NFL Power Rankings Week 16: Colts Are Bad

The Colts continued their 2022 season at home on Sunday against an AFC team in the Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers were 8-6 coming off an important win over the Colts AFC South rival Tennessee Titans and were fighting for a playoff berth. The Colts were without young tight end Kylen Granson and nickel corner Kenny Moore II.

The now Colts sit at 4-10-1, and are currently third in the AFC South. The Colts couldn’t manage to get their fifth win of the year and are far out of the race for the AFC South title. The Titans and Jaguars are both three games clear of the Colts in third place.

The national media have moved the Colts down in the power rankings board after their loss against the Chargers. Here is how the Colts stack up in the week 16 power rankings.

NFL.com has the Colts at 31:

This will all be over soon. The Colts played another prime-time game on Monday and once again looked the part of an overmatched mess in a 20-3 loss to the Chargers at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Indy defense did its part to keep things competitive, but the Colts’ offense, led by an inept Nick Foles, was unable to get much going. Foles threw three interceptions by the end of the night, the type of performance that typically gets a declining veteran a ticket for the bench. It’s not quite that simple for the Colts, who have already benched current backup Sam Ehlinger and former starter Matt Ryan (twice!). A reminder that Jeff Saturday signed up for this.

ESPN has the Colts at 28:

The decision to fire Reich after nine games was an aggressive move for a team owner (Jim Irsay) who had never fired a coach during the season. It was yet another shift in the power dynamic inside the organization toward Irsay and further demonstrated his dissatisfaction with the state of the team. Many key decisions lie ahead, and it’s possible this team could look very different next season.

CBS Sports has the Colts at 28:

Does it matter who plays quarterback? They just aren’t good enough on offense. They need a quarterback in the worst way.

Yahoo Sports has the Colts at 28:

Nick Foles has had a remarkably weird career. That guy who was playing quarterback for the Colts on Monday night once was a Super Bowl MVP, I promise.

Bleacher Report has the Colts at 29:

The Indianapolis Colts have had a carousel of crud at quarterback this season. Matt Ryan didn’t play well, so he was benched for Sam Ehlinger. Ehlinger looked completely overmatched, so the team went back to Ryan. Ryan was bad again, so the team turned to Nick Foles, who interim head coach Jeff Saturday told reporters gave the team the best chance to win.

“Think the world of Matt, he’s a pro’s pro. It’s not been the season he expected, nor the Colts as a whole,” he said. “Ultimately, I feel like Nick will give us a better chance to go win these last three games.”

Yeah, um, about that.

Foles was next-level terrible against the Chargers on Monday night. He lumbered around the pocket like Groot after too much Dramamine. His accuracy was almost as horrible as his decision-making, and by the time another embarrassing performance from the Colts mercifully ended, Foles had thrown for just 143 yards and three picks with a passer rating of 31.9.

Being without Jonathan Taylor didn’t help. Neither did an offensive line that has gone from a strength of the team not that long ago to a glaring weakness. But the only question Foles can answer for the Colts is, “How can Indianapolis make sure they don’t screw up their draft position by winning another game?”

USA Today has the Colts at 30:

Sure, Matt Ryan might be over the hill, but he’s the only quarterback on this roster who keeps Indianapolis competitive.

Pro Football Network has the Colts at 28:

For the third time in five weeks, the Indianapolis Colts are occupying one of our prime-time spots on TV. The 4-10-1 Colts started Nick Foles instead of Matt Ryan on Monday night, practically assuring us that Ryan has played his final NFL snaps.

The Colts’ collapse against Minnesota was the largest in NFL history, but it may somehow be only the third-most embarrassing moment of the Colts’ season. There’s a chance that they clean house in the offseason, and it might be what’s best for the organization.

The Colts offense remained an embarrassment on Monday night, proving to us all that Ryan was simply a symptom and not the virus. Quarterback play remains an issue on the roster, but the offensive line must improve.