Indianapolis Colts Rumors & News - Pro Football Rumors

AFC North Notes: Colts, Mack, Ravens, Stanley, Humphrey

June 2nd, 2020 at 9:55am CST by Zach Links

After his first season with more than 1,000 yards rushing, Marlon Mack isn’t assured the starting role in the Colts‘ backfield. Head coach Frank Reich says he’ll have a leg up on second-round pick Jonathan Taylor, but he also says that fans shouldn’t get too hung up on the RB1 designation.

“There’s definitely inherent respect for the starter returning,” Reich said (via Kevin Bowen of 105.7 The Fan). “I see it as a 1-1 (punch). The way the league has gone and the way role playing has been elevated in our league, it’s made it prominent. We used to say in San Diego that when we had Danny Woodhead. He was not our starter, he was our ‘role playing’ starter. He played such a significant role. He had 80 catches in a year. You look at a guy like Nyehim Hines. We talk about Marlon and Jonathan, but what about Nyheim? He’s such a good third-down back that he’ll play a prominent (role). In some ways, (Hines) is a starter. He’s a role-playing starter.”

Right now, it seems like Mack will have to prove himself all over in camp as he gets set for his final year under contract. As it stands, he’s set to make $2.13MM in base salary before reaching the open market in March of 2021.

Here’s more from the AFC North:

After turning in a stellar season, Ravens left tackle Ronnie Stanley could become the league’s highest-paid non-quarterback, ESPN.com’s Jamison Hensley writes. Currently, Bears edge rusher Khalil Mack ($23.5MM per year) leads the way, followed by Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald ($22.5MM). This year, fellow left tackle Laremy Tunsil ($22MM/year) put himself in that neighborhood, but Stanley is likely to leapfrog him. In 2019, Stanley allowed Lamar Jackson to be pressured just six times, the lowest total of any offensive tackle in 14 years.
The Ravens have other deals on their agenda, of course, including a new contract for Marlon Humphrey. With all due respect for Stanley, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic argues that the cornerback should actually be priority No. 1. When it comes to Stanley, his comp has already been set, thanks to the Tunsil deal. Meanwhile, time is of the essence with Humphrey – the top of the CB market will be reset soon with Jalen Ramsey, Marshon Lattimore, and Tre’Davious White all due for new deals.
The Browns went ahead with their gradual re-opening plan with Phase 1 beginning on Monday (Twitter link). Meanwhile, other clubs are still working on alternative plans. The Raiders, who were set to hold camp in Napa, California, may shift to their new headquarters in Henderson, Nevada.

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Latest On Nyheim Hines' Role

May 21st, 2020 at 7:49pm CST by Dallas Robinson

After drafting Jonathan Taylor in Round 2, the Colts now have a pair of starting-caliber in running backs in the Wisconsin product and incumbent Marlon Mack. So where does that leave passing-game back Nyheim Hines? “I wouldn’t anticipate [Hines] is going to play as many snaps as Marlon and Jonathan, but there are still enough snaps for him to be very, very productive this year,” Colts head coach Frank Reich told Joel Erickson of the Indianapolis Star. Indy is hoping Hines becomes its version of Danny Woodhead, who caught 80 passes in for the Chargers in 2015 with Reich as offensive coordinator.

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Colts, Ryan Kelly Discussing Extension

May 20th, 2020 at 3:22pm CST by Zach Links

Ryan Kelly‘s camp is discussing an extension with Colts GM Chris Ballard, according to the center (Twitter link via Zak Keefer of The Athletic). As it stands, Kelly has one year left on his rookie deal, via the fifth-year option.

Kelly says that he wants to spend his “entire career in Indianapolis” and Ballard is likely on board with that plan. Last year, Kelly started in all 16 of the Colts’ regular season games and anchored one of the league’s best offensive lines. He earned his first ever Pro Bowl nod for that campaign and he’ll likely score a major contract to match.

For now, Kelly is slated to earn $10.35MM in 2020, up from about $3.3MM last year. A new pact would likely put him in the range of $10MM-$12MM, positioning him as one of the NFL’s highest-paid centers.

