback throw the ball past the line of scrimmage very often.
Loser: The fans of both teams
This was a brutally ugly football game. Many Colts fans didn't even choose to show up, and that meant that, at times, Cowboys fans were as loud as the home fans. That should never happen, no matter how bad a person's favorite team is.
Meanwhile, Dallas fans had to be frustrated by the team's offense teasing positivity, only to have that taken away by seemingly a million penalties that took away a good play. Just an ugly example of the sport overall.
Loser: Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo
The defense might have looked good in spots, but by the fourth quarter, the unit was still giving up 7 yards per play (which would rank last in the league) and had allowed more than 400 total yards. If not for some horrific penalties committed by the Cowboys, things would have been worse.
Maybe Anarumo is just playing with too many new parts this season, but historically he hasn't been successful either. He's had one group rank in the top half of the NFL in points allowed or yards allowed. 2026 won't be his second.
Loser: Cornerback Sauce Gardner
CB1s should not give up game-changing plays to third-string wide receivers near the end of games, but Gardner did just that with 1:37 left and the Colts leading 23-20. A 46-yard completion to a wideout you will never hear about again is unacceptable.
Gardner has a lot to live up to, which is really no fault of his own. The team chose to trade two first-round picks for him, but he has to play at that level. A critical mistake like that at the end of Week 9 isn't doing that.
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