The Colts have some high aspirations for the 2019 season. But there is at least one threshold they have to hit for the season to not be a disappointment.
2018 was a season of firsts for the Colts. It was the first time for their head coach to be a head coach at any level. It was the first time the Colts had made the playoffs since 2014. And it was the first time they had to deal with expectations late in the year in quite some time.
All of those firsts were good for the team. They learned a lot about themselves and what it takes to win tough games late in the year. But with the way they finished, they now have lofty expectations for next year, and certain thresholds they must hit.
If they don’t make the playoffs next year, it will be considered a failure. They have a better team than they did last season and the experiences they can build off of from last season too. There should be no excuse for them to not at least reach that mark.
The only way that they might not make it is if they have some sort of devastating injury to Andrew Luck or Darius Leonard or something of that nature. Frank Reich should have his team locked in and focused on making a solid run late in the season.
If they don’t make the playoffs, then there needs to be an assessment of what is wrong with the roster. But don’t look for that to happen next season.