The Indianapolis Colts could’ve prevented the underwhelming one-year run with Carson Wentz that just ended.
Last offseason, the Indianapolis Colts acquired Carson Wentz in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles. Nine wins, eight loses, and a year later, Indy has shipped Wentz back to the NFC East in a deal with the Washington Commanders.
Obviously, things didn’t work out. It was recently reported that things started going wrong shortly after Wentz arrived, but the Colts had to see it through.
The outcome was an underwhelming season that culminated with an embarrassing loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, forcing Indianapolis to miss the postseason.
Now, Indy is in the same position it was last year, looking for a quarterback and hoping to find a franchise quarterback.
What if everything that went wrong for Indianapolis could’ve been prevented? According to Peter Schrager of NFL Network, it could have.
In an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show”, Schrager said that Indy could’ve had a different fate if it was willing to be more aggressive in the sweepstakes for Matthew Stafford because Stafford was open to joining the Colts.
"Matthew Stafford was willing to be a Colt last year & they didn't go over the top to get him" ~@PSchrags#PMSLive pic.twitter.com/nrcY7AJ3tz
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) March 10, 2022
Matthew Stafford was open to joining Colts
McAfee and Schrager talked about how willing Stafford was to relocate to Indianapolis and join the Colts, joking that Stafford had already begun looking at houses in Indiana.
Schrager highlights that Indy did explore a possible trade for Stafford but they weren’t willing to be as aggressive as the Los Angeles Rams were.
The Rams acquired Stafford by sending two first-round picks, a third-round pick, and quarterback Jared Goff. Indy ultimately traded for Carson Wentz, sending Philadelphia a third-round pick and a conditional second-round pick that upgraded to a first.
Now, a year later, Los Angeles is Super Bowl champions and is working on a contract extension with Stafford while the Colts are back in the market for a quarterback.
The fate of both teams came down to more than the quarterback position, but if Indy could redo last offseason, they’d likely be more aggressive in the pursuit of Stafford.
However, the Colts can’t go back in time, so they just have to learn from last offseason and apply the lesson moving forward. Be more aggressive and secure difference makers. Not just at quarterback, but wherever Indy needs to upgrade.
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