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Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen walks up the field Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, during Indianapolis Colts Training Camp at Grand Park in Westfield. Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Colts Predicted to Have Surprising Finish in AFC South

Originally posted on Indianapolis Colts on SI
By Jared Koch | Last updated Sep 2, 2025 1:00 PM ET

Heading into the 2025 NFL season, the Indianapolis Colts will be looking for a different result in the AFC South than they've been accustomed to in recent memory.

Across the past decade, the Colts have consistently finished in the middle of the road in the AFC South. Indianapolis has fallen either second or third in the division each year since their most recent first-place finish in 2014, when Andrew Luck was at the helm. Their most recent last-place finish sits even further back, with that happening in 2011.

Simply put, it's been a while since that first-place finish wound up as the outcome (or last place, for that matter). But this year, ESPN's Dan Graziano could see the outcome swinging in a different direction.

Graziano recently issued a bold prediction for each team in the NFL rolling into the new season, where for the Colts, their's was quite favorable: "Don't be surprised if ... the Colts pull an upset and win the division."

"They have a huge question mark at quarterback. Daniel Jones beat out Anthony Richardson Sr. for the starter's job because he was steadier, not because he was spectacular. But if Jones can stay healthy and play the way he did for the Giants in their surprise 2022 playoff season, the Colts believe they can build a representative offense behind running back Jonathan Taylor, a strong offensive line and rookie tight end Tyler Warren (who they believe can be a star right away)," Graziano wrote. "The defense added some key pieces, not the least of which is former Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, and Indy should be a lot better on that side of the ball than most think."

"No team in the AFC South has gone longer without winning it than the Colts, who last finished atop the division in 2014 with Andrew Luck at quarterback," he continued. "With that kind of drought and the team under somewhat new ownership (the late Jim Irsay's daughter Carlie Irsay-Gordon is the team's new CEO), there's a lot of pressure on the coaching staff and front office to deliver -- and soon."

The pressure is as high as it's been for this Colts unit for 2025, and truly, it might all start with how this offense fares with Daniel Jones at the helm.

The defense might have gotten just the face-lift it needed with multiple free agent signings and Lou Anarumo now taking control as the Colts' new coordinator, the offensive weapons look even better with Tyler Warren filling in at tight end, and this run game with Jonathan Taylor has the chance to be just as effective as he's been, when healthy, since arriving to Indianapolis.

But if the quarterback play falters, it's hard to see how this season looks any different from before. Daniel Jones does provide a refresh to this offensive unit in a pivot from Anthony Richardson, but it's a gamble that may or may not play in Indy's favor.

If Jones can be accurate, get the ball to his offensive playmakers quickly, and add a bit of versatility himself with his legs, that might be just what the Colts need to pull off that upset against the currently-favored Texans. Yet, it remains to be seen if that dream can come to fruition.

This article first appeared on Indianapolis Colts on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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