Is it too early to be predicting how good the Indianapolis Colts and other NFL teams will be in nine months? Absolutely. Teams have an entire offseason and draft to go through, and there is no way to know what will happen. Sure, some teams are in good shape even if not much happens with their roster, while everyone could get better.
The Colts are obviously a great example of a team with a lot of potential, but they still need to prove they can consistently perform at a high level. To be fair, even before the team suffered some key injuries, things were getting iffy.
Indy was 7-1 while playing a relatively soft schedule, but the team hadn't yet traded for cornerback Sauce Gardner. Fellow corner Charvarius Ward had already missed a couple of games with a concussion, too. Trouble was brewing before the seven-game losing streak to end the season.
ESPN has little faith in the 2026 Indianapolis Colts
This might be why ESPN appears to have little faith that Indianapolis will be even a top-half of the league team in its too-early 2026 power rankings. ESPN Colts reporter Stephen Holder admits Indy running it back by keeping head coach Shane Steichen and general manager Chris Ballard is an "imperfect plan."
Two AFC South rivals, the Houston Texans (13th) and Jacksonville Jaguars (9th), rank higher than Indianapolis, so the assumption, at least in February 2026, is that the Colts would finish third in the division again next season. The Tennessee Titans are 27th, so ESPN thinks Nashville's team is no threat to nearly anyone in the NFL.
For the Indianapolis Colts to exceed ESPN's expectations next season, the team has to stay healthier, of course, but many other things have to happen this offseason. One is for quarterback Daniel Jones and wide receiver Alec Pierce to be re-signed, and Jones needs to prove he can not get hurt and be good again.
The team also has to hope that Charvarius Ward doesn't retire. Chances exist that he could after suffering three concussions in 2025. He questioned returning after the second. His father has been rumored to want Ward to call it quits and not risk another brain injury. That would make sense from a human perspective.
What is clear is that the Indianapolis Colts need to reach the playoffs next season and not be bounced out in the first game. Ballard has been the GM for nine years, and his team has made the postseason twice. That isn't good enough. Next season needs to be different.