The Colts didn’t just lose their opener. They got hammered, and now the betting market is treating Week 2 like a full-blown reality check.
Indianapolis opened as a 6.5-point underdog against the Kansas City Chiefs, according to FanDuel Sportsbook, with the over/under set at 47.5 points. That line comes after the Colts fell at home to the Baltimore Ravens, 41-23, in a game that exposed problems on defense, offense, and special teams all at once.
The schedule doesn’t get any friendlier. The Colts head to Arrowhead Stadium for Sunday Night Football, where Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs will be waiting after their Week 1 matchup against the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football.
There had been real optimism around Indianapolis going into Sunday, especially with several injured players back in the mix, including quarterback Daniel Jones, defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, and cornerbacks Sauce Gardner, Charvarius Ward Sr., and Justin Walley. But when the game arrived, very few players on the full gameday roster looked ready to hold up against Baltimore.
The numbers from the loss were ugly across the board. Indianapolis managed only 251 yards of offense, the fewest in games started by Jones over the last two years.
The defense allowed 506 yards, the most the Colts have given up since Week 8 of 2023. And the 41 points Baltimore put on the board marked the most Indianapolis has surrendered in a season opener at home since 1954.
It was also a strange kind of defeat in league history terms: the first time since the Colts moved to Indianapolis in 1984 that a road team has committed 10-plus penalties against them and still won by at least three scores.
Kansas City enters this matchup with some baggage of its own, though the situation unfolded differently. Like Indianapolis, the Chiefs lost their starting quarterback to a season-ending injury late in the year, but they were already sliding before that happened.
The Colts lost Jones to a torn Achilles in Week 14, after entering a seven-game losing streak three games earlier. The Chiefs lost Mahomes to a torn ACL in Week 15, after dropping into a six-game losing streak that was already three games old.
By the end, Kansas City finished 6-11 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2014. Indianapolis went 8-9 and missed the postseason for the fifth straight year.
In Other News...
Colts Already Face One Ugly Question After Week 1 Collapse
The Colts season opener in Baltimore offered an early reminder that September can expose a lot more than just a final score. Indianapolis fell 41-23 to the Ravens, and the frustration came not only from the loss itself but from the way the defense handled the game, especially in the secondary. With veteran Kenny Moore gone after requesting his release, nickelback Justin Walley was thrust into a tougher role, and the problems around him quickly became part of the story.
Lou Anarumos defense now has an uncomfortable standard to answer after a rough debut, and Shane Steichens offense did not look like the group that had the cleaner game plan. Baltimores first-time head coach Jesse Minter appeared to have his team better prepared, even as the Colts showed enough fight to keep swinging late. The bigger question for Indianapolis is whether this was a one-game stumble or the first sign that the issues run deeper. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Have A Bigger Concern Than The Final Score Against Baltimore
The Colts left Baltimore with more than just a lopsided loss to sort through after the Ravens rolled to a 41-23 win in Jesse Minters debut on the sideline. Indianapolis got a big day from Derrick Henry, who ran for 144 yards and three touchdowns while moving past Marcus Allen into third place on the NFLs career rushing touchdowns list, but the result still put a spotlight on how much ground the Colts have to make up after a shaky outing.
Baltimore, meanwhile, found its own jolt from an aggressive game plan under offensive coordinator Declan Doyle, with Zay Flowers piling up a career-high 150 receiving yards before leaving with a hamstring injury. For Indianapolis, the final score was only part of the issue - the larger concern is how a defense that entered the day looking for answers now has even more to fix, and it comes with the uncertainty of how long Flowers will be sidelined hanging over the Ravens' offensive momentum. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Bring Back A Veteran Corner As Pressure Builds In Crowded Secondary
The Colts made a roster move to bring back veteran corner Cam Taylor-Britt, waiving Johnathan Edwards to clear the spot as the secondary keeps getting tighter. Taylor-Britt is returning from a one-game suspension and gives Indianapolis another experienced option at a position group that already has several corners split between the active roster and practice squad.
For a team trying to sort out roles in the back end, adding a player with Taylor-Britts track record adds both depth and a little more intrigue. He arrived after his run with the Bengals, and his profile comes with on-field value as well as off-field baggage, so his return is the kind of move that can reshape a crowded room while still leaving questions about how the Colts plan to use all of their options. [Read more 🡒]