Things to watch for during the 8-2 Colts bye week ahead of the toughest stretch of their 2025 schedule

Current AFC Playoff picture

1. Indianapolis Colts (8-2)
2. Denver Broncos (8-2)
3. New England Patriots (8-2)
4. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-4)
5. Los Angeles Chargers (7-3)
6. Buffalo Bills (6-3)
7. Jacksonville Jaguars (5-4)
   
   In the Hunt

• Kansas City Chiefs (5-4)
• Houston Texans (4-5)
• Baltimore Ravens (4-5)

Teams to root against

While the Colts don't play in Week 11, there will be multiple games that could have a significant impact on their season. First of all, the Colts are always rooting for their AFC South rivals to lose. The Jaguars are playing the Chargers, and with the Colts already having the tiebreaker over the Chargers, a Jacksonville loss to give Indy a bigger lead in the division would be huge. The other two AFC South teams go head-to-head, with the Texans taking on the Tennessee Titans. A Texans loss would give the Colts a larger lead in the division, and a Titans win would make their upcoming first-round pick worse. 

Outside the AFC South, the Colts want to see other top AFC teams lose. In Week 11, the Patriots and Broncos are teams to root against. Unfortunately, this means the Colts are rooting for the Chiefs to win a football game with them playing the Broncos. An argument could be made that a Chiefs loss would be better, since the Colts already hold the tiebreaker over the Broncos. Personally, I think creating some separation between another 8-2 team would give the Colts a bigger advantage in the long run.

Get Charvarius Ward ready to make his return ASAP

The Colts made a massive blockbuster trade for Sauce Gardner, and their overall pass defense saw a boost this past week. Getting Charvarius Ward back from IR would help the pass defense improve even more. 

In Week 11, we saw the Atlanta Falcons scheme Drake London away from Gardner as often as they could. Getting Ward back will make it harder for teams to try and avoid the team's top CB. In the Colts' case, they fully believe they have two lockdown CB 1s on their roster now, and being able to leverage that advantage will be huge going forward.

The Colts' first game after the bye is against the Chiefs, who have seen their offense elevate tremendously since Rasheed Rice rejoined their lineup. Having both Gardner and Ward would make life much more difficult for Patrico Mahomes and co. Getting Ward back on th field is the most important thing the Colts need to hope to see happen during their bye. 

Figure out how to stop the recent increase of turnovers

The Colts began the season with only four turnovers through the first eight weeks. They doubled that number over the past two weeks, with eight turnovers in Weeks 9 and 10. A big part of the Colts' historic start on offense was their ability to limit turnovers. So, correcting whatever is causing the regression there needs to be a major priority for the coaching staff during the bye.

To me, the biggest point to focus on is fumbles. Daniel Jones had two total fumbles through the first eight weeks of the year, but has had six over the past two games. That number simply has to be cut down for the Colts to win games going forward. The fix could come from better offensive line play, but I also think Jones needs to alter how he operates under pressure to prevent a bad play from becoming a devastating one. 

This story was originally reported by A to Z Sports on Nov 10, 2025, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add A to Z Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.