The 2024 season is over, and it wasn't a particularly great one for the Indianapolis Colts. While it wasn't as bad for the Colts as it was for some other teams in the AFC South, it was still a turmoil-filled season that, at best, left the Colts as, yet again, a team mired in mediocrity that can never be quite good enough to make it to the playoffs.
Each week, the Colts fluctuated in the power rankings, but were never in the top half of teams. Looking ahead to 2025, it's clear that the Colts have a lot to work on, and a lot of that falls on the shoulders of general manager Chris Ballard.
The 2025 season hasn't officially started yet, but the first power rankings of the season have been released by ESPN... and it doesn't look good for Indianapolis. They came in, yet again, in the bottom half of the rankings, at #23. They came in far below the Houston Texans, but barely outranked the Jacksonville Jaguars. At least they're not dead last, like the Tennessee Titans?
"The Colts, under general manager Chris Ballard, have adhered stringently to a philosophy of using free agency sparingly and relying almost exclusively on draft picks. But a possible overreliance on that approach has resulted in the Colts missing the playoffs in each of the past four seasons. Ballard has suggested he'll deviate from that approach this offseason, but it remains to be seen how aggressive Indianapolis will be in reshaping its roster. The hiring of veteran defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, specifically, might require a few changes on defense."Stephen Holder
It says a lot that the biggest issue holding the Colts back is not their struggling QB or a lack of talent on the roster, but Chris Ballard's mistakes. Fans were furious to see that he was retained as general manager, and in his end-of-season press conference, Ballard said all the things we've already heard him say before.
He's acknowledged that he needs to do better on free agency, and we'll know if he actually means it very soon. But if he doesn't drastically change his ways, then 2025 will likely be a retread of 2024, and every season before that since Andrew Luck left - all because the Colts have one of the worst GMs in the league.