Colts’ Loyalty Looks Risky in Relentless AFC

The NFL offseason has already seen an unprecedented wave of head coach firings, and two of the teams involved were AFC franchises that still made the playoffs. In this coaching cycle, ten NFL teams have parted ways with their head coaches, but the Indianapolis Colts have decided to keep their head coach and general manager for another season.

The Colts finished 8-9 for the second year in a row, ending this 2025 season on a seven-game losing streak to finalize a one-of-a-kind collapse. For most organizations, that would be enough to clean house. For the Colts, it's just another year in the books.

In a league where performance is essentially the currency for job security, the Colts’ leadership duo has survived while peers have paid the ultimate price for failing to win when it matters most. Teams across the league have demonstrated they aren’t afraid to make bold staffing moves, even if it means moving on from beloved or long-tenured staffers.

The Colts' Patience is Showing the League They Aren't Committed to Winning Now

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: other teams expect more immediate results these days. The Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, and Pittsburgh Steelers were willing to part with proven leaders rather than extend long periods of mediocrity or playoff frustration.

The Bills, Ravens, and Steelers are all common playoff contenders. Each team had a coach who had been there for almost a decade or more, and yet they were all comfortable in moving on after continued mediocrity.

The Ravens, Steelers, and Bills are all perennial playoff teams who let go of their head coaches because just getting to the postseason wasn’t good enough.

The Colts retained everyone, hoping Year 10 will be different, despite just two playoff appearances since 2018.
— Jake Arthur (@JakeArthurNFL) January 19, 2026

The Colts haven't even made the playoffs over the past five years, yet somehow, Chris Ballard and Shane Steichen have kept their jobs. Steichen's case is a bit different since he's only been here for the past three seasons, but he still hasn't been able to lead the Colts out of football purgatory.

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Keep in mind, the Colts play in one of the worst divisions in all of football. Every year, at least one AFC South team is the laughing stock of the league. Since 2010, only three AFC South squads have made the conference championship. In one of the least competitive divisions in football, the Colts are still underperforming.

Since Chris Ballard was hired, the Colts have won zero AFC South titles. Every other team in the division has won at least twice during that span.

Even within the division, other teams haven't been afraid to fully reset. The Jacksonville Jaguars fired their general manager because Liam Coen didn't want to work with him, and that decision paid out dividends.

1.6.25: Pederson fired/Baalke retained

1.22.25: Liam Coen pulls name out of Jags HC search.

1.22.25: Trent Baalke fired.

1.23.25: Liam Coen hired as HC.

2.3.25: Tony Boselli hired as EVP.

2.21.25: Gladstone hired as GM.

1.4.26: #Jaguars win the AFC South with a 13-4 record. pic.twitter.com/nSERlYVD67
— Jaguars Now (@JaguarsNow95) January 5, 2026

Colts owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon had the perfect opportunity to set the tone in her first year in charge. Instead of holding the coach and GM accountable, Irsay-Gordon chose to give them each another chance. That sort of complacency has cost the Colts before, and it very well may cost them again.

Only time will tell whether that stability pays off. But for now, the rest of the AFC is making noise, and the Colts’ silence is the loudest thing in the room.

The Colts' Patience is Showing the League They Aren't Committed to Winning Now

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