The 2013 season went well for the Indianapolis Colts as they claimed their first AFC South title since 2010 with a fine 11-5 record.
Head coach Chuck Pagano, who was treated for leukaemia for much of the previous season, was back strongly for 2013 and managed to guide the Colts to their first post-season win since 2009.
They had the same record as the 2012 season, but their performances against divisional rivals were much stronger, finishing undefeated against fellow AFC South sides.
Here, Sport Mole takes a closer look at their 2013 season.
Pre-season expectations
The expectations in Indianapolis are always high and the 2013 season was no different. The team regularly finish with 10-plus wins in the regular season and they wanted this to be their 13th from 15th season. The big aim was to get further into the playoffs than they managed in 2012. The previous year they were beaten in the wildcard round by eventual winners the Baltimore Ravens, and they also wanted to get back to the top of their division having been beaten to it the previous year by the Houston Texans.
Highlight of the season
Having not been used to seeing a divisional rival above them in the AFC South much in the previous 10 seasons, they missed out twice in 2011 and 2012 to the Texans. They responded with a bang in 2013. They won all six clashes this year against teams in their division, with a double over the Texans particularly satisfying. A Lucas Oil Stadium was baying for blood against a wounded Texans team on December 15 and the home side did not let up, cruising to a 25-3 victory and well and truly confirming them as the best in the AFC South.
Biggest disappointment
In the playoff wildcard round the Colts produced one of the most thrilling comebacks in modern NFL history to beat the Kansas City Chiefs from 28 points behind. They went from that high to their luck finally running out at the hands of the New England Patriots. In the divisional playoff the Pats were too strong, sending the Colts home wondering what might have been.
Player of the season
It might be surprising with some of the high-scoring games that the Colts were involved with in 2013, but their key player was on defense. When they won, they regularly won by big margins and in five of the 16 regular season games they managed to keep their opponents down to 10 points or fewer, which is impressive. At the heart of that mean D was outside linebacker Robert Mathis, who finished the season with a huge 19.5 sacks. It was a career high for him as well as a franchise record and his performances earned him the Deacon Jones Award.
Unsung hero
NFL kickers are often taken for granted, particularly when they have the ability of Adam Vinatieri. There were a number of tight games that the Colts were involved with in 2013, and without the quality of Vinatieri more might not have gone their way. His 139 points for the season was the second-highest in a glittering career and during the season he also reached 2,000 career points.
Off-season changes
There are a number of players who could be entering, or at least testing the water of, March's free agency. Vinatieri is among the players possibly heading to new clubs, while Antoine Bethea is probably the biggest name of the lot. The amount of players leaving could free up a huge amount of salary cap room, which means that there could be a lot of movement over the summer months. They have traded a lot of Draft picks, so the free agency is vital for them. Safety Jairus Byrd could be a possibility to replace Bethea.
2014 prospects
At this moment it is quite tough to call where the Colts might be heading next season. There will be a lot of new faces for 2014, and they also showed with the release of Peyton Manning at the end of 2012 that bold moves are not beyond them. Whatever happens in the off-season, though, everyone at Indianapolis will be targeting a playoff spot at the very minimum.
Matt Domm
