Broncos roar back on the strength of 5 takeaways to beat Colts 31-13 and close in on playoff berth

DENVER (AP) — Nik Bonitto's defensive touchdown was jaw-dropping. Jonathan Taylor's botched touchdown run was head-scratching.

Bonitto foiled a trick play by stepping in front of quarterback Anthony Richardson and hijacking Adonai Mitchell's lateral pass, then racing 50 yards for a touchdown Sunday that sealed the Denver Broncos' 31-13 win over the Indianapolis Colts.

A blunder by Taylor turned the game around in the third quarter. Indy's star running back dropped the ball milliseconds before crossing the goal line on what would have been a 41-yard touchdown.

“That can’t happen," said Taylor, who finished with 107 yards — but no touchdowns — on 22 carries. “No, you’re never consciously aware you’re dropping the ball. Otherwise, you wouldn’t do it.”

The blunder breathed new life into the Broncos, whose special teams and defense would bail out a sputtering offense that managed just 193 yards.

“If he would have scored that touchdown, it would have been even more of a dogfight to get back,” Denver pass rusher Jonathon Cooper said. “We would have had a tougher fight. ... I just hope it never happens to us.”

Denver's defenders dejectedly retreated to the sideline, but suddenly the 76,416 fans roared. Safety P.J. Locke said he looked up and saw the replay on the giant scoreboard and suddenly the Broncos had a holiday gift.

Instead of lining up for the extra point to give the Colts a 20-7 lead, the touchback left the reeling Colts clinging to a six-point edge they would soon relinquish.

“That was a game changer, yeah, absolutely,” Colts coach Shane Steichen said. “Obviously, it hurt us, but he’s one of our leaders. Sometimes that happens in football, but he’s our guy, and that’s what you say to him.”

With five takeaways, the Broncos (9-5) ended a seven-year string of losing records and strengthened their grip on an AFC wild-card berth that would end a playoff drought dating to 2016. They began defense of their Super Bowl 50 title that season with a 4-0 start, which was the last time they sat four games above .500.

The Colts (6-8) blew both an early 10-0 lead and a big opportunity to tighten the AFC wild-card race, and the biggest reasons were Taylor's blunder and Bonitto's plunder.

Denver had just taken its first lead of the game on Bo Nix's 15-yard touchdown toss to tight end Nate Adkins that made it 17-13 when Bonitto scored his second touchdown in two games.

Bonitto, who had a pick-6 against Cleveland before the Broncos' bye week, was in full stride when he caught Mitchell's pass at the midfield logo and raced untouched to the end zone.

The play was officially recorded as a fumble recovery and not a pick-6 because it was a backward pass. Whatever you want to call it, Cooper said it was just the spark the Broncos needed.

“Man, I love playing with this dude,” Cooper said. “His football instincts are off the charts. He's a phenomenal football player. He's got my vote for Defensive Player of the Year.”

Mitchell said his coach had admonished him to throw the ball away if he saw the Broncos sniffing out the trickery, but he said he never sensed Denver had deciphered the play.

“It was there pretty much until 15 turned into Ed Reed and just came through out of nowhere,” Mitchell said.

Denver's five takeaways more than made up for Nix's first three-interception game of his rookie season.

One of Denver's interceptions was by cornerback Patrick Surtain II, who limped to the sideline tent with a sprained right ankle. He went back in the game but was helped off the field just before the 2-minute warning after seemingly aggravating the injury. He left the stadium without comment but wasn't in a walking boot, a good sign because the Broncos have a short week before their next game.

The Broncos' barrage of points started with Wil Lutz's 44-yard field goal that pulled Denver to 13-10 and ended with Nix's 20-yard TD pass to Courtland Sutton.

Richardson completed just five of 17 passes for 56 yards in the first half and one of those completions was to himself. It came in his own end zone after Jonah Ellis batted down his throw.

Richardson capped Indy's opening drive with a 23-yard touchdown run after twice converting on third-and-10.

Both of these AFC wild-card contenders were coming off a bye week and both looked more rusted than rested.

“It won't be fun looking at the tape,” bemoaned Broncos coach Sean Payton.

Imagine how much worse it'll be for Taylor and the Colts.

Colts WR Alec Pierce left in the first half with a concussion.

