The Denver Broncos lost Sunday afternoon 27-24 to the Indianapolis Colts thanks in part to terrible first half offense and partly to dumb defensive penalties late in the fourth quarter.

They started out down 17-0; the offense couldn’t do anything and Indy scored three times. But just before halftime, Omar Bolden was able to return a punt 83 yards for a touchdown and swing the momentum of the game.

Denver scored 17 straight points starting with Bolden’s score, to tie the game at 17.

Andrew Luck led an 80-yard drive for the 24-17 lead and then Peyton Manning marched his team down field, hitting Owen Daniels for the touchdown and 24-24 tie with just more than six minutes to play.

But then Aqib Talib poked a Colts player in the eye for a first down and Danny Trevathan held someone on the field goal attempt to salt the game away.

After the loss, two Denver Broncos legends lent some words of wisdom.

Now I'm going to go read @ShannonSharpe timeline and I suggest you also follow him.

— Ed McCaffrey (@87ed) November 9, 2015

Glad you and I didn't panic with every win or loss. Would've been in an asylum "@87ed: Now I'm going to go … https://t.co/ytnUOywOJP

— shannon sharpe (@ShannonSharpe) November 9, 2015

https://twitter.com/stevemc2az/status/663534717807910912

Trust us, you learn and improve from losses more than wins. https://t.co/DSJe2qeOFN

— Ed McCaffrey (@87ed) November 9, 2015

These Denver Broncos are sensational, even Super Bowl worthy — without the moronic mental mistakes we saw this Sunday — but they weren’t going to go undefeated. Only one team has in the modern era of the NFL.

So, they must learn from this loss. There were multiple opportunities in all aspects of the game; less penalties — especially the silly eye poke by Aqib Talib — generating momentum on offense early and tackling better on special teams.

If Denver does indeed want to win a Super Bowl, they will have to execute everywhere. They can use this loss as a learning example.

• More Broncos vs. Colts stories
  • Recap: Defensive penalties doom Denver in 24-27 loss to Indianapolis Colts
  • Broncos Kubiak opens up about Aqib Talib: “He has to keep his composure out there”
  • “We were just out of whack:” Colts are still Denver’s Achilles heel
  • Denver Broncos safety T.J. Ward sounds off on NFL about officials
  • Ed McCaffrey, Shannon Sharpe drop knowledge about losing
  • Watch Emmanuel Sanders score a 64-yard touchdown
  • Watch DeMarcus Ware’s sack which makes him No. 10 all-time
  • Watch Owen Daniels’ game-tying touchdown catch
  • WATCH: Omar Bolden’s 83-yard punt return touchdown