Reverse psychology: 3 NFL postseason contenders, 2 pretenders fans won't expect
By John Buhler
NFL postseason contender: Indianapolis Colts (7-5)
Personal biases aside, this is the one I am most excited about. The Indianapolis Colts are 7-5 on the season, winners of four straight and are very much alive to make the AFC Playoffs this season. Heck, they might be good enough to catch the Jacksonville Jaguars if Duval has a long December and no reason to believe this year could be better than the last. So how are the Colts actually doing this???
Well, they have one of the best new head coaches in the sport in Shane Steichen. He brought with him from Philadelphia a former starter who knows the division well in Gardner Minshew II. With No. 4 overall pick Anthony Richardson going down, Minshew has been as advertised as Indianapolis' stop-gap starter. It has not always been pretty, but he is doing his part helping his team win close games.
Admittedly, the Colts have a tough final five games, but you can argue they are as good as everyone they will play. They have road games at Cincinnati and Atlanta, as well as home dates vs. Pittsburgh, Las Vegas and division rival Houston. I would expect either the Colts or the Texans will make the AFC playoffs as a wild card team, possibly both if the AFC North cannibalizes itself like it tends to do there.
For the Colts to be in this after all they have gone through is a testament to Steichen and Minshew.