Broncos vs. Colts 2017 live results: Score updates and highlights from 'Thursday Night Football'

Fourth quarter

Third quarter: Broncos 22, Colts 13

Broncos 22, Colts 13: Osweiler continues his red hot play — be honest, did you think you would hear that sentence again so soon? — with yet another touchdown pass, this one a 54-yard beauty to Jeff Heuerman 

Denver added a nifty two-point conversion to expand to a two-score advantage.

Broncos 14, Colts 13: Since coming in for an injured Trevor Siemian, Denver quarterback Brock Osweiler is 10-for-14 with 120 yards, including this 18-yard touchdown strike to Cody Latimer for the Broncos’ first lead of the game

Colts 13, Broncos 7: Indianapolis took nearly six minutes off the clock to start the second half, and cashed in with Adam Vinatieri hitting his second field goal of the night. Vinatieri is 13-for-13 in field goals at home this season.

Second quarter: Colts 10, Broncos 7

Nothing really happened at the end of the half as teams traded punts to get to halftime. One highlight was Frank Gore reaching a milestone

Colts 10, Broncos 7 Despite losing that play, Osweiler got it back with an 18-yard touchdown scramble, getting the Broncos on the board

Devontae Booker had by far the coolest highlight of the game, easily leaping a defender on his way to the end zone. Of course, it got called back with a holding penalty, because Thursday Night Football can’t let us have nice things.

Colts 10, Broncos 0 The Colts got more bad news when Frank Gore left with what appears to be a knee injury. Rookie Marlon Mack is the lead running back now. The Colts did enough on offense to set up a 45-yard field goal from Adam Vinatieri.

Meanwhile, Siemian was ruled out with a shoulder injury.

Deeply scary scene as Colts tight end Brandon Williams went down after a routine block on a punt return. Williams lay motionless on the field for nearly 10 minutes, as medics stabilized him on a backboard and took him to a local hospital. He has a history of spinal stenosis, making this injury even more concerning.

At the start of the third quarter the Colts said Williams is awake and alert, with movement in his limbs and no neck pain.

First quarter: Colts 7, Broncos 0

We’re getting the Brock Osweiler show tonight after Siemian got carted off the field.

Siemian recovered from that horrible pick in time to drive the Broncos inside the red zone. However, he ate an ugly sack for a 10-yard loss on third down. Siemian got shaken up on the play and was being attended to on the sidelines. Brandon McManus missed a 40-yard field goal, adding insult onto injury.

Colts 7, Broncos 0 Frank Gore picked up a 22-yard catch-and-run to get into field goal range. Jacoby Brissett got on the board with a 7-yard touchdown scramble as the Colts cash in on the turnover.

The Broncos had a promising first drive, with C.J. Anderson ripping off chunk games. Of course, it ended with a Trevor Siemian interception, as these things normally do.

Before the game

From the coaching staffs to the quarterbacks, both the Denver Broncos and Indianapolis Coltshave significant personnel issues to address in the offseason. With both teams out of the playoff hunt, the time for decisions is quickly approaching, but not before these teams face off on Thursday Night Football at 8:25 p.m. ET on NFL Network and NBC (live stream).

After eight losses in a row, the Broncos earned a 23-0 shutout win against the Jets in part to their commitment to the run game. Despite only nabbing 2.4 yards per carry, the ground-and-pound gameplan worked, as the Denver offense steadily made its way downfield and were able to capitalize on red-zone opportunities.

Of the 35 rushes for the Broncos last week, C.J. Anderson claimed 22 of them for 48 yards. Through the air, quarterback Trevor Siemian finished with 200 passing yards and a touchdown — 93 of those yards and the score came by way of receiver Demaryius Thomas. There were a lot more explosive pass plays against the Jets, with four receivers averaging over 11 yards per catch.

Explosive offensive plays by the Broncos could prove to be the Achilles heel of the Colts’ defense. Last week against the Bills, Indianapolis allowed several big, 20-plus yard plays that would ultimately result in its downfall in the snow. Without its own brand of explosiveness, Indianapolis is forced to try and limit its opponents from getting down the field quickly as it tries and methodically (read: slowly) inch its way to the end zone.

The Colts’ commitment to the ground game shouldn’t come as a surprise given that their roster boasts one of the league’s most productive (and veteran) backs: Frank Gore. In his 13th season in the NFL — which is absolutely unheard of for running backs — Gore continues to outdo his former career-high stats. Last Sunday, he did that again with a career-high 36 carries against Buffalo, resulting in 130 yards.

While the Broncos wont likely have their second shutout in as many weeks against the Colts, it’s also not entirely unlikely they don’t.

Pregame reading

• Here are 4 reasons to watch the Broncos and Colts on Thursday Night Football.
• The Colts aren’t getting any reprieves from injuries as season’s end draws near.
• Siemian hopes to keep the winning momentum from last week’s shutout over the Jets.

The difference between wins and losses in the NFL is often razor thin and for the first time in two months, that razor thin edge fell in the Broncos favor. On nearly every big throw Siemian made, the wide receiver had to fight tight coverage to come down with the ball.

• Both the Colts and Broncos struggle on offense, and if their defenses prove to be the difference maker on Thursday, that might spell trouble for Indianapolis.

The Broncos have better receivers and our Colts have a better situation at quarterback. Either way, this one is probably going to come down to field goal kickers and who plays better defense and I’m afraid I’m not going to be bringing you good news about who has the better defense when we look at that tomorrow.

HINT: It’s the Broncos.

• Denver will need its offense to step up, and with the quarterback position still questionable, it will likely be turning to its running backs.

The key for our offense will be establishing some kind of running game. Connor McGovern and Donald Stephenson actually played fairly well together on the right side of the OL against the fairly stout front 7 of the Jets on Sunday. For the Broncos to win on Thursday night, both players will have to play well again.