3 embarrassing moments that should motivate the Colts during the offseason
1. Week 15 overtime loss to the Minnesota Vikings
Following the embarrassing loss to the Cowboys, the Indianapolis Colts got a week off before suffering another embarrassing defeat to the Minnesota Vikings. After losing to Dallas in terrible fashion Sunday night, Indianapolis went on their bye week before playing the Vikings on Saturday in Week 15. This game ended up being another embarrassing mark on the season.
Again, the Colts started hot, in large part to their special teams and defense. Rookie linebacker JoJoDomann returned a blocked punt 24 yards for a touchdown to get the team going in the first quarter. Deon Jackson pushed it through at the goal line to score the only offensive touchdown of the game for the Colts with a little under four minutes left in the first quarter.
Julian Blackmon followed suit in the second quarter and intercepted Kirk Cousins returning the pick 17 yards for a touchdown. The defense played at a high level in this contest blanking the Vikings in the first half. Yes, only the first half. By this point in the season, the Colts relied far too much on their defense and it started to show. Minnesota answered back in the second half scoring 29 unanswered points to tie the game and force overtime.
The defense had finally broke but had enough juice in the tank to stop the Vikings on their opening drive of overtime. It all came down to the offense which had yet to produce consistently this season. Of course, they stalled out on their own 44-yard line and were forced to punt the ball. Minnesota drove down the field and Greg Joseph hit the game-winning 40-yard field goal.
What followed for Indianapolis added to the embarrassment. Jeff Saturday decided to switch quarterbacks turning to Nick Foles instead of Sam Ehlinger who had already gotten to play this season and showed promise. Then with Foles injured in Week 17, they turned back to Sam Ehlinger to close out the season. Three quarterbacks started over the course of the season and only one, maybe two, instances were due to injury.
The offense could never be sustained and showed the entire season how embarrassing the 2022-23 Indianapolis Colts were. Even worse, they let the Jacksonville Jaguars go from worst to first winning the AFC South. All-in-all from start to finish the Colts’ season was embarrassing. From the product on the field to the press conferences, to the perception in the media, Indianapolis was the laughingstock of the league. This was embarrassing for a team that on paper had so much potential and was an early playoff, if not Super Bowl favorite. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
