The Indianapolis Colts ended their 2024 season with a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Indianapolis Colts will end their 2024 season with an 8-9 record following a 26-23 overtime win at home over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Now the team will turn to the future, as changes could potentially take place after another disappointing finish for the Colts.
COLTS’ WR JOSH DOWNS AND RB JONATHAN TAYLOR ADD TO IMPRESSIVE SEASONS BY MAKING TEAM HISTORY
While the season didn’t end the way the Colts would have liked it to, both running back Jonathan Taylor and wide receiver Josh Downs surpassed franchise greats on Sunday in the team’s win over the Jaguars. Taylor rushed for 177 yards on 34 carries and scored a rushing touchdown. Taylor surpassed Hall-of-Famer Lenny Moore (55) for the most total touchdowns by a Colts player through their first five seasons. The Pro Bowl running back also tied Hall-of-Famer Eric Dickerson for the second-most 100-yard rushing games in the franchise’s history.
As for Downs, on Sunday, he passed Hall-of-Famer Marvin Harrison for the most receptions by a Colts player in their first two seasons (137). Downs caught ten receptions for 94 yards in Indianapolis’ win over Jacksonville. Taylor and Downs have been two of Indianapolis’ bright spots in 2024. Both players showcased why they are more than deserving to be a part of the team’s future, regardless of any changes that could follow in the days/weeks to come.
Downs has now passed Marvin Harrison (137) for the most receptions by a #Colts player in their first two seasons. https://t.co/OjRWOfXJd1
— Jake Arthur (@JakeArthurNFL) January 5, 2025
And now, Taylor has tied Eric Dickerson (24) for the second-most 100-yard rushing games in franchise history.
Earlier today, Taylor passed Lenny Moore (55) for the most total touchdowns by a Colts player in their first five seasons. https://t.co/ZkuO3O96pT
— Jake Arthur (@JakeArthurNFL) January 5, 2025
Wide receiver Alec Pierce enjoyed a breakout season of his own. His 57 receiving yards and touchdown reception on Sunday pushed his season totals to 824 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. Despite having two different starting quarterbacks at points throughout the season, Pierce showed up in big spots for Indianapolis and improved quite a bit in big areas, and he deserves praise for an impressive showing in 2024.
CHANGES TO COME FOR COLTS’ FRANCHISE FOLLOWING ANOTHER DISAPPOINTING SEASON?
Let’s shift away from the game itself and focus more so on the future. Now that the 2024 season has come to an end for the Colts, will we see any major changes for a franchise that has now missed the playoffs for a fourth straight season and hasn’t captured an AFC South title since 2014?
Sure, there are some positives to take away for the Colts. The aforementioned players above being a few of those. But in a season where expectations were to surpass a 9-8 record in 2023 and push for the playoffs, Indianapolis ultimately fell short once again. Many would (rightfully) argue that it should not have taken overtime to beat the lowly Jaguars, but it did and here we are. That’s what this Colts team has showcased this season, particularly on defense. They play just well enough to beat bad teams and not anywhere close enough (outside of their game against the Broncos) to beat playoff-caliber teams.
Owner Jim Irsay will ultimately have the final say as to whether any changes are made this offseason. GM Chris Ballard finishes his eighth season with underwhelming results. Defensive coordinator Gus Bradley’s unit underperformed this season as well. Will another disappointing finish push Irsay to make changes? Only time will tell.