Some of the Colts negatives and positives from 2023 season

Following the Indianapolis Colts’ better-than-expected season finale, it’s time to analyze both the good and the terrible.

The Indianapolis Colts have a new head coach, a new quarterback, and a fresh mindset heading into the 2023 season.

What followed were highs and lows, but eventually a finish that few predicted and a lot of hope for the franchise’s future. While many narratives could fit, this work is limited to six.

With that in mind, let’s look at the good and bad of Shane Steichen’s debut season.

The Good: Rookies Take Charge

Several injuries occurred this year, particularly among the Colts’ rookie class. The team picked 12 players in the 2023 NFL Draft, although five would suffer season-ending injuries before or during the season. The following first-year players were affected:

Quarterback Anthony Richardson (four games played): AC Joint Sprain
SafetyDaniel Scott: ACL tear (no games played).
Evan Hull, running back, tore his meniscus in one game.
Titus Leo, linebacker: Knee (no games played)
Tackle (offensive)Jake Witt: Cool (no games)

As demonstrated, three of the five injured rookies did not play. Other newcomers, on the other hand, played critical roles for the club. The players at key positions are listed below, along with games played and notable season metrics:

CornerbackJuJu Brents: 9 games; 43 tackles; 6 pass breakups; 1 interception
Broad ReceiverJosh Downs has played in 17 games and has 68 catches for 771 yards and 30 first downs.
Offensive TackleBlake Freeland: 14 games played; 701 snaps (131 left, 568 right).
Tight EndingWill Mallory: 12 games, 18 catches, 207 yards, and a catch efficiency of 69.2%.
CornerbackJaylon Jones: 17 games; 44 tackles; 5 passes defensed; 57.3 Pro Football Focus coverage grade

Throughout the year, these rookies were pressed into starting roles. This has to instill a lot of confidence in Steichen and Indy’s front office heading into 2024. This is especially true if they can reduce their injuries with their 2023 and fresh draft picks.

The Bad: Injuries

While the rookies coped with setbacks, many others struggled to stay on the field.

While every team is likely to have injuries here and there, the Colts had this happen at key positions on the roster, and key players missed the entire season or big games. With so many setbacks, some of the more notable ones will be included in this section.

Broad ReceiverAshton Dulin: ACL tear (no games played).
Tight EndingJelani Woods: Hamstring (did not play in any games)
Center/GuardDanny Pinter: Ankle injury (no games played)
Correct TackleBraden Smith: Knee (seven games missed)
End of the defensive lineKnee (no games played) Genard Avery
CornerbackDallis Flowers: Achilles tear (four games played)
Strong SecurityShoulder (missed final two games) Julian Blackmon

Others who missed games included running backs Zack Moss and Jonathan Taylor, as well as receiver Michael Pittman Jr.

The Colts will want to be much healthier in order to make a postseason run in 2024.

The Good: Getting rid of the quarterback

This season, the Colts set the Indianapolis-era team sack record with 51 (the previous mark was 46 in 2005).

The defensive front played a significant role in this, with ends Samson Ebukam (9.5), Kwity Paye (8.5), Dayo Odeyingbo (8.0), and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner (8.0) accounting for 34.0 of the team’s sacks.

This is positive for the defense going forward, especially since line coach Nate Ollie had the front on target for the majority of the season.

They’ll need to keep building on a strong season if they want to make the playoffs in 2024.

The Bad: Consistency

This one is simple: the Colts would dominate one week, only to fall short the next. At nearly no point during the season did Indy play consistent football, either offensively or defensively, to gain much overall momentum.

While the defense may be the focus of this article (five games with 30-plus points allowed), the offense might also be mentioned.

While Steichen started off hot (scoring 20 or more points in the first nine games), the Gardner Minshew-led offense crumbled at times in the second half of the season. The team scored 20 or fewer points in four of the final eight games, resulting in inconsistent performances that resulted in no postseason appearance.

This can be ascribed to a variety of factors, including injuries, a lack of a starting quarterback, inexperience/rookies, and so on.

With a year under Steichen’s belt and defensive coordinator Gus Bradley entering his third season, expect Indy to aim to put together more victory streaks and play better in the next season.

Shane Steichen is an excellent photographer.

Given the position he inherited, Steichen was not expected to win more than five or six games as a first-year head coach.

However, he exceeded expectations by nearly winning the AFC South and finished 9-8. This was the Colts’ most victories since 2021 (9-8), with the Carson Wentz-led squad having significantly higher expectations, with some forecasting a Super Bowl run at the time.

With many backups playing all over the place, most notably Minshew at QB and several reserves in the trenches, Steichen wrote up great play calls and helped the Indy offense outperform itself time and time again. Steichen may just exceed his win count in his second year and make another argument for Coach of the Year if Anthony Richardson can stay on the field and this offense continues to progress.

The Bad: Points Allowed

The Colts were not good at stopping teams from scoring points, whether it was due to the strategy, inexperience with young players, injuries, or all of the above.

Bradley’s stop-troops allowed 24.4 points per game this season, ranking them 28th in the NFL.

Indy cannot afford to lose to the Jacksonville Jaguars, Houston Texans (twice), Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions, and Green Bay Packers in 2024. If this occurs, Bradley is unlikely to be retained and may even be fired mid-season if things get too out of hand.

It remains to be seen whether this young and hungry defense can make a significant stride forward against harder opposition than they encountered in 2023.