2022 Indianapolis Colts season


The 2022 season was the Indianapolis Colts' 70th in the National Football League, their 39th in Indianapolis, their 15th playing their home games at Lucas Oil Stadium, their sixth under the leadership of general manager Chris Ballard and their fifth and final season under head coach Frank Reich.
In the offseason, the Colts acquired former MVP quarterback Matt Ryan in exchange for a third round pick.
After a 3–5–1 start, head coach Reich was fired from the team with former Colts offensive lineman Jeff Saturday being named the interim head coach. Saturday won his first game with the Colts against the Raiders, but did not win any more games, as the team finished the season on a 7–game losing streak. On December 17, the Colts were defeated by the [2022 2022 Minnesota Vikings season|Minnesota Vikings season|Minnesota Vikings] in a game that was notable for being the biggest blown lead in NFL history, as the Colts squandered a 33–0 halftime lead to lose 39–36 in overtime. This loss, coupled with the Jacksonville Jaguars win over the New York Jets the following Thursday, eliminated the Colts from playoff contention.
Despite the Colts' poor season, one highlight was a week three 20–17 upset win over the eventual Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.

Draft

Draft trades
NamePositionCollegeRef.
Max BorghiRBWashington State
Jack CoanQBNotre Dame
Kekoa CrawfordWRCalifornia
Marcel DaboSNo college
Trevor DenbowSSMU
JoJo DomannLBNebraska
Ethan FerneaWRUCLA
Dallis FlowersCBPittsburg State
Wesley FrenchCWestern Michigan
Alex MolletteCMarshall
Samson NacuaWRBYU
Scott PatchanDEColorado State
D'Vonte PriceRBFIU
Forrest RhyneLBVillanova
Josh SeltznerGWisconsin
James SkalskiLBClemson
Ryan Van DemarkOTUConn
CJ VerdellRBOregon
Sterling WeatherfordLBMiami (OH)
Cullen WickDETulsa
McKinley Williams IIIDTSyracuse
Michael Young Jr.WRCincinnati

Preseason

The Colts' preseason opponents and schedule were announced in the spring.
WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueRecap
1at Buffalo BillsL 24–270–1Highmark Stadium
2Detroit LionsL 26–270–2Lucas Oil Stadium
3Tampa Bay BuccaneersW 27–101–2Lucas Oil Stadium

Regular season

Schedule

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: at Houston Texans

This was the Colts first tie game since the 1982 season when they were based in Baltimore.
Because the Browns won their season opener for the first time since 2004, coupled with this game, the Colts now hold the NFL's longest active season opener winless streak, not having won a season opener since 2013.

Week 2: at Jacksonville Jaguars

The Colts failed to capitalize on offense, and were shutout for the first time since week 13 of the 2018 season, which was also against the Jaguars. This was also their eighth consecutive loss in Jacksonville.

Week 5: at Denver Broncos

Neither side scored a touchdown as Russell Wilson and Matt Ryan struggled throughout the game. Stephon Gilmore helped win with an interception in the endzone and a mishap by Russell Wilson that he threw to Courtland Sutton while he was covered by Gilmore and ended up being incomplete on 4th down, missing a wide open K. J. Hamler. With the win, the Colts improved to 2–2–1.

Week 9: at New England Patriots

After the game, head coach Frank Reich was fired after a 3-5-1 start, and was replaced by former Colts center Jeff Saturday, who had no coaching experience above the high school level.

Week 15: at Minnesota Vikings

The Colts blew a 33–0 lead and ending up losing in overtime. After the game, Jeff Saturday benched Matt Ryan in favor of Nick Foles for next week's game.

Week 16: vs. Los Angeles Chargers

The Colts were eliminated after the loss.