The Indianapolis Colts are clearly desperate to win the AFC South. The team hasn't done so since the 2014 season, and every other team in the division has taken the title multiple times. 2025 seemed to finally be Indy's year, but injuries took a brutal toll by the end.
At least Colts fans knew one thing: Their favorite team was better than the Tennessee Titans. Nearly everyone was. But Nashville's team hasn't defeated Indianapolis since the 2022 season. That means six straight victories for Indy.
Tennessee is making moves, though. Unlike the Colts, the Titans aren't trying to run things back. Of course, they were terrible and had no other choice, but they at least have a young quarterback with a lot of potential in Cam Ward, and a new defensive-minded coach in the person of Robert Saleh. Saleh has proven he can produce good defenses.
Indianapolis Colts might have to deal with the Tennessee Titans adding an elite edge rusher
This season, the Titans were 26th in the NFL in allowing 5.8 yards per play. They were 28th in allowing 28.1 points per game. Saleh needs more talent to help fix the unit, and according to various sites, including CBS Sports, Tennessee might just get that with the fourth pick in the 2026 NFL draft.
CBS Sports' Garrett Podell projects Tennessee to take Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey with the selection. The Texas Tech product is 6'3" and 250 pounds with great athleticism. He was able to translate that into an FBS-leading 14.5 sacks this season.
Moreover, he had 81 total quarterback pressures and 40 run stuffs. In other words, Bailey can do a lot of everything, and do so at a very high level. Under Saleh, he could be immediately impactful in the NFL.
The Tennessee Titans are likely going to improve offensively in 2026, simply from the fact that Cam Ward will be in his second season, and the offense will be more mature. As bad as Tennessee was overall this season, they were ticking up by the end of the year.
The defense is bound to improve, too. Saleh will make sure of that. Bailey would be a big boost.
As the Indianapolis Colts try to scratch their way back to the top of the AFC South, what the team doesn't want to have happen is for the team below Indy in the standings this year (the Titans) to get closer to them. Indianapolis needs the two wins Tennessee should provide, and then the Colts simply need to worry about the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Houston Texans.