The 1997 Colts were the worst team in football.
They lost the first 10 games of the year.
The 1999 Colts were one of the best teams in football, winning 11 games in a row.
What changed between 1997 and 1999? How did the Colts manage to turn over the whole roster to go from also-ran to contender in just two seasons? Surely, there must have been a major influx of talent that made the difference.
Think again.
The 1999 Colts are perhaps the best example of the fact that rebuilding in the NFL is a simple as finding a quarterback. I say it often, but the NFL is NOT the NBA. It is not Major League Baseball. In those sports, rebuilding takes time. 4-5 years is not an unusual duration to repair a failed franchise. In the NFL, no rebuild should ever take more than two seasons.
By looking at the rosters of the 1997 and 1999 Colts, you can plainly see that the return path to greatness for Indianapolis is as simple: find a real quarterback.
Defense:
PPG
Turnovers
Sacks
DVO...
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