No McCourty, But Still Searcy at Safety for Colts
The Indianapolis Colts free agent options at safety took a big hit on Sunday night, when it was announced that the New England Patriots had reached a new lucrative long-term agreement with their All-Pro safety Devin McCourty:
#Patriots S Devin McCourty will sign a 5-year, $47.5M contract, source said. Wow. And... turned down more elsewhere
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 9, 2015
With McCourty as the undisputed best potential free agent safety now locked up for the foreseeable future, the Colts will have to shift their focus elsewhere. The remaining safety options aren’t all that promising in either the draft or free agency:
Dropoff from McCourty to the next safety on the market is sizable. And the draft class at that position, beyond Landon Collins, isn't great.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) March 9, 2015
However, there is another name that has already piqued the interest of the Colts. While former Raiders safety Tyvon Branch previously visited the Colts, an additional safety has now seemingly appeared on the Colts radar in the Buffalo Bills Da’Norris Searcy:
Source: The #Colts, #Texans, #Raiders, #Dolphins are among teams that made preliminary inquiries on impending UFA SS Da'Norris Searcy today.
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) March 7, 2015
December 21, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Buffalo Bills strong safety Da’Norris Searcy (25) before the game against the Oakland Raiders at O.co Coliseum. The Raiders defeated the Bills 26-24. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
The 4-year veteran may not get much national recognition playing in Buffalo, but he was one of the better safeties last year in the NFL. Since being a 4th round pick of the Buffalo Bills in 2011, Searcy has emerged as an exceptional strong safety and would provide the Colts with an in-the-box presence to improve their suspect run defense.
According to ProFootballFocus (subscription), Searcy was the 18th best safety overall with a +8.1 overall grade this past season. That was 2 spots better than the Seattle Seahawks Kam Chancellor, who came in at 20th. Digging even further, his run defense grade of +5.6 was the 7th best among all safties, clearly indicating he’s a force against the run.
The Colts need to get younger and significantly better in the back of their secondary. Signing a a 26 year old safety safety like Searcy would go a long way toward achieving that goal, as he’s quietly becoming one of the better young safeties in the game.
Nov 17, 2013; Orchard Park, NY, USA; Buffalo Bills strong safety Da’Norris Searcy (25) runs the ball in for a touchdown after a interception during the second half against the New York Jets at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Bills beat the Jets 37-14. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports