The Seattle Seahawks’ reported sale price is the kind of number that can make any NFL ownership group sit up straight, and for Colts fans, it naturally sparks a bigger question: what would Indianapolis be worth if it ever hit the market?
When Jim Irsay died in 2025, the Colts already had their answer lined up. His daughters - Carlie Irsay-Gordon, Casey Foyt, and Kalen Jackson - stepped in to take over ownership, with the expectation that they would guide the franchise for years. But after one season without Jim Irsay, some fans may be looking at the state of the team and wondering whether a different kind of change would be even more valuable.
The Seahawks’ impending sale reportedly lands at $9.612 billion, and while Indianapolis probably wouldn’t reach that exact figure, it would likely be close enough to get the current Colts ownership thinking about the value of the franchise. For fans, that thought comes with a simple hope: maybe the people in charge would consider cashing in, opening the door for a new group to take over.
That feeling is tied to something deeper than just a sale price. Even before Jim Irsay died, the Colts had settled into long-term mediocrity, and one of the reasons was an ownership group that seemed reluctant to make the changes the franchise needed.
Chris Ballard is the clearest example. He should not still be the general manager of the team.
He may be a good person, but in nine years in Indianapolis, the Colts have made the playoffs only twice. They have never won the AFC South under Ballard, while every other team in the division has claimed the title multiple times.
There is credit to go around for drafting well enough and assembling solid rosters, but that only goes so far when the results keep falling short. The Colts have changed head coaches and still haven’t solved the bigger problem: the roster has not been good enough to win the division or make the postseason on a regular basis. That sits with Ballard.
It also sits with ownership, whether that means Jim Irsay or his daughters. Injuries played a part in the 2025 failure, but injuries hit other teams too.
The San Francisco 49ers dealt with plenty of them and still managed to perform. The Colts, by contrast, lacked the depth to survive their own setbacks, and ownership still chose not to move on from Ballard this offseason.
Instead, it appears Chris Ballard and head coach Shane Steichen have both been handed one more year to prove they belong. Ballard has already had enough time, though, and there is reason to think he may not even be worried about his job if the Colts miss the playoffs for a sixth straight season.
Why would he be? Ownership clearly believes in him, or the change would have happened before Jim Irsay died.
That is why the Seahawks’ sale matters beyond Seattle. For Colts fans, the dream scenario may not just be a massive franchise valuation.
It may be a current ownership group willing to take that money, hand the team to someone else, and finally let real change take hold. Only then, possibly, can Indianapolis get back to where it is supposed to be: contending for Super Bowl titles.
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