Broncos RG Quinn Meinerz (shoulder) and RB Jaleel McLaughlin (thigh) both left late in the third quarter. Surtain got hurt in the fourth, as did DT D.J. Jones (finger).

Colts: Host the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.

Broncos: Visit the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday night.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Indianapolis Colts' Anthony Richardson gets away from Denver Broncos' John Franklin-Myers during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Indianapolis Colts' Jonathan Taylor runs during the first half of an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Broncos' Adam Trautman celebrates his touchdown with Bo Nix during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Broncos' Nik Bonitto celebrates after returning an interception for a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Broncos' Jaleel McLaughlin runs during the first half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Broncos' Nik Bonitto celebrates his interception and return for a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Broncos' Bo Nix throws during the first half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Broncos' Courtland Sutton drops a pass in front of Indianapolis Colts' Kenny Moore II during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Broncos' Kris Abrams-Draine breaks iup a pass intended for Indianapolis Colts' Alec Pierce during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Denver Broncos' Marvin Mims Jr. celebrates after a long return during the second half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

CRANS-MONTANA, Switzerland (AP) — In the aftermath of a fire inside a Swiss Alpine bar that killed 40 people celebrating the new year, survivors, friends and family members, the region’s top authorities and even Pope Leo have spoken to the public in remarks in French, Italian, German and English, reflecting the tradition of Swiss multilingualism.

Another 119 people were injured in the blaze early Thursday as it ripped through the busy Le Constellation bar at the ski resort of Crans-Montana, authorities said. It was one of the deadliest tragedies in Switzerland’s history.

Investigators said Friday that they believe sparkling candles atop Champagne bottles ignited the fatal fire when they came too close to the ceiling of the crowded bar.

Here’s a look at what people said in the wake of the disaster:

— “I’m looking everywhere. The body of my son is somewhere,” Laetitia Brodard told reporters Friday in Crans-Montana as she searched for her son, 16-year-old Arthur. “I want to know, where is my child, and be by his side. Wherever that may be, be it in the intensive care unit or the morgue.”

— “We were bringing people out, people were collapsing. We were doing everything we could to save them, we helped as many as we could. We saw people screaming, running,” Marc-Antoine Chavanon, 14, told The Associated Press in Crans-Montana on Friday, recounting how he rushed to the bar to help the injured. “There was one of our friends: She was struggling to get out, she was all burned. You can’t imagine the pain I saw.”

— “It was hard to live through for everyone. Also probably because everyone was asking themselves, ‘Was my child, my cousin, someone from the region at this party?’” Eric Bonvin, general director of the regional hospital in Sion that took in dozens of injured people, told AP on Friday. “This place was very well known as somewhere to celebrate the new year,” Bonvin said. “Also, seeing young people arrive — that’s always traumatic.”

— “I have seen horror, and I don’t know what else would be worse than this,” Gianni Campolo, a Swiss 19-year-old who was in Crans-Montana on vacation and rushed to the bar to help first responders, told France's TF1 television.

—“You will understand that the priority today is truly placed on identification, in order to allow the families to begin their mourning,” Beatrice Pilloud, the Valais region's attorney general, told reporters Friday during a news conference in Sion.

Pope Leo said in a telegram Friday to the bishop of Sion that he " wishes to express his compassion and concern to the relatives of the victims. He prays that the Lord will welcome the deceased into His abode of peace and light, and will sustain the courage of those who suffer in their hearts or in their bodies.”

— “We have numerous accounts of heroic actions, one could say of very strong solidarity in the moment,” Cantonal head of government Mathias Reynard told RTS radio Friday. "In the first minutes it was citizens — and in large part young people — who saved lives with their courage.”

— “Switzerland is a strong country not because it is sheltered from drama, but because it knows how to face them with courage and a spirit of mutual help," Swiss President Guy Parmelin, speaking on his first day in the position that changes hands annually, told reporters Thursday.

People bring flowers near the sealed off Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, where a devastating fire left dead and injured during the New Year's celebrations. (AP Photo/ Antonio Calanni)

A woman holding a stuffed animal, whose daughter is missing, gather with others near the sealed-off Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, where a devastating fire left dead and injured during the New Year's celebrations. (AP Photo/Baz Ratner)

People light candles near the sealed off Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, where a devastating fire left dead and injured during the New Year's celebrations. (AP Photo/ Antonio Calanni)