Indianapolis, IN — Under general manager Chris Ballard, the Indianapolis Colts have historically avoided the mid-season headache that the NFL trade deadline brings. Partly because there are oftentimes more losers than winners across these deadline deals, but mainly because the Colts have, for the most part, not been in a position to add talent.
The lone example of Ballard and Co. selling or buying at the deadline was when Indy traded away longtime Colts running back Nyheim Hines for running back Zack Moss and a conditional sixth-round pick. Even then, this move was more so a fulfillment of Hines’ trade request wishes than it was a strategic attempt at improving the roster.
Nowadays, however, the Indianapolis Colts are setting the pace. They’ve churned out the NFL’s best record (7-1) through eight weeks of play and visit Pittsburgh this Sunday to take on the 4-3 Steelers in a battle of AFC Division leaders. Head coach Shane Steichen looks to add to his head-to-head record against Mike Tomlin’s Steelers after besting him each of the previous two seasons.
As far as the latter half of the season post-Sunday goes, the Colts are finally in a position to justify forking over assets for a rental. The NFL Trade Deadline is set for Tuesday at 4 PM EST, so although GM Chris Ballard has the opportunity to bolster his roster, time is ticking.
The Colts are indeed active on phone lines behind the scenes, and more specifically, are seeking out additional help in pass rush and/or in the secondary at cornerback, ESPN’s Stephen Holder reports. To be fair, this wrinkle is amongst the most obvious, though it’s important to reference official reports.
Indianapolis has stayed afloat defensively despite seemingly drowning at times, thanks to its historic offense on the other end, providing ample opportunity with long fields after quick scores, but the floaties used have been its opportunistic playstyle.
Under defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, the beaten-down Colts defense has managed to stay at the top of the league in takeaways (T-3rd with 12), scoring defense (19.3 PPG), and sacks total (T-5th with 23); it’s the aforementioned bend-don’t-break mentality — regardless of whether or not Anarumo detests such a philosophy — that’s caused such concerning lapses of judgment at times. When you take a look under the hood, you notice that the defense is struggling to the tune of 345 yards allowed per game (24th) and has allowed opposing offenses to convert third downs at a 47% clip (30th).
Furthermore, Holder once again reiterated that the Colts are interested in Cincinnati Bengals’ defensive end Trey Hendrickson, the 2024 NFL sack leader whose efforts came under now-Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, but that ship seems to have sailed with Cincy standing pat on their requested compensation. Regardless, storylines in the NFL move quickly, and although it feels like the Bengals are putting all of their eggs in veteran quarterback Joe Flacco’s broken basket, a big-time loss on Sunday could change their tune entirely.
More likely, however, I feel the Colts can take advantage of the oh-so-obvious fire sale that the Miami Dolphins are sure to put on after mutually parting ways with general manager Chris Grier earlier today. I have no (related) sources, but there are two defensive players from Miami who I feel perfectly fit what the Colts are looking for: cornerback Rasul Douglas and pass rusher Jaelan Phillips.
The former is much more likely, given the Colts only have around $3.6M in cap space, according to Over The Cap. Douglas’s $1.5M cap hit would singlehandedly fit, but adding Phillips into the equation, or replacing him as the focal point instead of Douglas, makes the solution trickier. Phillips’ $13.2M cap hit would require the Colts to include additional assets and/or restructure deals with current players.
Sure, Dolphins interim general manager Champ Kelly will have little to no leverage in these discussions, but he also doesn’t have to give away players for free. Miami ownership clearly installed guardrails to protect the long-term interests of the franchise as we approach the deadline, but with both Douglas and Phillips on expiring deals, you wonder how much leeway there actually is.
NFL Senior Insider Alber Breer mentioned in his trade deadline article earlier today that the Colts have taken calls from teams who view their wide receiver room as one with a surplus of talent. Breer himself didn’t speculate further, but I believe second-year wideout AD Mitchell is the secret admirer teams are calling for. After an inconsistent 1.5 years in the league, there seems to be no avenue left for Mitchell to climb up the depth chart after essentially being demoted for veteran wide receiver Ashton Dulin earlier in the season, as well as when you consider the looming contract extension/re-signing to the NFL’s best deep threat in Alec Pierce.
Regardless of how this shakes out, the Indianapolis Colts are in a fantastic spot as the NFL Trade Deadline approaches. Already proven that they can win seven games in eight tries with this current roster, Indy should feel no pressure to make a move, but rather, view any potential acquisition as nothing more than bonus help. At the end of the day, trading requires two to tango; therefore, if a deal doesn’t materialize, that doesn’t mean Ballard and Co. sat on their hands, it could very well mean that the asking price wasn’t justifiable.
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