The final week of the 2019 season is here and it leaves the Indianapolis Colts on the outside looking in for the playoff race.
A string of six losses in the matter of seven games to begin the second half of the season will do that. The Colts snapped their four-game losing streak on Sunday with a commanding 38-6 win over the Carolina Panthers.
However, the win didn’t help the Colts’ cause in Touchdown Wire’s power rankings entering the final week of the campaign.
19. Indianapolis Colts
(7-8. Last week: 19)
The Colts, who already were out of the playoff picture, had a seemingly impressive 38-6 win against Carolina on Sunday. Second-year running back Nyheim Hines became the first player in franchise history to return two punts for touchdowns in a single game. That was nice. But quarterback Jacoby Brissett had another unimpressive outing. Brissett completed just 14 of 27 passes for 119 yards, and it marked the third consecutive game in which he’s completed less than 53% of his passes. Early in the season, it looked as if Brissett was a suitable replacement for Andrew Luck. But the Colts can’t be so sure now. Their draft pick won’t be early enough to get one of the top quarterbacks. The Colts may have to sign a quarterback in free agency. This isn’t a bad team. Add a veteran such as Cam Newton or Andy Dalton, and this team could be in the playoffs next season.
The Colts have a big offseason ahead. They have several moves to make both internally and with outside free agents. The front office also faces a big task with the upcoming draft.
In what was a promising start to the season, the Colts crumbled epically during the back half. A string of injuries, poor kicking play and a quarterback unable to elevate those around him led to the collapse of a Colts team that was 5-2 through the first seven games.
With just one more game remaining on the season, the Colts are ready for an extremely important offseason.