INDIANAPOLIS — Even after a tough loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game, Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano said he’s not deterred and the goals for the franchise still remain the same.

“We took another step in the right direction. We didn’t finish obviously how we wanted to finish. It’s disappointing, but like I told (the team), the sun came up (Monday) morning. We’ve got a lot to be grateful for. The future looks bright for this football team,” Pagano said.

Yes, the Colts are still intent on Building The Monster. That slogan, which has been emblazoned on T-shirts and posters in the team facility since Pagano and general manager Ryan Grigson came on board in 2012, still has a lot of meaning.

“Somebody wrote in some paper somewhere, not that I read them, about the monster being built and doesn’t look like it’s quite there yet. Even after we hoist the Lombardi Trophy, the building will never stop. We just keep laying bricks is all we can do,” the Colts coach said.

“There’s a lot of great things that happened this year. After an 0-2 start, rip off five wins and finish the second, third and fourth quarters of the season going 3-1 in each of those quarters. Some great wins, some tough losses. Guys bounce back like they always do. Again, we didn’t finish the way we that we wanted to finish, but there’s a lot of great things.”

So what’s next for Indianapolis?

“Like I said, this is an up and coming team, and we’ve got to find a way (to correct the team’s weaknesses). There’s obviously things from that game that we recognized that we have to, that need to be addressed and we will address them,” Pagano acknowledged.

“We will find a way to make sure. It’s really, really hard, as you guys know, to get to the Final Four. There’s 28 teams sitting at home watching. We were one of the four that wasn’t. We’re knocking on the door. Now we’ve got to find a way to kick the door in. That’s what we started to go to work on (Monday).”

One thing is almost certain. There will be tweaks to the team’s roster during the offseason. Indianapolis has 14 unrestricted free agents, six restricted free agents and five exclusive-rights free agents to make decisions on.

“That’s what I told (the team). I said just embrace this moment that we have right now because there’s going to be new faces (next season). And there’s going to be faces in there that aren’t going to be here next year. That’s the NFL. It’s the nature of the business,” Pagano said.

“We all know what we signed up for. The game, like we said, will fade for all of us. But the relationships will never. That’s the harsh reality of the National Football League. They understand it. I understand it. All of our coaches understand it.”

The Colts will have approximately $25.6 million in cap room to work with, so team owner Jim Irsay, Grigson and Pagano will sit down relatively soon to map out their immediate plans.

But first, the team’s coaching staff is going to take a short break and get away for a few days. Grigson and the scouting department, meanwhile, are at the Senior Bowl for practices and the game to look over the new crop of potential draftees.

“You have to get away from it. Coaches need to get out of here and get away from it. We’ve got things we need to take care of in the next couple days, but then we’ve got to get away from it. (The coaches have) got to get away from it,” Pagano explained.

“It’s just the amount of time. You can’t take three months and show up here, April 20 is when the offseason program starts, you can’t show up here April 20 and say, ‘All right, let’s go. I’m ready.’ You can start the process today, which we did, and then tomorrow and then the next day. Now it’s just a matter of each individual making that decision daily, ‘OK, here’s what I’ve got to do to get better today,’ and then go do it.”

When everybody does get back together, the Colts will take a serious look at the team’s pluses and minuses.

“You have to be honest with yourself; I have to and everybody has to. You got to take a look at it and you have to be willing to grow,” Pagano said. “You’ve got to make the decision to get better, and that started (Monday). We’ve got to get tougher, smarter, faster, bigger, stronger. I’ve got to teach better, I’ve got to coach better, I’ve got to become a better head coach in 2015 then I was in 2014.”

“Learn better, meet better, walk-throughs better, practice better; everything. Again, it’s going to be hard as heck to get back to that opportunity, that final four and knocking on that door. Now you’ve got to find a way to kick it in and give yourself a chance to ultimately play for it all.”