The Colts have 12 unrestricted free agents. Who are the most important ones that the team needs to re-sign?
The Colts enter 2020 as one of the league leaders in salary cap space, a fixture of the Ballard regime through his 3 years as General Manager. As the 2019 season winds down and the offseason begins, it is going to be crucial for the Colts to decide and re-sign their key free agents come March 18th.
Although the Colts hold a vast amount of cap space, Ballard is still sticking to his philosophy of building through the draft. He believes in building a culture of players that they know for sure can develop as they grow from their rookie season, all the while dabbling in free agency to complete the culture.
Draft coverage will be aplenty as April nears, however prior to that, the team needs to nail down which free agents to let go and who they’ll re-sign.
So here’s how this is going to work:
Each of the Colts’ 12 unrestricted free agents will be ordered from least important to re-sign to most on a scale from 1 star to 5 stars, with 1 being not important and 5 being crucial.
Each player will be discussed on their role last season and why/why not the team should bring them back in for the 2020 season.
Eric Ebron, TE *
2019 Season Statistics:
- 11 games played (2 starts)
- 31 receptions, 375 yards, 3 touchdowns
- Placed on IR after week 12
Ebron definitely did not live up to the hype following his Pro Bowl season in 2018, where he led the NFL in receiving touchdowns with 13. In contrast, the former Lions TE finished with only 3 before succumbing to Injured Reserve following the team’s Week 12 loss to Houston.
Ebron is still a legitimate top-10 tight end in the NFL, however, he doesn’t fit the Colts scheme as much as Jack Doyle does. Former Colts QB Andrew Luck was very adamant about using his TE’s as primary targets. This is the reason why Ebron flourished as much as he did last season.
Now, in 2019 and beyond, the Colts are much more focused on a run-based offense with chunk plays from the wide receiver group. The reason why Ebron falls out of line with the new offense is due to Doyle’s ability as both a blocker and a receiver, compared to Ebron’s sole ability as an outside receiving threat. The Colts will likely mutually part ways with Ebron as the team moves forward to build their roster.
Dontrelle Inman, WR *
2019 Season Statistics:
- 3 games played (nbeginning in Week 15)
- 4 receptions, 49 yards, 0 touchdowns
Dontrelle Inman was brought in prior to Week 15 due to the rash of injuries at the receiver position. He totaled 4 receptions for 49 yards in the 3 games he played, with no touchdowns. Inman was signed this season in large part to his production last year as the 3rd/4th receiver on the roster in 9 games.
Although Inman is a reliable pass-catcher and is someone Ballard trusts to fit the Colts Culture, the receiver group is going to get much healthier. Inman won’t have a real role on the roster moving forward, especially considering that the team will look to add depth to the position through the draft, as well. If the group begins to decline in health next season and Inman isn’t on another team’s roster, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him in a Colts uniform next season.
Le’Raven Clark, G/T *
2019 Season Statistics:
- 0 games played (3 active)
Clark was active for 3 games this season but didn’t log any game action this season. Clark did, however, play in 12 games last season with 4 starts last season; he logged 15 games and 5 starts the year before. Because of his lack of playing time this season, it isn’t certain what his future is going forward. If Ballard and the team decide they need him for a reserve role, he’ll be back. Otherwise, Clark’s diminished role this past season only leads to believe that he doesn’t have a large future with the team.
Josh Andrews, C **
2019 Season Statistics:
- 6 games played, 0 starts
- 0 penalties committed
Josh Andrews is in his second season with Indianapolis and has played in 9 games through those two seasons. He has played a backup role primarily, serving behind Pro Bowl Center Ryan Kelly. Although Andrews has played less than 10 games with the team, one of Ballard’s keys is to build depth at major positions.
This, without a doubt, goes to the offensive line positions. Ryan Kelly did end up missing a game this season (vs Pittsburgh in Week 9), which does provide aid to his case of being re-signed. Andrews presumably played well enough behind Kelly to retain his job come next season in a reserve role.
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Adam Vinatieri, K **
2019 Season Statistics:
- 13 games played (13 Starts)
- 68% field goal percentage (17/25)
- 78.6% extra point percentage (22/28)
- Placed on IR after Week 13
Unfortunately for the Colts legend, Vinatieri had a sub par season, with sub par being just about as nice as it can be put. He appeared in 12 games this year before moving to Injured Reserve due to nagging knee issues. Vinatieri’s 68% on field goals and 78.6% on Extra Points ranked 37th and 42nd against all eligible kickers respectively.
For a special teams unit that ranked last in production this past season (no surprise there), Vinatieri’s statistics aren’t going to cut it. With the NFL’s All-Time Points Leader entering his 24th NFL season at 47 years old, it’s isn’t likely that Vinatieri can retain his roster spot on the team, no matter how badly the franchise wants to retain him.
Chase McLaughlin served to be a reliable kicker in place of Vinatieri, going 5-for-6 on field goals and 11-for-11 on extra points in his 4 games with the team. Unless Vinatieri gets healthy and puts together a good enough offseason to beat McLaughlin for the starting job, it’s possible we’ll see Vinatieri no longer a member of the Indianapolis Colts.
Jonathan Williams, RB **
2019 Season Statistics:
- 9 games played (1 Start)
- 49 rushes, 235 yards, 1 touchdown
- 5 catches, 59 yards, 0 Touchdowns
Williams was a good signing for the Colts last season. Sitting behind Marlon Mack, Nyheim Hines, and Jordan Wilkins as the 4th running back, Williams was able to play in 9 games as both Mack and Wilkins missed time due to injury.
In Williams’ one start versus Houston in Week 12, he totaled 26 rushes for 104 yards and a touchdown and also totaled 3 catches for 17 yards. In the game prior, Williams put together 13 rushes for 116 yards and a 31-yard catch in the Week 11 versus Jacksonville.
Williams was an important player down the stretch, as he was the emphasis of the team’s run-heavy offense by committee. It isn’t a huge signing for the team if he returns next season, but an important one if Ballard stresses his RB committee as the forefront of the offense next season.