Colts Given Insulting Record Prediction for 2025

Depending on who you ask, you'll likely get a range of answers on how the Indianapolis Colts will do in 2025.

Many might tell you they'll wait and see on the quarterback position, as Anthony Richardson and Daniel Jones duke it out this summer. Others might say they're down on the Colts in general because of the quarterbacks. However, USA Today's Nate Davis took it a step further.

In his recent record predictions for the season, Davis has the Colts going 4-13 and dead last in the AFC South behind the Houston Texans (10-7), Jacksonville Jaguars (8-9), and Tennessee Titans (5-12).

"Even if they were settled behind center – which Indy most certainly is not – a schedule loaded with the entirety of the AFC and NFC West was going to present a serious challenge for a team that’s generally hovered around .500 since QB Andrew Luck retired six years ago," Davis wrote.

There's being pessimistic, which would be fair, but this projection leans further into being downright dismissive of what the Colts have done this offseason.

Colts head coach Shane Steichen has gone 9-8 and 8-9, respectively, in his two seasons as head coach, which is unspectacular but not bad. General manager Chris Ballard has only had seasons of four wins or worse twice with the Colts: In 2017, after Andrew Luck missed the season following shoulder surgery, and the disaster that was 2022.

Regardless of what the quarterback situation is, this roster hardly looks capable of being bad enough to be in the running for the first pick in the draft.

For all of Richardson's faults, he does hold a winning record (8-7) as a starting quarterback, which says just as much about Steichen's abilities as it does Richardson's. The Colts also knocked on the door of the playoffs and were a failed fourth down away in 2023 with Gardner Minshew at quarterback. With a roster that looks more promising than it did two years ago, are Richardson and Jones five losses worse than Minshew? Again, Steichen has shown he can make it work and at least tread water without an ideal quarterback situation.

Behind the quarterbacks, running back Jonathan Taylor is coming off a campaign in which he ran for over 1,400 yards and 10 touchdowns despite missing three games. He also has DJ Giddens, Khalil Herbert, and Tyler Goodson around him, which is a far more capable group on paper than last year. Even if you make the argument that Taylor has been banged up for a few years, that's why the Colts reinvested in the running back position this spring.

At either Richardson's or Jones' disposal is an adequate squad of pass-catchers that also added Tyler Warren, who many feel was the best tight end in this year's draft. While the Colts lack an alpha-dog receiver like Ja'Marr Chase or Justin Jefferson, they do have a complete receiver corps, as Alec Pierce, Michael Pittman Jr., and Josh Downs were also the only NFL trio to hit 800-plus yards each last season.

The quarterbacks having a strong running game and complete group of players in the passing game should raise the floor of even the worst quarterback rooms.

The offensive line is the only other group on offense with question marks outside of the quarterback. The Colts had to replace Ryan Kelly and Will Fries this offseason. However, the pair missed a combined 19 games in 2024. The Colts drafted Kelly and Fries' replacements in 2024, and Tanor Bortolini and Matt Goncalves played extensively as rookies, aiding in their transition to being starters in 2025. Both players graded among the best rookie offensive linemen in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus.

On the defensive side of the ball, just about anything could be considered progress after the way Gus Bradley's group finished in 2024. They ranked near the bottom of the NFL in many meaningful categories, which led to Bradley's departure and the hiring of Lou Anarumo, whose defense is known for being far more challenging for offenses to prepare for. Offseason additions like Charvarius Ward, Cam Bynum, Justin Walley, and JT Tuimoloau are expected to positively counter losses such as Dayo Odeyingbo, E.J. Speed, and Julian Blackmon.

The Colts also replaced a kicker in Matt Gay, who ranked 24th in the NFL in field goal percentage and 35th in field goals of 50-plus yards.

The Colts tumbling to a 4-13 record in 2025 would almost certainly mean that the quarterback play by both players was even worse than last year (unlikely), and/or that the team suffered catastrophic injuries, which cannot be predicted. It would also mean that just about everything they've done in the offseason has blown up in their face.

This isn't an argument that the Colts are going to make the playoffs or anything. I do understand trepidation about the team in 2025, but ... c'mon.

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