Connor McGovern scored the largest deal of any free agent center this year when he joined the Jets on a three-year, $27MM deal. Kelly will aim higher. Recent extensions for Bucs centers Ryan Jensen (four years, $42MM) and Bills center Mitch Morse (four years, $44.5MM) figure to be his comps. With a $10MM+ AAV, Kelly would join Jensen, Morse, Rodney Hudson, Maurkice Pouncey, Nick Martin, J.C. Tretter, Brandon Linder, and Cody Whitehair in the eight-figure centers club.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Longest-Tenured GMs In The NFL

May 20th, 2020 at 2:07pm CST by Zach Links

When we ran down the longest-tenured head coaches in the NFL, we found that less than half of the league’s current coaches have been in their positions for more than three years. That’s not quite the case with general managers, but there have been plenty of changes in recent years.

A handful of general managers have gotten to take their coats off and stay for a long while. Among coaches, Bill Belichick had joined his team prior to 2003. Here, you’ll see that five GMs have been with their teams since before ’03 (Belichick, of course, is also on this list). Two of those five – Jerry Jones and Mike Brown – are outliers, since they’re team owners and serve as de facto GMs. But the Patriots, Steelers, and Saints, have all had the same general managers making their roster decisions for well over a decade.

Here’s the complete list of the NFL’s longest-tenured GMs, along with the date they took over the job:

Jerry Jones (Dallas Cowboys): April 18, 1989^[1]
Mike Brown (Cincinnati Bengals): August 5, 1991^[2]
Bill Belichick (New England Patriots): January 27, 2000^[3]
Kevin Colbert (Pittsburgh Steelers): February 18, 2000^[4]
Mickey Loomis (New Orleans Saints): May 14, 2002
Rick Spielman (Minnesota Vikings): May 30, 2006^[5]
Thomas Dimitroff (Atlanta Falcons): January 13, 2008
John Schneider (Seattle Seahawks): January 19, 2010^[6]
Howie Roseman (Philadelphia Eagles): January 29, 2010
John Elway (Denver Broncos): January 5, 2011^[7]
Les Snead (St. Louis Rams): February 10, 2012
David Caldwell (Jacksonville Jaguars): January 8, 2013
Steve Keim (Arizona Cardinals): January 8, 2013
Tom Telesco (San Diego Chargers): January 9, 2013
Jason Licht (Tampa Bay Buccaneers): January 21, 2014
Ryan Pace (Chicago Bears): January 8, 2015
Chris Grier (Miami Dolphins): January 4, 2016
Bob Quinn (Detroit Lions): January 8, 2016
Jon Robinson (Tennessee Titans): January 14, 2016
John Lynch (San Francisco 49ers): January 29, 2017
Chris Ballard (Indianapolis Colts): January 30, 2017
Brandon Beane (Buffalo Bills): May 9, 2017
Brett Veach (Kansas City Chiefs): July 11, 2017
Marty Hurney (Carolina Panthers): July 19, 2017
Dave Gettleman (New York Giants): December 28, 2017
Brian Gutekunst (Green Bay Packers): January 7, 2018
Mike Mayock (Oakland Raiders): December 31, 2018
Joe Douglas (New York Jets): June 7, 2019
Eric DeCosta (Baltimore Ravens): January 7, 2019^[8]
Ron Rivera (Washington Redskins): January 1, 2020^[9]
Andrew Berry (Cleveland Browns): January 27, 2020
Bill O’Brien (Houston Texans): January 28, 2020

Footnotes:

Jones has been the Cowboys’ de facto general manager since former GM Tex Schramm resigned in April 1989.
Brown has been the Bengals’ de facto GM since taking over as the team’s owner in August 1991.
Belichick has been the Patriots’ de facto GM since shortly after being hired as the team’s head coach in January 2000.
Colbert was initially hired as the team’s director of football operations and received the newly-created general manager title in 2011.
Spielman was initially hired as the team’s VP of player personnel and received the GM title in 2012.
While Schneider holds the title of GM, head coach Pete Carroll has the final say on roster moves for the Seahawks.
Elway was initially hired as the team’s executive VP of football operations and received the GM title in 2014.
In 2018, the Ravens announced that DeCosta would replace Ozzie Newsome as GM for Ozzie Newsome after the conclusion of the season. The Ravens’ ’18 season ended with their Wild Card loss to the Chargers on 1/6/19.
Technically, the Redskins do not have a GM, as of this writing. Rivera is, effectively, their GM, working in tandem with Vice President of Player Personnel Kyle Smith. Smith may receive the GM title in the near future.

