The Indianapolis Colts couldn’t get it done in Jacksonville. Again.
Riding a decade-long losing streak in Jaguars territory, this year’s Colts team seemed like the group to finally break through. Especially after a two-game losing skid in which the urgency to find the win column picked up.
The result? Far from ideal. A 36-19 defeat which was made worse with quarterback Daniel Jones–already playing through a broken fibula, mind you—suffering a season-ending Achilles tear.
Now 8-5 and without a win on U.S. soil in almost a month, the Colts have regressed hard. The team is in free fall. It’s time to address the fact that this team, despite flashing brilliance in the early season, is no different than how they were perceived prior to Week 1.
Jones isn’t the only injury either. On Monday, the team announced cornerback Charvarius Ward is in the concussion protocol for the third time this season. His season, and football career, are in jeopardy. Even backup quarterback Riley Leonard, who made his NFL debut in the loss, is considered week-to-week with a knee injury.
Things have gotten so out of hand that the Colts have resorted to signing Philip Rivers to their practice squad. The same Philip Rivers who started for Indianapolis in 2020, their most recent playoff appearance.
Rivers hasn’t played an NFL game since that 2020 wild card loss in Buffalo. Now 44 years old with 10 kids and a grandchild, he returns to Indianapolis with a solid chance of playing again. Yes, this is real life.
For further context, Rivers and Colts head coach Shane Steichen have a history of working together with the Chargers. Steichen was Rivers’ quarterbacks coach and later offensive coordinator from 2014-19, so there’s familiarity with the offense. In fact, Rivers ran the same offense while coaching his son’s high school football team. So he shouldn’t have any difficulty catching up with the playbook. The question is whether or not he can be physically ready.
But I mean, what are we doing? Seriously. Is the franchise so starved for playoff football—general manager Chris Ballard so desperate to save himself—that the only solution they could muster was to try and turn back the clock? Are the Colts so out of options that they turned to a retired grandfather to save their season?
This move screams hopelessness. Desperation. A reckless move by a usually calm and calculated front office. Just one final blindfolded, on-the-run, through-the-legs throw at the dart board by leadership to revive a season which at one point had the makings of something special.
But the magic fairy dust wore off a long time ago. The Colts still haven’t won since their bye week. In fact, the week off appears to have made things worse by disrupting their momentum. But that’s a separate conversation.
Let’s put it simply—things are going downhill in Indianapolis. And fast. Like, out of control fast. The train is teetering on the rails, and is nearing the point of being too far gone.
If Philip Rivers can somehow balance the scale and somehow take Indianapolis to the postseason, then clearly the Colts know something that I don’t. Fail to do so and Ballard goes down with his ship, likely taking several others with him.
Is the risk-reward really worth it? Especially for an organization without a first-round draft pick for the next two years or long-term answer under center?
Indianapolis has gone all in—with both a lot to lose and little to gain.
