With a 3-7 record heading into Thanksgiving, we know this Colts' team won't be in the playoffs in January. Fans are hoping that leads to a high draft pick, but given Indy's remaining schedule, it looks like the Colts could push their way back to the middle of the first round:
Half of those six games come against lightly-regarded opponents:
Week 14 at Buffalo: the Bills aren't close to as good as what their record may indicate (5-4), and they just benched their starting quarterback for a fifth-round pick named Nathan Peterman. The eighth quarterback selected in last year's draft will have a few weeks to show what he can do before the Colts' game.
Week 15 Denver: speaking of benching quarterbacks, former starter Trevor Siemian is now Denver's #3 QB, with the awful Brock Osweiler now captaining the offense - a unit that's produced an anemic 14 points per game over their last seven games (Broncos have dropped six of seven).
Week 17 vs. Houston: the Colts already won in Houston, and without Deshaun Watson, the Texans are the worst team in the division.
The only game that looks like a sure loss is at Jacksonville, and while the Colts will be underdogs to the Titans and Ravens, neither of those teams are unbeatable.
I'm not openly rooting for the Colts to lose, but let's be honest: there's no difference between 4-12 and 7-9. Draft position is more important for the franchise than saving some face during a season that is going nowhere.
A soon-to-be-fired coach winning a couple of meaningless games does nothing productive for the Colts in 2018 or beyond. But... just be prepared in case this team "grinds out" a 6-10 mark.