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Colts To Bring Back Philip Rivers In 2021?

May 18th, 2020 at 9:51am CST by Rory Parks

The Colts gave QB Philip Rivers a one-year, $25MM deal this offseason in the hopes that Rivers’ familiarity with Indy’s offensive system and a strong O-line will allow the 38-year-old to recapture some of his former magic. And if he does, look for the team to bring Rivers back in 2021.

Colts head coach Frank Reich told reporters, including Mike Chappell of CBS 4, that he fully anticipates a multi-year relationship with Rivers (Twitter link). That shouldn’t come as much of a surprise given that Reich championed the Rivers signing and has repeatedly said that he has no concerns about the eight-time Pro Bowler’s abilities at this point in his career. Plus, Rivers himself has stated that he wants to play for two more seasons, so if he performs well in 2020, it stands to reason that both sides would want to run it back the following year.

On the other hand, the Colts have also said that they still see 2019 starter and current QB2 Jacoby Brissett as a potential long-term answer, but if the team re-signs Rivers in 2021, Brissett — who is entering the last year of his current deal — will almost certainly seek greener pastures elsewhere. Indianapolis also selected Washington QB Jacob Eason in the fourth round of this year’s draft, and he could take over as Rivers’ backup next season if Brissett leaves.

Of course, this may all be a moot point. There is understandably plenty of concern about how Rivers will play this year given his difficult 2019 campaign, and though playing behind a terrific O-line will help, not all of Rivers’ struggles last season can be attributed to the Chargers’ comparatively weak offensive front. If Rivers looks more like the 2019 version of himself than the 2018 edition, then Brissett and Eason could both become starting options, and the Colts could also look for a first-round signal-caller.

Reich, however, does not expect that to happen and fully believes Rivers’ end-of-career stint in Indianapolis will cover at least two seasons.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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AFC South Notes: Jaguars, Eifert, Colts, Texans

May 17th, 2020 at 12:19pm CST by Zach Links

Jaguars offensive coordinator Jay Gruden knows what he’s getting – or what he’s potentially getting – in tight end Tyler Eifert. Gruden was Eifert’s OC for his rookie year in Cincinnati and watched him flash serious promise. From 2014-2018, Gruden watched from afar as Eifert struggled to stay healthy. Now, they’re reunited in Jacksonville, and Eifert believes big things are in store.

“We get along great,” Eifert said (via John Reid of the Florida Times-Union). “I had a good understanding of the offense he runs. Just having that familiarity with the offense is nice. There’s some new stuff in here. But just being familiar with it and having a general idea of what’s going on makes it a lot easier to learn.”

Last year, Eifert caught 43 passes for 436 yards and three touchdowns for a sagging Bengals team. More importantly, he was on the field for all 16 games. This year, he’ll try to keep the streak going.

Here’s more from the AFC South:

There’s been lots of talk about a potential extension for Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton, but he’s not the only player on the team with a re-up to consider. Stephen Holder of The Athletic ran down Indy’s top candidates, a list that includes center Ryan Kelly, linebacker Darius Leonard, running back Marlon Mack, safety Malik Hooker, and linebacker Anthony Walker. Hooker, of course, is unlikely to sign a new deal before the season starts – the Colts declined his fifth-year option earlier this month, a move that puzzled many and put him on course for free agency following the 2020 season.
At 6’2″ and 213 pounds, Lonnie Johnson Jr. seems like a natural for the safety position. However, Texans defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver plans to keep him at cornerback, as Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle writes. “We got to get his confidence right, and I don’t think he lacks in that area,” Weaver said on a Zoom call. “That rookie year for a corner is difficult. I think he’s going to come in now with more knowledge not only of the system, but DB play in general. And I expect him to take a jump here in year two.” Johnson was inconsistent during the regular season, but he did get a good deal of starting experience. And, as Wilson notes, he made a key deflection on Travis Kelce to help the Texans upset the Chiefs in October (KC, of course, got their revenge in January). Johnson staying at CB, in theory, could improve the chances of Eric Reid joining his brother in the Texans’ secondary.
The Titans are said to have some degree of interest in Jadeveon Clowney, but former Texans colleague and current Tennessee head coach Mike Vrabel says he hasn’t talked to him.

