The players are sick of hearing about it. The coaches are, too. The topic is a redundant media talking point, many of them say, but it’s only redundant because nothing has changed.
“Obviously, we’ve not had the success we want down (there),” Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor admitted.
No kidding.
The Colts have not defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road since 2014. It’s one of the most bizarre losing streaks in the NFL, especially considering that Jacksonville hasn’t been a perennial juggernaut. In fact, the Jaguars have suffered through seven losing seasons during those 10 years, yet every year they always seem to find a way to beat the Colts.
“I think you all talk about the streak more than enough for all of us,” Colts linebacker Zaire Franklin said. “I don’t really know how relevant it is, to be honest with you, just because it’s a new year. It’s a new team. … It’s a whole bunch of new people in here. Every year is a new opportunity.”
That may be true, but the stakes for this year’s trip to Duval County couldn’t be much higher for a Week 14 matchup. The Colts and Jaguars are tied atop the AFC South at 8-4, with the latter technically in first place due to a better record against common opponents. Sunday’s winners take the driver’s seat in the race for the division title. The losers, meanwhile, could soon find themselves on the outside of the playoff picture.
“It’s a whole lot of firsts going around this year,” Franklin said, referencing his team’s season open-winning win, which was Indy’s first since 2013. “… I understand (the Jacksonville streak) is something to speak on. But I’m just thankful that we were able to give our fans something else to talk about after that Week 1 win. So, I guess we got another (streak to end) this week.”
As the Colts try to end their decade-long skid in Jacksonville — en route to their first AFC South title since 2014 — let’s take a look back at the Duval County curse.
Week 14, 2015: Jaguars 51, Colts 16
This loss snapped Indianapolis’ 16-game winning streak in the AFC South that spanned nearly three years. The Colts actually led 13-9 at halftime, but they were outscored 42-3 in the second half. The Jaguars’ 51 points remain a franchise record. Matt Hasselbeck started at QB for the Colts, replacing the injured Andrew Luck (shoulder), but as the Jaguars kept piling up points, Hasselbeck would end up getting hurt himself (ribs). Charlie Whitehurst stepped in for him in the fourth quarter to finish off one of the most lopsided losses in Colts history. Blake Bortles starred for the Jaguars with four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing).
Week 4, 2016: Jaguars 30, Colts 27 (London)
Yes, the Duval County curse has a passport, evidenced by the Colts’ narrow road loss to the Jaguars at Wembley Stadium. Indianapolis trailed 23-6 late in the third quarter before Luck engineered a furious rally. His 64-yard touchdown pass to Phillip Dorsett made it a three-point game with just over three minutes left, but the Colts ran out of gas. They turned it over on downs on their penultimate drive of the game, and Bortles and company escaped with the victory. Bortles finished 19-of-33 passing for 207 yards and two TDs, plus a 1-yard TD run.
Week 13, 2017: Jaguars 30, Colts 10
Jacoby Brissett was the Colts’ starter in 2017 with Luck out for the year with a shoulder injury. Indianapolis did not fare well in Luck’s absence, finishing the year 4-12, including this 20-point defeat against Jacksonville. Brissett was 21-of-36 passing for 174 yards and one TD, connecting with T.Y Hilton on a 40-yard score in the third quarter. But Brissett also threw two interceptions and was sacked four times. Meanwhile, Bortles was brilliant again, finishing 26-of-35 passing for 309 yards and two touchdowns.
Week 13, 2018: Jaguars 6, Colts 0
This was probably the Colts’ weirdest defeat during this 10-year losing streak in Jacksonville, especially considering how the rest of the season went. Indianapolis won nine of its last 10 regular-season games to make the playoffs and end a three-year postseason drought. But even in a year where so much went right, so much still went wrong in Duval County. Luck was 33-of-52 passing for 248 yards and one interception as Indianapolis was held scoreless against a Jaguars team that won just five games in 2018. Two field goals from Jacksonville’s Josh Lambo proved to be the difference.
Week 17, 2019: Jaguars 38, Colts 20
Luck shocked the NFL world by retiring just before the 2019 season began, and Indianapolis was understandably unable to recover on such short notice. (Some may argue that the franchise is still trying to find its way.) The Colts ended the year by being steamrolled in a familiar place: Jacksonville. Brissett was 12-of-25 passing for just 162 yards. Marlon Mack added 15 carries for 77 yards and two touchdowns, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Minshew Mania. Gardner Minshew, a sixth-round pick in 2019, torched the Colts with three touchdown passes against one interception.
Week 1, 2020: Jaguars 27, Colts 20
The Jaguars opened the season with a win over the Colts and then proceeded to lose every game for the rest of the year. That, my friends, is the definition of the Duval County curse. Indianapolis rebounded just fine, finishing 11-5 to punch its ticket to the postseason, but it was fitting that even in Philip Rivers’ lone season with the Colts, he, too, fell victim to a road loss against the Jaguars. Rivers was intercepted twice, while Minshew only had one incompletion. The second-year pro was 19-of-20 passing for 173 yards and three touchdowns.
Week 18, 2021: Jaguars 26, Colts 11
All the Colts had to do was beat the 2-14 Jaguars to make the playoffs, but of course, that was too much to ask. In one of the most embarrassing performances in Colts history, they were stunned by the lowly Jaguars, who snapped their eight-game losing streak while simultaneously ending the Colts’ campaign. Laquon Treadwell, now a reserve receiver and special teamer for the Colts, caught a 2-yard touchdown pass for the Jaguars in the second quarter. Asked this week if he remembers that play and the role he played in extending the Duval County Course, the veteran gave a wry smile and said, “Of course,” before noting that he’s with Indianapolis now and that’s where his allegiance lies.
Week 2, 2022: Jaguars 24, Colts 0
The blowout loss foreshadowed the abysmal season to come. Indianapolis finished 4-12-1 and, for the second time during this 10-year losing streak, failed to score a point in Duval County. The first line of my postgame story summarized how disgusted I was with the Colts’ performance, just eight months removed from the Jaguars denying them a playoff berth. “There’s no reason to beat a dead horse. The Jaguars already did that,” I wrote. Matt Ryan, in his lone season in Indy, threw three interceptions and was sacked five times. On the other side, Trevor Lawrence finished 25-of-30 passing for 235 yards and two TDs.
Week 6, 2023: Jaguars 37, Colts 20
This game was supposed to be a homecoming for Florida native Anthony Richardson Sr., whom the Colts drafted fourth in 2023. But the rookie suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in Week 5 and was replaced in the starting lineup by Minshew. The veteran QB, who’d previously dismantled the Colts to build upon the Duval County curse, struggled mightily when he was finally on the other side of it. Minshew finished 33-of-55 passing for 329 yards and one touchdown against three interceptions. Lawrence and Travis Etienne Jr. led the way for Jacksonville, scoring two touchdowns apiece.
Week 5, 2024: Jaguars 37, Colts 34
The Jaguars entered this game winless, so, of course, that meant they’d get back on track against the Colts. Joe Flacco stepped in for Richardson, who was sidelined with an oblique injury, and tried his best to lift the Colts to a victory in this high-scoring affair. The 2013 Super Bowl MVP turned back the clock and threw for 359 yards and three touchdowns, but it still wasn’t enough. Lawrence threw for 371 yards and two touchdowns against one pick, and running back Tank Bigsby thrived with 101 yards and two TDs on just 13 carries. Flacco connected with Alec Pierce for a 65-yard touchdown that tied the game with just under three minutes left. However, a 49-yard field goal from Jacksonville’s Cam Little on the ensuing drive ensured the Colts wouldn’t leave Duval County victorious.