The Texans’ 20-16 victory over the Chargers eliminated the Colts from playoff contention and made them the rare team to start a season 7-1 but fail to make the playoffs.
Only five other teams have suffered similar declines since the AFL-NFL merger, and none since the NFL season moved to 17 games.
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The Colts are 8-2 but have lost their last five games heading into Sunday’s game against the Jaguars. The collapse means they have missed the playoffs for five consecutive seasons.
The last time they made the playoffs was after the 2020 season. It was Philip Rivers’ last full season in the NFL, and the Colts rescued the quarterback from retirement after Daniel Jones tore his Achilles a few weeks earlier. Rivers performed better than most expected, but the results didn’t change and the Colts will have to think about what could have been.
They’ll also lose their next two first-round picks to help shore up the roster. They sent both picks to the Jets in the trade for cornerback Sauce Gardner, and due to Indianapolis’ late-season slump, the first of those picks will go in the 2026 first round much earlier than initially expected.