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Longest-Tenured Head Coaches In The NFL

May 16th, 2020 at 1:55pm CST by Zach Links

Things move fast in today’s NFL and the old adage of “coaches are hired to be fired” has seemingly never been more true. For the most part, teams change their coaches like they change their underwear.

A head coach can take his team to the Super Bowl, or win the Super Bowl, or win multiple Super Bowls, but they’re never immune to scrutiny. Just ask Tom Coughlin, who captured his second ring with the Giants after the 2011 season, only to receive his pink slip after the 2015 campaign.

There are also exceptions. Just look at Bill Belichick, who just wrapped up his 20th season at the helm in New England. You’ll also see a few others on this list, but, for the most part, most of today’s NFL head coaches are relatively new to their respective clubs. And, history dictates that many of them will be elsewhere when we check in on this list in 2022.

Over one-third (12) of the NFL’s head coaches have coached no more than one season with their respective teams. Meanwhile, less than half (15) have been with their current clubs for more than three years. It seems like just yesterday that the Cardinals hired Kliff Kingsbury, right? It sort of was – Kingsbury signed on with the Cardinals in January of 2019. Today, he’s practically a veteran.

Here’s the list of the current head coaches in the NFL, ordered by tenure, along with their respective start dates:

Bill Belichick (New England Patriots): January 27, 2000
Sean Payton (New Orleans Saints): January 18, 2006
Mike Tomlin (Pittsburgh Steelers): January 27, 2007
John Harbaugh (Baltimore Ravens): January 19, 2008
Pete Carroll (Seattle Seahawks): January 9, 2010
Andy Reid (Kansas City Chiefs): January 4, 2013
Bill O’Brien (Houston Texans): January 2, 2014
Mike Zimmer (Minnesota Vikings): January 15, 2014
Dan Quinn (Atlanta Falcons): February 2, 2015
Doug Pederson (Philadelphia Eagles): January 18, 2016
Sean McDermott (Buffalo Bills): January 11, 2017
Doug Marrone (Jacksonville Jaguars): December 19, 2016 (interim; permanent since 2017)
Anthony Lynn (Los Angeles Chargers): January 12, 2017
Sean McVay (Los Angeles Rams): January 12, 2017
Kyle Shanahan (San Francisco 49ers): February 6, 2017
Matt Nagy (Chicago Bears): January 7, 2018
Matt Patricia (Detroit Lions): February 5, 2018
Frank Reich (Indianapolis Colts): February 11, 2018
Jon Gruden (Las Vegas Raiders): January 6, 2018
Mike Vrabel (Tennessee Titans): January 20, 2018
Kliff Kingsbury (Arizona Cardinals): January 8, 2019
Zac Taylor (Cincinnati Bengals): February 4, 2019
Vic Fangio (Denver Broncos): January 10, 2019
Matt LaFleur (Green Bay Packers): January 8, 2019
Brian Flores (Miami Dolphins): February 4, 2019
Adam Gase (New York Jets): January 11, 2019
Bruce Arians (Tampa Bay Buccaneers): January 8, 2019
Ron Rivera (Washington Redskins): January 1, 2020
Matt Rhule (Carolina Panthers): January 7, 2020
Mike McCarthy (Dallas Cowboys): January 7, 2020
Joe Judge (New York Giants): January 8, 2020
Kevin Stefanski (Cleveland Browns): January 13, 2020

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Colts Sign Three Draft Picks

May 15th, 2020 at 10:17am CST by Rory Parks

The Colts have agreed to terms with three more draft picks, according to a team announcement. RB Jonathan Taylor (pick no. 41), QB Jacob Eason (no. 122), and LB Jordan Glasgow (no. 213) are all in the fold.

Indianapolis was left without a first-round pick due to the team’s trade for DeForest Buckner earlier this offseason. But the Colts had two second-round choices, and they used one of them on Taylor, a talented back out of Wisconsin (they actually traded up three spots to nab him). One of the concerns surrounding Taylor is his heavy usage in college, as he averaged 309 carries over his three seasons with the Badgers, but he certainly made the most out of those carries. He piled up 6,174 rushing yards on a healthy 6.7 yards-per-tote, and he became more of a factor in the passing game in 2019, contributing 26 catches for 252 yards and five receiving scores.

