People forget that MULTIPLE analysts had the Colts as a dark horse Super Bowl team.
The Colts offensive line was supposed to begood.
They had a formidable defense.
We had (arguably) the best running back in the NFL.
But holy shit did things go downhill fast.
There were so many ridiculous Colts moments this year that I had completely forgotten about.
A game where the Colts were 15-point favorites.
A game they needed to win to make the playoffs.
The Colts started out a respectable 3-2-1.
Nobody knows how to feel after a tie.
Somehow that’s even worse than getting blown out.
I would say that the Colts played good quality football for one game this year.
That game was Week 3 against the Kansas City Chiefs.
How on earth did the Colts beat Patrick Mahomes?
I barely even remember how that happened.
I feel like it took place in a different dimension.
Aside from that, the quality of football was shit across the board.
The Colts never really got their running game going.
Jonathan Taylor battled injuries.
But it wasn’t long until Ryan was replaced by Sam Ehlinger.
Which according to a recent article in The Athletic, was 100% Jim Irsay’s decision.
I did my part as a Colts fan and convinced myself that Ehlinger could be the guy.
I imagined a world where Sam Ehlinger overcome all odds and became a top 10 quarterback in the NFL.
But that was never really going to happen.
The Colts fired Frank Reich, and hired Jeff Saturday.
It was a hire I was actually encouraged with.
At least it made the Colts interesting.
Plus, it pissed off a bunch of people who take football too seriously.
I’ve long been annoyed by those types of people.
Football is really bunch of grown men playing a game.
It’s not that serious.
It’s fucking recreation.
It’s not rocket science.
For a minute there I thought I might be right.
Jeff Saturday won his first game, and I got off as many"Jeff Saturday is undefeated!
Best coach in the NFL!
“jokes as I could fit into one week.
My hopes were high.
It wasn’t even so much about the Colts.
I wanted the world to come to the conclusion that football is actually pretty easy to coach.
But that’s not how it worked out.
It turns out coaching experience matters in the NFL.
Turns out winning football games takes more than a loud man screaming motivational quotes at his players.
Turns out a good/experienced coach will typically beat a bad/inexperienced coach.
Even if the bad/inexperienced coach has a 33-point lead going into the second half.
That was so goddamn fun.
But I don’t agree with that.
Secondly, this was only their 7th losing season since I was born in 1992.
That places them firmly in the top quartile of the upper quartile of teams in the NFL.
Not enough people give us credit for that.
Not many owners even know that stat exists.
Every team has their ups and downs, and this was quite clearly a down year for Indianapolis.
But the Colts did their down year the right way.
They were a fun team.
They made waves across the league.
I wouldn’t hate it if the Colts tanked again nest year.
We’re not about to win the Super Bowl, so why not tank twice in a row?
you’ve got the option to never have too much good young talent.
Bring the circus back for another year.
Last I heard, Jeff Saturday was still in the running to become the Colts official head coach.
you might’t rule that out with Jim Irsay at the helm.
Colts GM Chris Ballard has already said he won’t be holding Jeff Saturday’s 1-7 record against him.
The only thing I DO NOT want is for them to trade up for the #1 pick.
I don’t think there’s a quarterback in the draft that’s good enough for that.
If their man falls to them at #4 then that’s great.
If not, I wouldn’t mind seeing them trade back for additional picks.
It’s never a bad idea to get more picks.
The Colts are more than just one player away.
They might as well acquire as many picks as possible.
But who knows what will happen.
