Before the Colts can accept AFC playoff image help from other teams, ‘we have to help ourselves’

“At the end of the day, you can’t hope for other people — you can’t keep hoping for other people to come in. We’ve got to help ourselves,” defensive tackle DeForest Buckner said. “And that’s handling business this weekend against the Titans, and then next week with the Giants and the week after we’re done with the Jags. We’ve got to take it one week at a time and do our part, and at the end of the season , but it’s shaking out, with a little bit of hope and a little bit of help, maybe it will work out, but at the end of the day, we have to do our part first.”

None of this matters, of course, if the Colts can’t take care of a 3-11 Tennessee Titans team that has lost five of its last six games and made a change at quarterback this week, selecting 2023 Will Levis in the second round. veteran backup Mason Rudolph. The Colts are on a three-game winning streak against the Titans, but those wins were by three, three and seven points; the last time the Colts beat the Titans by more points was Week 10 of the 2020 season.

“We have to control what we can control,” head coach Shane Steichen said, “and what we can control is (playing) the Tennessee Titans.”

But regardless of who the Colts play — every team remaining on their schedule has at least 11 losses — it’s more about how the Colts play down the stretch rather than their opponent.

The Colts committed five turnovers and were flagged for eight deflators in their Week 15 loss to the Broncos. In six games this season against teams with a losing record, the Colts have averaged 1.3 turnovers per possession. match; in eight games against teams with a winning record, the Colts averaged 2.1 turnovers per possession. match.

The Colts are 5-1 against teams with a losing record (the only loss is in Week 5 at Jacksonville) and 1-7 against teams with a winning record (the only win is in Week 4 over Pittsburgh). But the Colts also haven’t won a game by more than six points this year; their last four losses have been by eight points (at Minnesota), 10 points (vs. Buffalo), 18 points (vs. Detroit) and 18 points (Denver).

“We have to raise our standard,” Steichen said. “It starts with myself, everything. We’ve got to be better. I told the guys (this week), man, we’ve got to play for each other. We’ve got to play together and attack every single day to get better so we can play a complementary football game.”

Until the Colts have nothing left to play for, the only way they can — and will — work is to believe that winning their final three games will give them a chance to make the playoffs.

“We know we still have a chance, a little chance,” tight end Mo Alie-Cox said, “but a chance is a chance.”

Still, even if the Colts are eliminated from the playoffs at some point before Week 18, the mentality of this team must remain resolute. Veterans around the locker room this week have emphasized that nothing is guaranteed in the NFL except the game in front of you — and with three more Sundays left in the regular season, those Finals opportunities will be important whether or not the outcome matters in the AFC playoff picture.

“I think the motivation going forward is like, ‘Hey, we have a chance to play the Tennessee Titans at home and beat them. Do you know? That’s our motivation and that’s the way you have to look at it,” Steichen said. “We all have jobs to do and we have to have a good week of preparation… The motivation for us is that we need for some help getting into this, and we all know that, but we’ve got to go do our jobs and we’re going to have a hell of a week of preparation to get ready to go to Tennessee.”