The Colts have already started tearing this thing down, and the next dominoes may be the biggest ones yet.
Indianapolis is 2-6 after getting blasted 42-7 by the Jaguars on Sunday, a game that featured two Daniel Jones interceptions, including a pick-six, and 183 rushing yards allowed by the defense. With the team already having moved on from general manager Chris Ballard and traded franchise pieces Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner before Week 8, owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon still has more decisions looming. The biggest question now is whether Shane Steichen and Daniel Jones are part of the next phase at all.
For a franchise that still hasn’t found its footing since Andrew Luck retired, the latest collapse feels like more of the same. The Colts have cycled through too many veteran placeholders at quarterback - Carson Wentz, Matt Ryan, Philip Rivers, Jacoby Brissett, Gardner Minshew and others - and the results have been painfully familiar. They’ve made just two playoff appearances in the last 11 seasons, a number that is likely to become 12.
There was a stretch in 2025 that looked like it might finally break the pattern. Jones arrived looking revived, the run game was rolling, and Indianapolis surged to an 8-2 start.
That hot start pushed the front office into win-now mode, leading to the trade for Sauce Gardner from the Jets for two first-round picks. But once Jones suffered a season-ending injury, everything unraveled.
The Colts never found a stable answer at quarterback, cycling through Anthony Richardson, Philip Rivers and Riley Leonard as the year fell apart.
Now the 2026 season is already drifting the same way. Since the bye week in 2025, Indianapolis is 2-13.
Jones hasn’t looked like the same athlete he was before the Achilles injury, and the turnover issues that have followed him have shown up again. The defense hasn’t helped either, giving up 41 points to the Ravens, 33 to the Chiefs, 34 to the Steelers and 42 to Jacksonville.
That’s why the Jaguars loss landed like such a hard verdict. It wasn’t just ugly - it felt like confirmation that the Colts need to make a real reset. Jones has thrown seven interceptions this season and is completing under 60% of his passes, and his future no longer looks tied to the team’s long-term plans.
“I gotta play better. Gotta execute more consistently,” Jones said on Sunday. “Put the team in position to score points and win these games.”
The extension he signed this offseason - two years, $88 million - already looks like a costly mistake. Spotrac projects the Colts would be on the hook for $35.2 million in dead cap if they move on from him next offseason.
If there isn’t a trade market, he’s likely staying put through the rest of 2026. There was at least a brief window of a possible out, with the Ravens mentioned as a team that might have interest after Week 8 injuries to Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley.
Even if Jones remains on the roster, the Colts should use the rest of the season to find out what they have in Anthony Richardson. After Jones’ two interceptions on Sunday, Richardson entered in the fourth quarter and completed two passes. He has talent - he ran for 499 yards and six touchdowns in 2024 - but injuries have kept interrupting his development, and the Colts have tried to manage that by keeping him on the bench.
Richardson also spoke after the game about the eye surgery he had last year, saying:
“I would go to the doctor, and they would tell me they don't know if I'm getting my vision back.”
Steichen said after the loss that he is evaluating “everything,” including whether Jones should remain the starter. That’s the right place to start, because the numbers and the results are hard to ignore. Since taking over in 2023, Steichen has not delivered a playoff appearance, and his record in Indianapolis now sits at 27-31.
“We got out-coached. We got out-played,” Steichen said after the Jaguars game.
The Colts are also riding a four-game losing streak, and the way this season has gone makes it hard to see a quick fix. The talent on the field against Jacksonville wasn’t enough, and the roster has already been stripped down by the recent trades. But at some point, the losses have to land on the coach, too.
A major turnaround would be required just to keep Indianapolis in the playoff conversation, and that doesn’t look realistic anymore. With Ballard gone, Nelson and Buckner traded, and Taylor and Josh Downs now in the middle of trade chatter, the franchise is staring at the possibility of a full reset. That could mean a new general manager, a new head coach, a new quarterback and even a new lead back by 2027.
For now, the Colts’ next move may be the simplest one: bench Jones, give Richardson the rest of the runway, and decide whether Steichen is the right coach to guide whatever comes next.
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Jonathan Taylor Gives Colts Fans One Less Thing To Worry About
Jonathan Taylor looks set to give Colts fans a little stability heading into Week 8, with the running back expected to play against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Head coach Shane Steichen said Taylor will be available, and the plan is for him to go into the game without any additional limitation on his reps, a welcome bit of clarity for an offense that can use as much certainty as it can get.
Josh Downs is also expected to be active, even as his situation continues to hang over the roster. Downs has requested a trade and is headed for free agency next year, but for now he remains part of the mix as Indianapolis prepares for a divisional test that could benefit from having both playmakers on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Ugly Jaguars Loss Just Put Everyone On Notice
The collapse in Jacksonville left the Colts in a familiar but increasingly uncomfortable spot, staring at a 42-7 defeat that extended the losing streak to four and turned a rough stretch into something much harder to ignore. What stood out most was not just the score, but the way the game looked from start to finish, with the Jaguars in control and Indianapolis never finding much of a response.
Shane Steichens postgame tone suggested this is no longer about one bad afternoon or one isolated phase of play. The coaching staff is now looking at every part of the roster, and the latest quarterback wrinkle only added to the unease around the team. With questions already swirling about possible changes, the Colts have reached a point where even routine decisions suddenly feel like part of a much bigger reckoning. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Ugly Loss Just Made One Trade Deadline Question Even Bigger
The Colts 42-7 loss to Jacksonville only sharpened the questions around a team already trying to sort out its future at 2-6. Indianapolis has been leaning on younger players like DJ Giddens as trade chatter continues to follow Jonathan Taylor, but the wider issue after a lopsided defeat was how much more turbulence the roster could absorb.
Josh Downs added another layer to that uncertainty with four catches for 23 yards and the Colts only touchdown, then was not in the locker room afterward amid reports of a public trade request. The team had still not heard from him after the game, and for a Colts offense already searching for answers, that makes the deadline conversation feel even bigger than it did before kickoff. [Read more 🡒]