The upcoming Indianapolis Colts season seems like a critical one for the franchise. Aging players who will soon be retiring mean there’s a lot of rebuilding to happen soon. And Lucas Oil Stadium is hungry for attention. That beast is expensive to feed.
Ticket prices are high. Nachos and a beer at the new stadium require financing. For that kind of money Irsay and the Colts have got to deliver a good product to the fans.
They’ve done it in the past but given how fickle football fans can be the team can’t depend on past success to guarantee fan loyalty. “What have you done for me lately?” is the question on fan’s minds. Sure, the hardcore Colts faithful will always stick by their team. Unfortunately, the faithful don’t pay the bills. Mr. Painted Face makes for good window dressing but he ain’t paying for a suite.
Peyton Manning will retire soon. Obviously he’s the main attraction and a key driver for Indianapolis Colts tickets sales. Replacing him will not be easy. Not only is he a hall-of-fame, stat busting superstar, he’s managed to stay away from controversy. This has made him a great local personality. Whoever comes after him has some enormous shoes to fill.
Speaking of big shoes to fill, new coach Jim Caldwell has his work cut out for him as well. Tony Dungy was extremely popular and a great leader. It would be a challenge for whoever had to follow that act. Clearly, Dungy has a lot of confidence in Caldwell and believes he will be successfull. Fans will give him a chance though I imagine the honeymoon will be short lived.
Expect Bill Polian to be working his butt off during the upcoming draft. The Colts will have to wait until pick 27 in the first round. They won’t get any big stars with that pick, especially not a quarterback for Peyton to start mentoring. Polian and Irsay will find a way to get some solid veterans and some young potential, they always do. However, turning their schemes in to a trip to the post-season may be tough.
Dominic Rhodes did not help the Colts’ cause with all the media attention he’s been getting. Apparently, he got his feelings hurt when he wasn’t picked up by the team for another season. On one hand it’s just business. On the other it isn’t hard to understand why he feels the way he does. Running backs seem to be plentiful, though, so it’s doubtful his bad experience will do much damage to the Colt’s reputation. It’s hard to imagine anyone not wanting to play for them.
Before the end of the Manning era Indy would like to make it to one more Super Bowl. Getting there in the upcoming season is unlikely. An Indianapolis Colts’ season without a post-season would be sad. That dismal prospect may be avoided if they can pick up a few good players. If it doesn’t go well, hopefully fans will give them some slack as they try to build for down the road.