The NFL Schedule was released on Thursday night and to no surprise the Indianapolis Colts will not have any primetime games as of yet. This will be the inaugural season for HC Shane Steichen’s and new 2023 4th overall pick QB Anthony Richardson.
🗣️ THE 2023 SCHEDULE HAS ARRIVED pic.twitter.com/BMSQZzl1eb
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) May 12, 2023
Like last year, we saw another front-loaded division schedule for Indianapolis. They will have 4 conference games before Halloween. We all know that importance of division games and this year will be no different. Weeks 1 and 2 with Jacksonville and at Houston at home and then Weeks 5 and 6 they host the Titans at home and head back to Jacksonville where they have not won in that stadium since 2014. While the expectations have been tethered with the arrival of youth to Indy this season, this season will be made or broken in the first six weeks of the season.
Colts will play the New England Patriots in Week 10 as the road team in Frankfort, Germany. This marks the first time the Colts have played across the pond since 2016 when they played in London. There should be no complaints from Colts fans here for a couple of reasons. First, you get to be a spotlight game in your own time slot against a premiere team. Second, and most importantly, since the Colts are the road team, this means they avoid playing in Foxborough. It’s always a tough stadium to play at so to grab a neutral site game against a difficult opponent (and a young Colts team) is always a plus.
The only disappointing aspect of the Colts schedule is they (at the moment) are not featured on any prime-time games, including Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime. With no Amazon Prime game, this means no mini bye this season. It’s unfortunate for the new rookies on the team as it’s a good experience for them to learn the preparation and handling the environment of a prime-time game. Flex scheduling kicks in Week 12 so a game could still get picked up but unless they are in the playoff hunt late in the season, it appears unlikely.
The biggest debate most Colts fans have had on social media is about when to start Anthony Richardson? Should they start him mid-season and let Minshew get started? What if Minshew handles this overall easier Colts schedule with a 5-1 start? Do you start Richardson regardless? Most Colts fans (myself included) believe it’s best to throw Richardson into the fire. With the first games being against a division contender and weak opponent in Jacksonville and Houston, who will most likely be starting a rookie quarterback as well. It will give him a good taste of what the speed and ferocity of an NFL game is like early on with a chance to win one of those games. Getting that first win under his belt early will be great for his confidence and going forward towards the long season.
