On Sunday, the Indianapolis Colts finished their season off on the right foot with a Week 18 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. But more important news came from owner Jim Irsay after the game regarding the direction of the organization heading into the offseason.
On a number of occasions this season, the Colts front office and coaching staff has been under fire due to a perceived lack of discipline and proper management of their talent on the roster. Even Colts players has been skeptical about the collective work ethic of the team as a whole.
Whether it be Colts players being informed of Anthony Richardson being benched on social media instead of from head coach Shane Steichen or the Colts coaching staff and organization as a whole being publically called out by former Colts star turned ESPN personality Pat McAfee, it’s safe to say that the public perception around the Colts has taken a pretty drastic year-over-year decline.
As a result, there have been questions of either Shane Steichen or Colts general manager Chris Ballard potentially being on their way out of Indianapolis this coming offseason after a fourth straight year where the Colts have missed out on the postseason.
However, Jim Irsay put an end to all of the speculation shortly after the team’s game on Sunday, issuing a statement posted from the Colts X account detailing that both Steichen and Ballard will be returning for the 2025-26 season.
“I’ve been evaluating our entire operation, and I believe in Chris Ballard and Shane Steichen and our collective ability to make the improvements needed to take us to the next level in 2025,” wrote Irsay in a portion of his statement. “I know fans who want an immediate change in leadership will be disappointed. That means we all have a lot to prove, so we’ll get back to work and keep doing what we can to earn your support and make you proud to be a Colts fan.”
A letter from @JimIrsay: pic.twitter.com/XCi80fei2c
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) January 6, 2025
Irsay’s statement answers some of the most pressing questions around the organization. But there are certainly still questions that need answering in Indianapolis, perhaps the biggest one being around whether second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson has shown enough to remain the starting quarterback heading into next season.
Only time will tell whether that ends up being the case. But either way, Ballard and Steichen will seemingly get at least one more year to turn around both the roster and the culture of the Colts organization.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.