The Kansas City Chiefs are inevitably in another must-win scenario entering Sunday's game. It comes against the Indianapolis Colts. For most people, Indianapolis was not seen as a serious threat entering this season. But with how the Colts have started things in 2025, they are well on their way to their first playoff appearance since 2020.
The Colts have also generally been a source of pain and heartbreak for the Chiefs over the years. Patrick Mahomes' first career playoff victory did come against Indianapolis. It was Kansas City's first home playoff win since the 1993 season, when the Chiefs beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in January 1994. But even after that, Mahomes has been part of some frustrating outcomes against this particular franchise.
Indianapolis comes into Sunday at the top of the AFC South. The Colts know they still have many tough games ahead while trying to win the division. However, Indy is in a rare spot to inflict more pain on Kansas City as a franchise. That is something the Chiefs have not felt much of in the Mahomes era.
Let's look back on the many different painful and heartbreaking Chiefs results against the Colts over the years. Obviously, a few of those took place in the playoffs.
Late flag gifts Colts game-winning touchdown
The Chiefs and the Colts have not faced each other in three years. The last time they met, it was another late Kansas City blunder that gave Indianapolis a victory. In Week 3 of the 2022 season, the Chiefs and the Colts played a tight game at Indy. It was a bit of a sloppy day for the Kansas City offense. They could have capitalized much more on the scoreboard. Defensively, the Chiefs were creating a lot of pressure and put Matt Ryan in a straitjacket for most of the day.
There were nearly no points in the fourth quarter. K.C. led 17–13 late and looked to have the game won. Nick Bolton got a huge third-down sack, basically ending much hope that the Colts had left. Yet Chris Jones was hit with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for saying something to Ryan after he got sacked. Indianapolis drove down the field after the penalty. Ryan found his tight end for a touchdown with 24 seconds left. The Chiefs would somehow lose after all that, 20–17.
Andrew Luck leads miraculous Wild Card comeback
The 2013 season was a breath of fresh air for the Chiefs in many ways. After years of being cellar dwellers, Andy Reid and Alex Smith immediately turned things around after coming to Kansas City. The Chiefs went to the playoffs right away under the new regime.
And in the Wild Card game against the Colts, things could not have started out any better for Kansas City. The Chiefs scored first with a touchdown pass to Dwayne Bowe. In the second quarter, Kansas City outscored Indianapolis 21–3. That gave the Chiefs a 31–10 lead at halftime. And early in the third quarter, Knile Davis increased the lead to 38–10.
Then disaster struck. It was a surgical second-half performance by Colts quarterback Andrew Luck. The bounces and blunders that went Indianapolis's way are still unbelievable after all these years. The Donald Brown fumble that was picked up by Luck for a touchdown where he lunged over a pile. Indianapolis forced a strip-sack on Smith and scored a touchdown right after to cut the lead to 14 in the fourth quarter. And of course, the 64-yard dagger deep down the field to T.Y. Hilton as he got behind the defense.
Kansas City forced four turnovers in that game. And somehow, 44 points were not enough to down the Colts in their building. It stands as the second-largest comeback in NFL playoff history. And overall, it is one of the most painful Chiefs losses of all time.
Manning overpowers Chiefs' high-scoring offense in Divisional Round
The 2003 Kansas City Chiefs led the NFL in points scored (484). It was good enough to average just over 30 points per game. Trent Green tossed 24 touchdowns that season. But of course, Priest Holmes was the main producer with 27 rushing touchdowns that season, leading the league in TDs scored. Dick Vermeil's squad finished 13–3, earning the AFC's number two seed and a first-round bye.
Unfortunately, that dynamic season was quickly extinguished in the Divisional Round by Peyton Manning and the Colts. Indianapolis jumped out to a 14–3 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Chiefs did score three touchdowns in the second half, including a 92-yard kickoff return by Dante Hall. Kansas City could not get a stop, though, falling in a high-scoring affair 38–31.
Holmes rushed for 176 yards and 2 touchdowns. But for Indy, Manning had just eight incompletions on 30 passing attempts. He threw three touchdowns. Edgerrin James also tallied a pair of touchdowns and 125 yards on the ground. It would end up being one of the best offensive seasons for a while in Kansas City. No playoff success materialized against the Colts in the end.
Kicking leads to horror for Chiefs in mid-1990s
Where the blunders and heartbreak begin for the Chiefs when facing the Colts can be traced back to right after the 1995 season. In January 1996 in the AFC Divisional Round, the Colts traveled to Kansas City to face another Chiefs team that went 13–3. K.C. won the AFC West under Marty Schottenheimer. The late, great Schottenheimer and the Chiefs earned the AFC's number one seed.
Kicking horrors simply ended any excitement that Chiefs fans had. It was a game with very few points. Kansas City scored a touchdown in the first quarter. Indianapolis scored a touchdown in the second quarter to tie it. And in the third quarter, a chip-shot field goal was made by the Colts. That would end up being the final points of an ugly 10–7 playoff game.
Nonetheless, Kansas City had plenty of chances in this one. Chiefs kicker Lin Elliott missed all three field-goal attempts on the day. All of those were within 45 yards. His last miss was a 42-yarder that would have tied the game with just over 30 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. The camera shots and cuts of Kansas City personnel after the final miss are about as sad and depressing as it gets.