The 2025 NFL season is in the books for the Indianapolis Colts. For the fifth consecutive year, the Colts will be watching the playoffs from their couches just like the rest of us. This Colts team was a juggernaut, seemingly on pace to not just make the playoffs, but to make a run in the postseason as well. Oh, what could have been.
We all know what happened. Daniel Jones went from resurgent to reinjured. Jonathan Taylor reminded the NFL why running backs matter, until he didn't. Not because of anything he did, or didn't do, but because opposing teams knew Indianapolis no longer had a passing game and defenses loaded up to stop the run game.
Speaking of defenses, the Indianapolis Colts' defense was exposed by opposing offenses, and this became more evident after the Jones injury. The Colts' offense could score at will, and this helped to hide the fact that, on defense, Indianapolis was Swiss cheese.
Indianapolis Colts head into the offseason with a lack of accountability
Once the season ended, Colts fans didn't just clamor for change; they expected it. What they got was a continued lack of accountability from the front office. Carlie Irsay-Gordon, principal owner and chief executive officer, had decisions to make, and those included whether to retain head coach Shane Steichen and general manager Chris Ballard.
In other words, she had the opportunity to accept and assign accountability. Instead, she chose to continue with the status quo and plow forward. A shoulder shrug of sorts to the season that just ended, with Indianapolis on a seven-game losing streak.
I don't think Steichen deserves to be relieved of his duties when he has not been given the tools necessary for an entire season. Chris Ballard is the person responsible for ensuring this team has the playmakers Steichen needs to fit into his system. Ballard is not responsible for the injuries that have hit the team, but the NFL draft is a different story.
Fans need look no further than draft bust Anthony Richardson. Ballard chose to select Richardson with the fourth overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft, and everyone knows how that turned out. Since then, there had been no long-term quarterback option until the Colts signed Daniel Jones.
Ballard had also failed to make any major trades or free agency moves until 2025, when he gave up two first-round draft picks and another draft bust named Adonai Mitchell in exchange for Sauce Gardner. The right move at the right time? Absolutely. In hindsight, however, the Colts are back to square one.
No first-round draft pick in the 2026 NFL draft means no opportunity for Indianapolis to snag a much-needed playmaker early. In the corporate world, Chris Ballard would face accountability for such poor output. Fortunately for him, he works for the Indianapolis Colts.