Pat McAfee goes scorched earth on Colts after elimination from playoff hunt - "A blind person could see the red flags"

The Indianapolis Colts were eliminated from playoff contention on Sunday following a 45-33 loss to the New York Giants.

The Colts were heavily favored heading into the game, given the Giants had no reason to win and held the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft prior to the game.

In a year full of controversies, Indianapolis is guaranteed to end the season with a negative record. One of their harshest critics, punter Pat McAfee, who's now a sports personality working for ESPN, took to Twitter to express his displeasure with how the season unfolded. He pointed out multiple incidents and things to improve in order to become competitive again:

"Current players, who have won nothing during their entire tenures, started using me and my face to try and paint me as the enemy in the city I’ve committed my life to. And in the end… everything went.. just like I f*****g said it would," he tweeted. "In the biggest moments, everybody with a brain knew they’d crack.. and they did.

"A blind person could see the red flags on this team. Work ethic questions, NEVER happens on good teams.. Preparation commitment questions, NEVER happens on good teams.. Late to meetings, NEVER happens on good teams.. Late to/skipping treatment, NEVER happens on good teams..

McAfee also highlighted Anthony Richardson, who exited a game during a crucial third-down play because he was tired.

“Hey the franchise quarterback, who’s a professional athlete getting paid millions of dollars, and the face of a multi billion dollar franchise tapped out of the game because… because… because he was tired in the middle of the season” “Oh wow.. that team has no chance” would be the immediate response..

"That’s a locker room issue., a culture issue, an indicator of a loser attitude radiating through a building that was built by greats. I have no idea how they fix it. I don’t think it’s like a light switch."

McAfee also took aim at the players and staff, accusing them of a lack of professionalism.

"Your unwarranted arrogance, laziness, and lack of professionalism has lead you to ANOTHER early vacation… which is probably what most of you entitled bums have been hoping for. I don’t speak for the city.. and I don’t speak for all ex Colts players because I was only a punter.. nominated for the HOF 3 times now but nonetheless.. I speak from my own perspective.. I’ve never seen a group waste opportunities/talent/money more than this group."

McAfee played with the franchise from 2009 to 2016, netting a First-Team All-Pro appearance and a 4-5 record in the playoffs. He later made plenty of WWE appearances before turning into a media personality.

What's the 'tap out' incident mentioned by Pat McAfee about Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson?

After a scramble in Week 8 against the Houston Texans, the quarterback took himself out for one play as he needed to catch a breather. Even though one play doesn't seem much, opinions were critical of the quarterback, saying that the leader of a franchise should never do that.

Even Colts center Ryan Kelly said that he had a conversation with Richardson and made it clear that this wasn't the standard he needed to live up to. McAfee, at the time, was also critical of the quarterback on his Twitter account.

As a result, Richardson was benched for a couple of games before returning to the starter position. He did not play in Week 17 due to injury, and Joe Flacco could not lead the team to a win, effectively ending their season.