Bleacher Report recently explained what would be a nightmare season for the Indianapolis Colts in 2023, and it was a rather odd scenario.
The Indianapolis Colts are coming off a nightmare season. Everything that could go wrong in 2022 pretty much did go wrong. Indy’s top players suffered injuries, other players underperformed, coaches were fired, and the team lost in ways that didn’t even seem possible. Now, that’s all behind Indianapolis as it turns it’s attention to 2023.
Unfortunately, every year, there’s always a team, or a few teams, that has a nightmare season. As stated, the Colts were one of those teams last season. It’s unclear who those teams will be this upcoming season, but Brad Gagnon, in a recent piece for Bleacher Report, described what a nightmare season in 2023 looks like for each team.
For the Colts, Gagnon argued that the nightmare in 2023 would be “if they win enough to avoid great 2024 draft capital without any guarantees on Anthony Richardson.” Honestly, that doesn’t seem like much of a nightmare.
Improving should be the goal for Colts
Yes, it’s great to be able to draft talented players at the top of the draft, but teams rarely want to end up in that position. If Indianapolis wins enough games so they aren’t at the top of the draft, that would be a significant improvement from the 2022 season and a promising sign, not a nightmare.
Additionally, it’s hard to imagine that happening with Anthony Richardson at QB and the team not having “any guarantees” on him. If Richardson can lead the Colts to an improved record as a rookie, even without lights-out play, that’s more than enough to remain optimistic about the young QB. So again, it’s hard to see where exactly the nightmare is in this scenario.
The biggest nightmare for the Colts in 2023 would probably be established stars regressing. Everyone believes talents like Quenton Nelson, Jonathan Taylor, Shaquille Leonard, and Kenny Moore II will bounce back next season, and make Indy a competent team. If that’s not the case, it means Indy’s core of talented players is declining, and that’s much more of a nightmare than not having a pick near the top of the 2024 NFL Draft.