| Team: | Indianapolis Colts |
| Year: | 1997 |
| Record: | 3–13 |
| Division Place: | 5th AFC East |
| Coach: | Lindy Infante |
| Stadium: | RCA Dome |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Shortnavlink: | Colts seasons |
The 1997 Indianapolis Colts season was the 45th season for the team in the National Football League and 14th in Indianapolis. The Colts finished the National Football League’s 1997 season with a record of 3 wins and 13 losses, and finished fifth in the AFC East division. The Colts would start horribly, losing their first ten games for their worst start since 1986. They became only the second team to start 0–10 since 1987 after the 1993 Bengals,[1] before an upset home win over eventual NFC Champion Green Bay. That would turn out to be the only good highlight all season for the Colts, as the team fell to a league-worst 3–13 record, and earned the first overall pick in the 1998 NFL draft, where they selected quarterback Peyton Manning.
See main article: 1997 NFL draft.
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Game Site | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 31 | at Miami Dolphins | L 10–16 | 0–1 | Pro Player Stadium | 70,813 | |
| 2 | September 7 | New England Patriots | L 6–31 | 0–2 | RCA Dome | 53,632 | |
| 3 | September 14 | Seattle Seahawks | L 3–31 | 0–3 | RCA Dome | 49,194 | |
| 4 | September 21 | at Buffalo Bills | L 35–37 | 0–4 | Rich Stadium | 55,340 | |
| 5 | Bye | ||||||
| 6 | October 5 | New York Jets | L 12–16 | 0–5 | RCA Dome | 48,295 | |
| 7 | October 12 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 22–24 | 0–6 | Three Rivers Stadium | 57,925 | |
| 8 | Buffalo Bills | L 6–9 | 0–7 | RCA Dome | 61,139 | ||
| 9 | October 26 | at San Diego Chargers | L 19–35 | 0–8 | Jack Murphy Stadium | 63,177 | |
| 10 | November 2 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 28–31 | 0–9 | RCA Dome | 58,512 | |
| 11 | November 9 | Cincinnati Bengals | L 13–28 | 0–10 | RCA Dome | 58,473 | |
| 12 | November 16 | Green Bay Packers | W 41–38 | 1–10 | RCA Dome | 60,928 | |
| 13 | November 23 | at Detroit Lions | L 10–32 | 1–11 | Pontiac Silverdome | 62,803 | |
| 14 | November 30 | at New England Patriots | L 17–20 | 1–12 | Foxboro Stadium | 58,507 | |
| 15 | December 7 | at New York Jets | W 22–14 | 2–12 | The Meadowlands | 61,168 | |
| 16 | December 14 | Miami Dolphins | W 41–0 | 3–12 | RCA Dome | 61,282 | |
| 17 | December 21 | at Minnesota Vikings | L 28–39 | 3–13 | Metrodome | 54,107 | |
| Note: Intra-divisional opponents are in bold text. | |||||||