2024 NFL Season Preview: Indianapolis Colts

2024 NFL Season Previews - Choose Team Arizona Cardinals Atlanta Falcons Baltimore Ravens Buffalo Bills Carolina Panthers Chicago Bears Cincinnati Bengals Cleveland Browns Dallas Cowboys Denver Broncos Detroit Lions Green Bay Packers Houston Texans Indianapolis Colts Jacksonville Jaguars Kansas City Chiefs Miami Dolphins Minnesota Vikings New England Patriots New Orleans Saints New York Giants New York Jets Las Vegas Raiders Philadelphia Eagles Pittsburgh Steelers Los Angeles Chargers Los Angeles Rams San Francisco 49ers Seattle Seahawks Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tennessee Titans Washington Redskins

Indianapolis Colts (Last Year: 9-8)



Season Summary:
The Colts nearly made the playoffs, but lost in the finale to the Texans. Still, the future is bright with Anthony Richardson playing well in limited action as a rookie.



2024 NFL Season Preview:

Veteran Additions:
QB Joe Flacco, DT Raekwon Davis.
Early Draft Picks:
DE Laiatu Latu, WR Adonai Mitchell, OT/G Matt Goncalves, G/C Tanor Bortolini, KR Anthony Gould, S/LB Jaylon Carlies. Colts Rookie Forecast
Offseason Losses:
QB Gardner Minshew, RB Zack Moss, WR Isaiah McKenzie, DE Jacob Martin.

2024 Indianapolis Colts Offense:
Anthony Richardson was seen as a long-term project, especially during the 2023 preseason where he struggled to complete basic passes. Richardson, inexplicably, didn’t resemble anything like a long-term project when the real games began. He completed about 60 percent of his passes, threw only one interception, and nearly led a great comeback against the Rams while dealing with an injury.

The injuries, however, piled up for Richardson, who ended up throwing only 84 passes on the season. He got hurt in every game he played, eventually giving way to Gardner Minshew, who struggled at first but eventually nearly led Indianapolis to the playoffs. Richardson will be back at full strength to begin 2024, but if/when he suffers more injuries, he’ll be replaced by Joe Flacco, who was terrific for the Browns down the stretch last year. Flacco will be a better insurance policy than Minshew was.

Richardson and Flacco will also have Jonathan Taylor’s services the entire season. Taylor held out for the first four games, then took a while to return to peak form. He then got hurt and missed some more action before returning for the final three games. Taylor’s contract dispute is behind him, so he’ll be ready to go in Week 1, giving the Colts a dominant rushing attack the entire season.

The Colts will also have an enhanced aerial option. They spent their second-round pick on Adonai Mitchell, a very talented prospect who slipped because of off-the-field concerns. If he can remain clean, Indianapolis should have an excellent secondary target for its quarterbacks. Of course, there’s also Michael Pittman Jr., who was rewarded for his great play with a 3-year, $70 million contract. There’s also Josh Downs, who performed well in the slot as a rookie last year.

None of this would really work if the Colts had a poor offensive line, but their blocking is actually stellar. They have one of the best tackle tandems in the NFL with Bernhard Raimann and Braden Smith. Raimann is entering just his third year, so his play could continue to improve. Smith missed six games last year, so Indianapolis will be hoping for better injury luck. The front office used a third-round pick on Matt Goncalves as an insurance policy.

The interior has some terrific blockers as well. Quenton Nelson is one of the top guards in the NFL. Ryan Kelly is a spectacular center. The only hole is at right guard with Will Fries. The Colts used a fourth-round choice on Tanor Bartolini, who could potentially unseat Fries.



2024 Indianapolis Colts Defense:
The Colts became the first team in NFL history to select the initial defensive player in any NFL draft at No. 15 or later. The first 14 picks in the 2024 NFL Draft were all offensive players, which meant that Indianapolis secured the top defensive prospect at No. 15 overall. That was Laiatu Latu, a dynamic edge rusher who would have gone as high as eighth overall if Falcons owner Arthur Blank didn’t interfere with the team’s plans. The Colts had to be shocked that Latu was available, but they’ll be more than happy to have an enhanced edge rush. Latu will form a terrific edge-rushing trio with Kwity Paye and Samson Ebukam, who registered a combined 17.5 sacks in 2023.

Of course, the best player on Indianapolis’ defensive line is DeForest Buckner, who notched eight sacks, a very high number for a defensive tackle. Buckner and Grover Stewart will once again be the starting players at the position. Stewart doesn’t provide much of a pass rush, but he’s a monstrous run stuffer.

Indianapolis’ improved pass rush will help a group of cornerbacks that probably would have been upgraded via Terrion Arnold or Quinyon Mitchell had Latu not been available. The starters on the outside will continue to be JuJu Brents and Dallas Flowers. Both did a fairly decent job when they were on the field last year, but that didn’t occur very often. Brents and Flowers played just nine and four games, respectively, in 2023. Brents has major potential as a recent second-round pick, so perhaps he’ll make a big jump in production if he can remain healthy in 2024. Meanwhile, Kenny Moore will continue to be one of the best slot cornerbacks in the NFL.

The Colts had better injury luck with their safeties, as Julian Blackmon and Nick Cross missed a combined five games. Blackmon was the better of the two when it came to coverage. Cross did not fare very well in that regard, so there’s a chance fifth-round rookie Jaylin Simpson challenges him for the job.

Meanwhile, the linebacking corps is probably the weakest unit on Indianapolis’ roster. The Colts have never fully recovered from Shaq Leonard’s decline and eventual release. E.J. Speed was the top linebacker on the roster last year, and while he thrived in run support, he was a liability in coverage. Zaire Franklin, the other starter, experienced similar issues.



2024 Indianapolis Colts Schedule and Intangibles:
The Colts signed Matt Gay to be a big contract last offseason. He was 33-of-41, but hit eight 50-plus field goals out of 13 attempts.

Rigoberto Sanchez bounced back from a torn Achilles to finish 10th in net punting.

Indianapolis has a difficult start to its schedule, battling the Texans, Packers, Bears, Steelers and Jaguars in the first five weeks. There are a number of easy opponents in the final two months, however.

2024 Indianapolis Colts Rookies:
Go here for the Colts Rookie Forecast, a page with predictions like which rookie will bust and which rookie will become a solid starter.



2024 Indianapolis Colts Positional Rankings (1-5 stars):

Quarterbacks		Offensive Line		Secondary
Running Backs		Defensive Line		Special Teams
Receivers		Linebackers		Coaching