Which Colts players deserve contract extensions?

Players that should be a top priority for Colts

These players are widely viewed as the most important contributors to the Colts’ offense, of both the last few seasons and the future outlook. They are a part of the same draft class and have been mainstays for the Colts’ offense as of late. This isn’t to say that the players who will be mentioned in the following slides aren’t valuable in their respective ways, but these two are deemed, in my opinion, as the most valuable, whether that be timeline-fitting or production-oriented.

Jonathan Taylor

Jonathan Taylor’s dilemma has certainly nothing to do with himself. As it stands in the modern-day NFL, the running back position is no longer regarded as one of the most important as history would tell us. This has resulted in a league-wide transition in terms of positional value for RBs.

Nowadays, running backs are only valued more than four positions, three of which are special-teams positions (K, P, & LS), with the fourth position being a role that has been essentially phased out of NFL schemes in 90% of scenarios (Fullback). The league average for running backs sits at $2,327,709. Although Jonathan Taylor is indeed an RB, he is seen to provide value as more than that, more so as an offensive weapon based on his capabilities as a football player.

Taylor’s estimated market value projects his contract to be worth $13M AAV. This would be among the highest in the league among the likes of Ezekiel Elliot, Dalvin Cook, Derrick Henry, and Nick Chubb. With a rookie QB set to provide an additional cap to work with, this very well could be the perfect situation for Taylor and the Colts. A three-year deal bodes well for all parties involved as you’re theoretically able to retain your offense’s most valuable player.

Michael Pittman Jr.

As an inverse scenario to that of Jonathan Taylor and the running-back position, Michael Pittman Jr. and wide receivers are generally valued as the fifth-most important position. Regardless of if a QB on a rookie deal is in play, wide receivers’ value will remain the same based on the fact that this position in question offers only elevation to any and every quarterback.

Pittman Jr.’s calculated market value sits at an estimated $18.4M average annual salary. This may seem steep, but with how WRs are valued, plus the fact the NFL’s salary cap is annually rising, this actually doesn’t seem too outlandish for a potential WR1 in the NFL.

You may personally believe Pittman Jr. is not a WR1, but to play devil’s advocate, he has only improved in his three seasons in Indy. Three seasons in which Pittman Jr. has provided a security blanket for each of the Colts’ 5 (!) QBs in that span. He has seen an increase in targets each year and has subsequently improved his reception totals as well as his catch rate.

Any rookie QB would be thrilled to have Pittman Jr. as their go-to guy, but coupled with Jonathan Taylor in the backfield? These prospective QBs should be screaming, “sign me up!”