Following a second consecutive loss, this time to the Minnesota Vikings this past Sunday night, the Indianapolis Colts are again below .500 at 4-5 on the season.
So, in this week’s iteration of ESPN’s power rankings, where do the Colts end up?
The Colts entered the 2024 season at No. 18 on this list and have been as low as No. 28 following an 0-2 start, along with just about everywhere in between.
After clocking in at No. 21 in last week’s rankings, the Colts will remain there heading into Week 10.
Determining these rankings for ESPN are more than 80 writers, editors, and TV personalities evaluating each team’s performance and then ranking them from 1-32.
In the week leading up to Sunday’s game with the Vikings, the Colts made the decision to bench Anthony Richardson in favor of veteran Joe Flacco. In large part, this move was made because the team believed Flacco gave them the best chance to win and make a playoff push.
All of that could still happen with eight games still left on the schedule. However, following that heavily scrutinized decision, things didn’t play out on the field well for the Colts, who statistically put together their worst offensive performance of the season in several statistical categories.
The run game struggled to get going against a good Vikings front, and did lose some juice without Richardson in the backfield. The passing game, meanwhile, could never get going as they faced numerous long down-and-distance situations and were flummoxed by the disguise heavy Vikings defense.
As best they could, the Indianapolis defense kept points off the board for much of the game versus an explosive Vikings pass game, but they gave up a lot of yards along the way, and that, coupled with the Colts’ struggles on offense was too much for the defense to overcome.
Next up on the schedule for the Colts is a matchup at home against the 7-2 Buffalo Bills, who come in at No. 3 in ESPN’s rankings.