Fans of the Indianapolis Colts have become accustomed to certain disappointments, year after year.

Long ago are the days of Peyton Manning where success was an expectation. Now, the bar has been lowered, and smaller accomplishments feel like wins.

Last year, the Colts snapped their dozen-year streak of not winning in Week 1 when they beat the Miami Dolphins at Lucas Oil Stadium, 33-8. After losing their first international game in London in 2016, the Colts won each of their last two in Frankfurt in 2023 and Berlin in 2025. They return to London this season.

The Colts' 2026 season is about a lot of things, but none more significant than overturning their ultimate misfortune...

The last time the Colts made the playoffs, Philip Rivers was their quarterback (the first time). It was 2020, and Jonathan Taylor and Michael Pittman Jr. were rookies. The Colts lost narrowly to the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card round, 27-24.

Since then, the Colts' total record is 38-46-1, and in three of those five seasons, their Week 18 game has had zero playoff ramifications. They faced win-and-in scenarios in 2021 and 2023 but lost both games.

Colts owner & CEO Carlie Irsay-Gordon didn't publicly say 2026 is playoffs-or-bust for general manager Chris Ballard and head coach Shane Steichen, but she did say, "We have been very clear with Chris and Shane that giving them another opportunity means that the sense of urgency for them to deliver and perform has never been higher."

The Colts' playoff and divisional inconsistencies span a decade-plus, but especially over the last few years.

Steichen was hired in 2023, and his Colts have swept the Tennessee Titans for three straight years and are a perfect 6-0 against them, but his record falls off a cliff against the rest of the division, as he's 1-5 against each of the Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars for a combined 2-10.

The Colts haven't beaten Jacksonville since Week 18 of 2024 (two-game losing streak) and Houston since Week 2 of 2023 (five-game losing streak).

The Colts' AFC South schedule in 2026 is as follows: Week 3 vs. Texans, Week 6 vs. Titans, Week 8 @ Jaguars, Week 11 @ Texans, Week 15 @ Titans, Week 18 vs. Jaguars.

The Colts' most befuddling streak is their inability to win on the road against the Jaguars, which includes a game in London. They haven't won since 2014, when they blasted Blake Bortles' squad, 44-17. During the streak, the Jaguars have had good teams, so-so teams, and downright dreadful teams, but it hasn't mattered.

In those 11 losses, the average score is 31-16, with the Jaguars scoring at least 30 points in seven games. The total point differential is 165. The Colts haven't just been unlucky in this series; they've consistently been destroyed. It's an odd phenomenon for a division rivalry.

Last season, Colts quarterback Daniel Jones tore an Achilles and missed the rest of the season in a 26-19 Week 14 loss to the Jaguars at EverBank Stadium.

The Colts next play in Jacksonville this season in Week 8.

Pittsburgh has presented a similar set of problems for the Colts; they just don't play there as often. For starters, dating back to 1968, when the Colts were in Baltimore, they've beaten the Steelers on the road just twice in 19 tries: 1968 and 2008.

Since that last win by Manning in 2008, the Colts have had five road matchups in Pittsburgh. The average score is 35-22, with a total point differential of 65.

Last season, the Colts were on top of the NFL world, with a league-best 7-1 record before putting together their first ugly performance in a 27-20 loss to the Steelers in Week 9 at Acrisure Stadium.

The Colts next play in Pittsburgh this season in Week 5, a week after playing in London.