What did ESPN’s NFL analyst Ben Solak love and not love about the Indianapolis Colts’ offseason moves?
What did ESPN’s NFL analyst Ben Solak love and not love about the Indianapolis Colts’ offseason moves?
Solak recently power-ranked each NFL team’s offseason and highlighted what he liked and disliked about the moves that were made.
For the Colts, on the power ranking end of things, they came in at No. 16 following their free agency moves. Right in the middle.
As far as what Solak loved, it was simply GM Chris Ballard’s willingness to spend. The big moves made were Charvarius Ward signing a three-year deal worth $54 million and Cam Bynum a four-year, $60 million contract.
“The Colts have been one of the league’s most committed draft-and-develop teams, but they have also been an underperforming team that has struggled against playoff teams,” wrote Solak.
These big contracts for Bynum and Ward came on the heels of Ballard, during his season-ending press conference back in January, calling his roster-building approach during the 2024 offseason a “mistake.”
Ballard banked on internal development and continuity being the catalysts for the Colts in 2024, but instead, in many areas, the team regressed. A lack of competition on the roster was one of the root causes for those woes and to remedy that, a different approach in free agency was needed, which to Ballard’s credit, he very much did adjust.
Now, as far as what Solak didn’t love, as he put it, it is the “implications of the Jones signing.”
The Colts’ signing Jones to a one-year, $14 million deal isn’t an issue for Solak. He also gets why adding veteran quarterback competition is the smart move with there now being “two crapshoots at quarterback instead of one,” as Solak said.
However, what he didn’t love was what this signing means for the current state of the Colts roster.
“If signing Jones to a one-year bridge deal is good news for your team, that’s a poor reflection on the roster. The Colts were clearly desperate for Jones to give them another escape hatch from their bad quarterback situation, and putting that many eggs in the Jones basket reveals just how desperate Ballard is for consistent quarterbacking. It’s not a good place to be.”
Whether it be from Jones or Richardson, the ultimate remedy for the unknowns that the Colts face as a whole is stronger play from the quarterback position. When that happens, everything else often falls into place. Regardless of who steps up, as long as it happens, then the Jones signing looks like a good addition. But, of course, it’s not a given that happens.