The motto for the Colts for the 2025 season is simple: "Win for Jim." The organization has rallied around the memory of former owner and CEO Jim Irsay, wanting nothing more than to honor his legacy and everything he did for his football team.
And on Sunday, the day Irsay was inducted into the Colts' Ring of Honor, the Colts did exactly that as they beat the Miami Dolphins 33-8 and ended their streak of 11 straight years without winning a season opener.
In Daniel Jones' first appearance in a Colts uniform, the quarterback was consistent and methodical as he completed 22-of-29 passes for 272 yards and a touchdown, and had two rushing touchdowns of his own.
The first quarter saw the Colts dominate possession from the start; the Dolphins only had the ball for two minutes and 25 seconds. That statistic largely came courtesy of safety Cam Bynum and the defense, who pressured Tua Tagovailoa into throwing an interception on just the fifth play of their first (and only) drive of the quarter.
Jones and his offense, on the other hand, were methodical and consistent throughout the quarter. The Colts' first drive of the 2025 season heavily featured rookie tight end Tyler Warren and ended in a 24-yard field goal from kicker Spencer Shrader.
The second drive leaned much more on running back Jonathan Taylor, who had a 16-yard reception and multiple emphatic rushes – but it was wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. who closed out the drive with a 27-yard touchdown to put the Colts up 10-0 at the beginning of the second quarter.
Lou Anarumo's defense once again held up their end of the bargain following the touchdown, this time with cornerback Kenny Moore II flying around the field for a sack and a forced fumble that was then recovered by cornerback Xavien Howard. This time, the Dolphins only held the ball for two plays.
With even more confidence and energy, Jones led the fastest drive of the game to that point (two minutes and 13 seconds) for another touchdown, brought across the goal line by the quarterback himself. He hit wide receiver Adonai Mitchell with a 24-yard pass along the sidelines and tight end Mo Alie-Cox for a 20-yard gain, and bullied the ball across the line to put his team up 17-0 with 12 minutes remaining in the second quarter.
The Dolphins continued to face intense pressure on their following possession as Tagovailoa was sacked two more times – once by safety Nick Cross, with a blazing-fast blitz around the edge, and then again by defensive end Samson Ebukam to force a punt.
The Colts were able to put three more points on the board before halftime with a 35-yard field goal from Shrader, taking a 20-0 lead into halftime. At the half, the Colts held the advantage in just about every statistic: 187-29 passing yards, 68-14 rushing yards, 17-3 total first downs.
Anarumo and his defense picked right back up where they left off in the third quarter as defensive end Laiatu Latu snagged his first interception of his NFL career, reading Tagovailoa perfectly and switching directions to pluck the ball out of thin air.
On the very first play of the second half, Jones filled in the last thing the Colts' passing game had been without – a deep ball – with a stellar 36-yard completion to wide receiver Alec Pierce. The Colts capped off the drive with a field goal, still yet to punt the ball.
As the fourth quarter began, the Colts continued to dominate in all areas; the Dolphins had held the ball for only 15 minutes all day. With a quarterback sneak at the goal line, Jones extended the Colts' lead to 30-0 with just over 10 minutes remaining in the game.
The Dolphins reached the red zone for the first time all game on the following drive and pushed a touchdown of their own into the endzone; a successful two-point conversion brought the score to 30-8.
Another field goal from Shrader (48 yards) extended the Colts' lead and, with just over two minutes left on the clock, effectively sealed the victory.
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SUN., SEPT. 14 – COLTS VS. BRONCOS
White Out.
The team will don its iconic white-on-white uniform, featured in the team's Super Bowl XLI win, and encourage fans to join in to create an unstoppable home field advantage.
The Colts face the Dolphins in Week 1 of the 2025 season at Lucas Oil Stadium.
