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With the Texans‘ 20-16 win over the Chargers on Saturday night time to enhance to 11-5, Houston clinched a spot within the playoffs, eliminating the 8-7 Colts within the course of.
Indianapolis turns into simply the sixth staff in NFL historical past to begin a season 8-2 and miss the playoffs and the primary to take action for the reason that 1995 Raiders.
That is not the form of historical past any staff hopes to make, and it underscores what a catastrophe the second half of the season has been for Indianapolis. They started the season because the NFL’s finest story, with Daniel Jones getting a redemption arc with a recent begin in Indy, main an offense that was one of the best within the league.
With the playoffs firmly of their sights and an AFC missing a dominant pressure, the Colts understandably took a swing on the commerce deadline, delivery two first spherical picks to the Jets for star nook Sauce Gardner. Nevertheless, issues went off the rails for Indianapolis shortly after the commerce deadline, leaving the franchise and its followers apprehensive about its speedy future.
Jones was hobbled with a fractured fibula, Gardner obtained injured early in his third recreation in Indy and Jones finally tore his Achilles to finish his season. As accidents have piled up, the Colts have misplaced their final 5 video games, the final two coming with 44-year-old Philip Rivers taking part in quarterback after he signed with the groups after being retired for almost 5 years.
It has been the final word catastrophe situation for Indy. Shedding Jones to a catastrophic damage results in questions on whether or not he’ll be the quick or long-term reply at quarterback. Nevertheless, with the Jets proudly owning their 2026 (and 2027) first-round choose from the Gardner commerce, they will not even have the choice of taking a swing in April’s NFL Draft.
It is an unlucky scenario, particularly as a result of we so hardly ever see groups actually attempt to capitalize on a stunning seasons. The Colts took an enormous swing and struck out, and now will function a cautionary story for future entrance places of work questioning if it is price doing the identical.
It being the Texans that eradicated them formally solely provides salt to the wound in Indy. Not solely are the Texans division rivals, however Houston makes a little bit of historical past themselves by changing into simply the seventh staff to make the postseason after an 0-3 begin. The final staff to do it? The 2018 Texans.
The Colts will play a key position in precisely the place Houston leads to the AFC seeding. The Colts end the season in opposition to the Jaguars in Week 17 and the Texans in Week 18, with Houston needing a win over Indy subsequent week and a Jacksonville loss in opposition to both the Colts or Titans within the last two weeks to win the AFC South.
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