Colts fans didn’t need a history lesson Saturday night—but we got one anyway.
Houston’s 20–16 win over the Chargers didn’t just clinch a playoff spot for the Texans. It officially slammed the door on Indianapolis and stamped the Colts into the record books as just the sixth team in NFL history to start 8–2 and still miss the playoffs. First time since 1995. Congratulations, I guess.
And honestly? None of this feels shocking anymore.
This season started with real hope. Daniel Jones looked reborn. The offense was rolling. The AFC didn’t have a clear monster team. For a brief moment, the Colts looked like the NFL’s best story—and Colts fans dared to believe again.
Then the front office did what it always does: panic, overreach, and gamble with the future.
Shipping two first-round picks to the Jets for Sauce Gardner at midseason was the definition of a risky, win-now move. That kind of trade only works if everything else is rock-solid—coaching, depth, health, game management. None of that turned out to be true.
What followed was a slow-motion collapse we’ve seen far too many times.
Jones gets hurt. Gardner gets hurt. Then Jones tears his Achilles and the entire plan goes up in smoke. Five straight losses later, the Colts are rolling out a 44-year-old Philip Rivers who had been retired long enough to qualify for a senior discount at Cracker Barrel.
That’s not bad luck. That’s bad planning.
And coaching? Don’t even get me started.
When games were on the line, the Colts were out-coached, out-adjusted, and out-thought. Conservative calls when aggression was needed. Questionable decisions in crunch time. A team that looked unprepared the moment adversity hit. That’s not on the players—that’s on the sideline.
Now here’s the real gut punch: the Colts don’t even own their own escape hatch.
Those first-round picks? Gone. The Jets control Indianapolis’ 2026 and 2027 first-rounders. So even if Jones isn’t the answer—and that’s now a very real question—the Colts don’t have the draft capital to pivot quickly. They bet the house, lost, and still owe the bank.
Meanwhile, the Texans—the Texans—are the ones celebrating. A division rival. A team that started 0–3 and still found its way into the postseason. Salt in the wound doesn’t even begin to cover it.
This is the part Colts fans know all too well: bold promises, risky moves, weak execution, and a disappointing ending. Different year, same script.
At some point, accountability has to live somewhere higher than the injury report. Until the Colts fix the culture of reactionary front-office decisions and inconsistent coaching when the pressure is highest, this cycle will keep repeating.
Hope fast. Fall hard. Repeat.
I wish I could say this one hurts more than usual—but honestly, it just feels familiar.