The Colts already had plenty of young talent in the backfield, with Taylor joining Marlon Mack, Jordan Wilkins, and Nyheim Hines. Mack rushed for nearly 1,100 yards last season as the team’s RB1, but he is entering his contract year, and after seeing Indianapolis invest heavily in RBs in the draft over the past two seasons, he may be playing for a free agent deal elsewhere.

Eason, meanwhile, is an intriguing QB prospect who could be a starting option for the Colts as soon as 2021. Of course, Indy brought in Philip Rivers on a one-year pact for 2020, but current QB2 Jacoby Brissett is also on the last year of his current deal, so Eason will have the opportunity to learn from both players this season and perhaps take the reins next year. In 2019, the strong-armed Washington product completed 64.2% of his passes for 3,132 yards, 23 touchdowns, and eight interceptions.

Glasgow, the Colts’ final selection in the draft, will attempt to crack the team’s LB rotation and special teams unit. The DB-turned-linebacker compiled 89 tackles and five sacks in his final season at Michigan.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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NFL Draft Signings: 5/14/20

May 14th, 2020 at 3:29pm CST by Zach Links

We’ll keep track of today’s late-round signings here:

The Colts signed a pair of sixth-round picks on Thursday: wide receiver Dezmon Patmon and defensive tackle Robert Windsor. With that, the Colts are down to five unsigned selections as of this writing. Windsor, a Penn State product, tallied 20 tackles for loss, 14 sacks, and three forced fumbles over the course of his collegiate career. Patmon, out of Washington State, quietly impressed scouts as he tallied roughly 60 catches and 800 yards in his last two seasons on campus. Windsor will try to push Tyquan Lewis at the bottom of the DT depth chart. Patmon, meanwhile, will have his work cut out for him with lots of WRs already on Indy’s roster. On the plus side, Patmon’s 6’4″ build may give him an edge.

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T.Y. Hilton, Colts Haven’t “Dug In” On Deal

May 14th, 2020 at 2:10pm CST by Zach Links

This week, T.Y. Hilton told reporters that he wants to remain with the Colts “for life”. Hilton also indicated that the team has engaged in talks with his representatives. That’s all true, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter), though he hears that the Colts have not yet “dug in” on negotiations with the wide receiver. The talks, so far, have been preliminary, and there’s no exact timetable for when things might pick up.

There’s one year left on Hilton’s deal, set to count for $14.5MM against Indy’s salary cap. Colts GM Chris Ballard, ideally, would like to nudge that number down with a reworked deal. Hilton would probably be willing to accommodate, provided that he gets an extension with some guaranteed dollars. That deal, Hilton says, will be his last in the NFL, regardless of length.

Drafted in the third round of the 2012 draft, Hilton was a difference-maker right from the get-go. In Year One, Hilton showed he was a serious deep threat with 861 yards off of just 50 catches, good for 17.2 yards per grab. Things only got bigger and better from there. Over the course of the next seven years, Hilton tallied more than 8,000 yards, 500 catches for exactly 40 touchdowns and an average of 16.0 yards per catch. That, of course, was during his healthy seasons. Last year, Hilton’s calf capped him at just ten games – he finished with 45 catches, 501 yards, five scores, and perhaps a few questions as to whether he can still be the same player moving forward.

“I think [playing with Philip Rivers] will be special,” said Hilton, shrugging off any concerns (via NFL.com). “I think the way I’m training, the way my body feels, and Philip doing his thing. I feel like it’ll be an All-Pro year for me.”

Those who have watched Hilton’s work over the years tend to agree – he deserves one final payday with the Colts. Nat Newell of the Indy Star laid out a compelling case for the wide receiver this week, though he noted a key stat going against Hilton. Over the past two decades, Larry Fitzgerald, Steve Smith, Reggie Wayne, Anquan Boldin, and Hines Ward have been the only players to top 1,000 yards after their age-32 season. Hilton turns 31 in November, so the Colts might not be willing to give him WR1 money beyond 2021.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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