With the Manning era coming to an end Colts fans can't expect the 12+ win seasons already. Fans have been spoiled over the years with Manning under the helm as he led the Colts to 7 consecutive seasons of 12 or more wins. That flat out isn't normal, yet Colts fans had become accustomed to it. Most teams in the NFL would be extremely happy with a 12 win season but to have 7 straight seasons at that success or better is unreal. However, success may be returning faster than people think.
Last season put a lot of Colts fans into shock as the team won only 2 of their 16 games with Manning on the sideline the entire season. After seeing how the team was playing without Manning people started to question the future of the team. Toward the end of the season the name Andrew Luck began to swirl around Indy as possibly being Manning's predecessor, but everyone would soon find out that Luck would be the present rather than the future. The Colts made the tough decision to not resign Manning, as the risk was too high and they simply couldn't afford both Luck and Manning on the roster as well as the skill players around them so it became time for Manning and the Colts to part ways. After a very emotional press conference from Manning and Irsay it was time for the Colts to move on with their number one draft pick, Andrew Luck, as their franchise quarterback.
When a team takes a quarterback as their number one pick in the draft it usually means the team is starting over and rebuilding. It seems that the fans have realized that it was happening as there has been a record number of season tickets left unsold for the upcoming season. However, quarterback wasn't the only position that the Colts were starting over with. Changes were being made at every level of the franchise, going as far up as the vice president and general manager being fired. Head coach Jim Caldwell would also be let go. As far as players go, tight end Dallas Clark and running back Joseph Addai were among the notable players released on the offensive end. Safety Melvin Bullet and defensive captain, line backer, Gary Brackett were among the notable players released on the defensive side of the ball.
Over the years the Colts have been know for their finesse play on the field rather than the physical play like most of teams in the NFL play with. It brought some success to that roster but with this roster there was some changes that needed to be made to the coaching/playing style. After the hiring of Ryan Grigson as the new GM, the coaching staff began to take shape. The first addition was that of Ravens' defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano as the new head coach. Then came the coordinators, Bruce Arians (formerly with the Steelers) running the offense and Greg Manusky (formerly with the Chargers) running the defense. All three of these coaches are coming from some of the most hard nosed teams in the league so the Colts identity of being 'finesse' is out the door.
The front office has put together a very good coaching staff, combine that with the young talent and veteran leadership on this roster and you have your self a rebuilding process that will be moving a lot quicker than most. Fans should expect to see a lot more of physical play on defense and more balance between the run and the pass on offense. No more of the air raid that Manning and company put on over the years.
Yes it will take some time for everything to sync together but I think everyone will be surprised by how quickly these guys will bring it together. Call me crazy but I predict that the Colts will pull off 8-10 wins this season. People are underestimating what this team is capable of, time will soon tell.
