Is it Okay to Root for the Colts to Lose?
By Andrew Ites
With the Colts totally out of playoff contention and with no hopes of salvaging the season, is it okay to root for them to lose?
Benefits of Losing
It’s safe to say that most Colts fans don’t want to see Chuck Pagano roaming the sidelines in Indianapolis next season. With each loss over the final stretch of games, Pagano’s seat continues to get hotter.
If a decision on Pagano’s future hasn’t been made already, a loss like Thursday night’s second-half meltdown against the Broncos will definitely help seal his fate.
Losing also improves the Colts’ draft position.
With a 3-10 record, the Colts would have the third overall pick if the draft was held today. Indianapolis hasn’t had a this high of a draft pick since they selected Andrew Luck number one overall in 2012.
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San Francisco is also 3-10, the Giants are 2-11, and the Browns are 0-13, so the Colts still have a chance of finishing the year with the NFL’s worst record.
Benefits of Winning
The Colts have a lot of young players on this roster who are still trying to prove themselves in the NFL. Some highly-regarded rookies like Quincy Wilson haven’t had a great year, and will use these final games to build momentum towards 2018.
“Winning culture” is a term that’s thrown around a lot in the NFL and it’s hard to define, but developing winning habits is extremely important. Players can develop bad habits during a losing season that they are unable to break out of later in their careers.
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One way to deal with a terrible season is to hope your favorite team performs well, but ends the game in the loss column. The Colts have done a great job of that so far this year, and it’s okay to expect, and even hope, for that to continue for the rest of the season.