Both Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen and wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. addressed their murky futures with the franchise post-game, following another disappointing late season collapse (via WISH-TV News and The Athletic’s James Boyd respectively):
Regarding Steichen, the 40-year-old head coach has failed to make the playoffs in his first three years as Colts head coach, but has had to navigate a constant turnstile at the starting quarterback position. Aside from Anthony Richardson and Joe Flacco, most Colts quarterbacks have done fairly well under his tutelage—including most recently, a 44-year-old Philip Rivers (who hadn’t played in five years) and a rookie 6th rounder Riley Leonard.
It’s worth noting that Steichen’s current Colts contract runs through the 2028 season, so he’s not set to become a lame duck head coach either for 2026.
Certainly helping his Colts’ cause too is that injured (and now recovering) starting quarterback Daniel Jones, who’s set to become a 2026 free agent, is Indianapolis’ best readily available option at starting quarterback next year. Given the success that both Steichen and Jones shared to begin 2025 together, before injuries struck the Colts starting QB, and it makes sense to bring the pairing back in a package deal—at least for the 2026 campaign.
Meanwhile, Pittman Jr. has predominantly been a reliable big-bodied possession target, tenacious yards after the catch runner, and outstanding perimeter run blocker during his 6-year tenure with the Colts. He’s more than lived up to his draft billing as a former Indianapolis 2020 second round pick, becoming a rock solid pro wideout.
That being said, another pending 2026 free agent, wideout Alec Pierce, surpassed Pittman Jr. as the Colts’ WR1 this year, which is a title that the latter had held largely throughout his entire career with Indy previously.
At 28-years-old, it’s not that Pittman Jr. isn’t a productive starting receiver anymore, but it’s a fair question of whether the lingering back injury from last year has sapped him of some of his receiving explosiveness this season. Furthermore, it’s really hard to justify his projected 2026 salary cap hit of $29 million cap hit next year, given his diminished receiving production and the exorbitant price-tag.
Pittman Jr. finished the 2025 season with 80 receptions for 784 total receiving yards and 7 touchdown receptions during 16 games (15 starts).
It’ll be interesting to see what the future holds for either of these two Colts leaders, and whether it’ll be remaining in Indianapolis going forward.
