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The Indianapolis Colts are coming off an 8-9 season in 2024 and a second-place finish in a week AFC South that was won by the Houston Texans at 10-7, and included the dismal performances of the Jacksonville Jaguars (4-13) and the Tennessee Titans (3-14).
With Daniel Jones announced as the starting QB on August 19, and not Anthony Richardson, the Colts' 2025 best over/under win total odds are at 7.5 (-110) at FanDuel.com, and those odds haven't moved since May. AFC North title odds have the Colts (-300) tied with Jacksonville for second, behind Houston..
The preseason NFL Congrove Computer Rankings suggest a repeat performance is on the horizon, but that could be good enough for first place Yes, an 8-9 record by the Colts could be all that is needed for Indianapolis to get to the playoffs for the first time since 2020. The computer has Jacksonville finishing 7-10, Houston 6-11 and Tennessee 1-16.
Indianapolis missed the playoffs 2021 and 2023 with 9-8 marks, and 2022 was a 4-12-1 certifiable disaster..
Indianapolis' last postseason win came in 2018 in the final season for quarterback Andrew Luck who was Conference Player of the Year while linebacker Shaquille Leonard took home Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors. The Colts were 10-6 that year in the regular season.
The Colts were 57-37 in six seasons under Luck, including a 4-4 playoff record.
In 2020, Indianapolis went 11-5 after signing Philip Rivers to a one-year deal that also reunited him with his QB coach with the Chargers as Frank Reich was in his third year as the head coach in Indy. That would prove to be the last season for Rivers in the NFL after 17 years. Unfortunately, he could not carry the team through the playoffs as they fell in the Wild Card round at Buffalo, 27-24. Buffalo would go on to lose to Kansas City in the AFC Championship game and the Chiefs fell at Tampa Bay in the Super Bowl.
Speaking of Super Bowls, the Colts have won two. The first came on January 17, 1971 in Super Bowl V over the Dallas Cowboys in the old Orange Bowl Stadium in Miami when Jim O'Brien kicked a 32-yard field goal with 5 seconds left for the 13-10 win. Johnny Unitas was knocked out by a rib injury in the second quarter and Earl Morrall came on in relief. Unitas at that point was just 3-of-9 passing for 88 yards with a TD, 2 INT's and a fumble. The (Baltimore) Colts would commit seven turnovers in the game and the teams combined for 11 in what is referenced as the worst Super Bowl every played.
The second Super Bowl win for Indy came 36 years later on February 7, 2007 in Super Bowl XLI in Miami Gardens when Peyton Manning took home the MVP as the (Indianapolis) Colts overcame an early 14-6 deficit to sink Chicago, 29-17. This game still had its shared of turnovers with an INT and 2 fumbles for the Colts, and 3 fumbles and 2 INT's for the Bears.
Indianapolis returned to the Super Bowl three years later XLIV where the Colts lost 31-17 to New Orleans in Miami Gardens.
Of course, the (Baltimore) Colts also famously lost Super Bowl III, 16-7, to Joe Namath and the New York Jets to conclude the 1968 season as Morral threw three INT's and Unitas came on late in the third quarter to eventually lead the Colts to their only score with 3:19 to play in the game.
2025 Records: 8-9 regular season, 4-2 vs. AFC South, 6-6 vs. AFC, 2-3 vs. NFC
2025 Super Bowl FanDuel odds: +7000, No. 23 of all 32 teams (No. 10 of 16 AFC teams)
2025 AFC South Champion odds: +300, tied No.2 of 4
General Manager: Chris Ballard (2017)
Head Coach: Shane Steichen (2023)
Offensive Coordinator: Jim Bob Cooter (2023)
Defensive Coordinator: Lou Anarumo (2025)
Under Jim Bob Cooter as OC, the Colts ranked 13th in total offense in 2024 after ranking 15th in 2023. Last year, the offense ranked 25th through the air and 8th on the ground behind Jonathan Taylor's NFL 4th-best 1,431 yards while scoring 11 TD's.
The team has a new defensive coordinator in Lou Anarumo who spent the previous six seasons at Cincinnati. He replaces Gus Bradley who was fired after the 2024 season as the Colts ranked 29th over-all on that side of the ball while going 26th against the pass and 24th at stopping the run. Just don't blame linebacker Zaire Franklin as he led the NFL in tackles with 173.
The Colts didn't go far - geographically speaking - for their draft picks. They picked four players out of the surrounding Big Ten footprint, including their first-round pick, tight end Tyler Warren out of Penn State. They also took 2 players from the Big 12 out of Iowa State and Kansas State, 1 from Notre Dame, and 1 from Alabama.
They took an equal number of players for both sides of the ball as they drafted a Tight End, a QB, a RB and a Tackle for the offensive side of the ball. They picked up a DE, a CB, a Tackle and a LB for the defense.
| Round | Pick | Selection |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 | TE Tyler Warren, Penn State |
| 2 | 45 | DE JT Tuimoloau, Ohio State |
| 3 | 80 | CB Justin Walley, Minnesota |
| 4 | 127 | OT Jalen Travis, Iowa State |
| 5 | 151 | RB DJ Giddens, Kansas State |
| 6 | 189 | QB Riley Leonard, Wake Forest/Notre Dame |
| 6 | 190 | DT Tim Smith, Alabama |
| 7 | 232 | LB Hunter Wohler, Wisconsin |
9/7 Dolphins
9/14 Broncos
9/21 at Titans
9/28 at Rams
10/5 Raiders
10/12 Cardinals
10/19 at Chargers
10/26 Titans
11/2 at Steelers
11/9 Falcons (Berlin)
11/16 BYE
11/23 at Chiefs
11/30 Texans
12/7 at Jaguars
12/14 at Seahawks
12/22 49ers (MNF)
12/28 Jaguars
1/2, 1/5 or 1/6 at Texans
The Colts will face every team from the NFC West (Arizona, LA Rams, San Francisco, Seattle). They will also battle the AFC West teams (Denver, Kansas City, Las Vegas, L.A. Chargers).
Indianapolis will go to Berlin to face the Falcons on November 9.
Sharp Football Analysis ranks the Colts' schedule as the12th-toughest in 2025 based on sportsbook win total projections.
This article is part of a series that includes similar articles regarding these NFL teams:
AFC East: Buffalo, Miami, New England, NY Jets
AFC North: Baltimore, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati
AFC South: Jacksonville, Tennessee, Houston, Indianapolis
AFC West: Las Vegas, Los Angeles Chargers, Kansas City
NFC East: Dallas, NY Giants, Philadelphia, Washington
NFC North: Green Bay, Detroit, Chicago, Minnesota
NFC South: Atlanta, Tampa Bay, New Orleans, Carolina
NFC West: Arizona, San Francisco, Seattle, Los Angeles Rams