The Indianapolis Colts (4-7-1) failed to secure a win at home and now hit the road to take on one of the hottest teams in the NFL in Week 13.
The honeymoon phase of the Jeff Saturday hire is over. This team is still spinning its tires in the mud, making the same mistakes they were before the change at head coach. They’ve shown some life over the last three games, but they continue to make self-inflicted mistakes that keep them from finishing games.
Though they are currently holding the No. 14 spot in the 2023 NFL draft, there’s a good chance they enter the top-10 selections by season’s end.
Here’s where the Colts sit in the power rankings entering Week 13:
USA TODAY
Author: Nate Davis
Rank: 26 (-5)
Link to article
Author’s Take: “Cool to see Jeff Saturday has made NFL history as the head coach with the most ever games (211) as a player. Otherwise, he’s saddled with a fool’s errand.”
Touchdown Wire
Author: Mark Lane
Rank: 28 (-3)
Link to article
Author’s Take: “Speaking of teams that are in desperate need of the offseason, throw in the Colts. Indianapolis is one of the more puzzling teams in the league this season. They can be good enough to hang with the best team in football (Philadelphia Eagles), but come out the next week and play down to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Bleacher Report
Author: NFL Staff
Rank: 25 (-2)
Link to article
Author’s Take: “Colts interim head coach Jeff Saturday coached high school, but he had never run a team at the collegiate or NFL level before a few weeks ago, and it showed in a big way on Monday night.
With a minute left and a full complement of timeouts, the Colts let precious seconds tick off the clock while lining up to run a play on a crucial third down in Steelers territory.
The clock stopped when Indy failed to convert on fourth down, but at that point, there were only 24 seconds left in the game. Any hope of getting the ball back was gone.
After the loss, Saturday deflected criticisms of his clock management while speaking to reporters.
“I thought we had plenty of time, I wasn’t really concerned, we still had timeouts,” Saturday said. “I wasn’t too concerned. “I expected us to get on the ball and have another play a little quicker than that, but again, this wasn’t a ‘pressed for time,’ we just didn’t make enough plays.”
To be fair, that gaffe wasn’t the reason that Matt Ryan looked like the quarterback Frank Reich benched Monday night. It also wasn’t the reason that Indy gave up over 170 yards on the ground.
But mediocre teams without a margin for error can’t make mental mistakes and expect to win.”
And whether he wants to admit it or not, Saturday made one against the Steelers.
ESPN NFL Nation
Author: Stephen Holder
Rank: 27 (-5)
Link to article
Author’s Take: “Realistic expectation: Evaluate the roster for next season.
This is the second consecutive year the Colts have fallen short of their own preseason expectations. It might be time to take a step back and reevaluate where this roster is heading into 2023. The Colts have already fired their head coach and are expected to conduct a legitimate coaching search when the season ends. The changes won’t stop there, considering their apparent needs and the lack of production they are getting from an offensive line that is the NFL’s most expensive. Something the Colts might also have to consider is whether they want to keep Matt Ryan on the roster next season to mentor another QB. The last five games could help determine that.”
Sporting News
Author: Vinnie Iyer
Rank: 23 (-3)
Link to article
Author’s Take: “The Colts feel like a legitimate team again with Jeff Saturday. The Raiders’ victory was solid and the Eagles’ fight was real, but then they failed to take care of business offensively and defensively against the Steelers on Monday night.”
List Wire
Author: Barry Werner
Rank: 27 (-1)
Link to article
Author’s Take: “The Colts were on national television and didn’t look like they belonged in prime time for the first half. They played a strong third quarter before things fell apart again. What on earth was the clock management on the last drive? Indy had 3 timeouts and used none until 30 seconds were left ..and it faced a fourth-and-3.”
Pro Football Network
Author: Dalton Miller
Rank: 27 (-6)
Link to article
Author’s Take: “Many expected the Colts to be an NFL laughing stock after firing Frank Reich and subsequently hiring Jeff Saturday, a man with no NFL coaching experience.
Things haven’t been perfect with Saturday, but the Colts beat Las Vegas and narrowly lost to Philadelphia the next week. However, they were unable to get past Pittsburgh, which isn’t necessarily a powerhouse, although they did make things interesting.
Saturday may or may not be the long-term answer, but we know one thing for sure; Matt Ryan will not be the Colts QB in 2023. And that begs a question. Exactly how many times can Chris Ballard fail to find a QB while also hardly addressing OL and WR issues?”
NFL.com
Author: Dan Hanzus
Rank: 27 (–)
Link to article
Author’s Take: “The Colts shook off a slow start to make a game of it on Monday night, but subpar play from a pop-gun offense didn’t disappear when Frank Reich was served his walking papers. Matt Ryan’s lack of mobility and arm strength are obvious impediments here, but the Colts also lack playmakers they can count on aside from Michael Pittman Jr. and Jonathan Taylor, who didn’t see many touches after a goal-line fumble on a failed exchange with Ryan in the third quarter. Meanwhile, Jeff Saturday absorbed his first real sideline criticism for some poor clock management on Indy’s final doomed drive. “I thought we had plenty of time,” Saturday said afterward. “I wasn’t too concerned.”
CBS Sports
Author: Pete Prisco
Rank: 27 (-4)
Link to article
Author’s Take: “The Jeff Saturday bump is over. They won one and lost two. Maybe it’s not so easy to coach in this league.”
