The goal for every team is to get out to a hot start. It builds confidence and sets the tone early. Things can always change because a fast start isn’t everything as some teams fade and others come on strong late. While ultimately desired, how important will it be for the Indianapolis Colts to start out on the right foot and string together wins from the beginning? It isn’t something they have done often over the last decade plus, and the answer to the question is two-fold.
The first way to look at this question is from a scheduling perspective. Evaluating a schedule is unscientific because last year’s studs can be this year’s duds and vice versa, but we can try to glean what we can. Always a mixed bag, there are some tough games and some winnable ones, but overall, the schedule plays out nicely for the Colts. They start with two at home, and while they do meet playoff teams from last year, it isn’t overloaded with juggernauts. Road games against the Rams, Chargers, Steelers, Texans, and Chiefs stand out the most. They have owned the Chiefs as of late, and other than the Steelers being an automatic loss based on historical data, the others, while tough, aren’t jumping out as impossible. While they face the Broncos at home in week two, they also get the Titans, Jaguars, Raiders, Cardinals, Forty-Niners, Dolphins, and technically, Falcons at home. Those are all winnable games. That means even if the Colts don’t get out to a 4-0 start, it doesn’t mean they will be left clinging for dear life as the schedule remains balanced and is certainly not the toughest one in the league.
Switching gears, here is why a fast start will be important, and it has nothing to do with the opponent. With a slow start comes intense inward focus on the GM, coach, and overall roster. Two games to start at home create the ideal setting to get out early, but it also generates pressure. Fail to win at home and two road games await. As stated above, the road games are winnable, but it is always easier to win in the friendly confines of your own stadium. The seat for Shane Steichen will become hot quickly, and Chris Ballard’s may become an ejector seat if the Colts go 1-3 or 2-5 start. It will indicate that Ballard couldn’t draft or sign a quarterback, and Steichen couldn’t correctly evaluate talent on the roster. The Colts will have blown a fortuitous opportunity to keep pace in the AFC South. That may be too much for new ownership to swallow. Both men and their quarterback could be out of work, and it could signal a complete overhaul of the roster in 2026.
So, is it important to start out fast? In a world with a different GM and coach, a slower start would be more forgiving because the team would have plenty of time and opportunity across the schedule to make up ground. That isn’t the reality facing the 2025 Colts, however. A fast or at least semi-fast start appears to be essential. The Colts cannot fall into a crater sized hole and believe patience will be afforded. They have to strike early and be above .500 as the calendar turns to late October. Fail to do that and the headlines will read of major shakeups in the organization. This season could prove as a tipping point, and it all depends on whether the Colts race out of the gate.
