With the conclusion of Super Bowl 59, the offseason for all NFL teams has officially arrived. While watching football every weekend is over, the speculation and rumor season can be some fans' favorite time. The speculation and expectations will be at an all-time high this offseason, especially as Chris Ballard has admitted his faults from the last offseason. This season he must be more aggressive, and he must be honest with himself. Sometimes being honest means making difficult decisions.
The Colts can free up some needed cap space by releasing some veterans from their current contracts. The Colts are in the middle of the road (18th) in salary cap space with approximately $31 million in available funds. However, they can get almost $60 million if they release three contracts.
Samson Ebukam
This seems to be an easy decision for the franchise. Ebukam is entering the final year of his three-year contract. He had a terrific first year, but missed all last season with a torn Achilles. His cap number would be just over $10 million, with $3 million in dead cap... a very manageable number to handle. The emergence of then-rookie Laiatu Latu and a potential free agent signing signaled the end of his tenure.
The depth at edge rusher could potentially be thin. Kwity Paye will return, along with Tyquan Lewis. The franchise will most likely look to the draft or cheaper free agent option to counteract losing Ebukam this offseason. $10 million for a rotational player is just too much to commit for Ebukam with so much uncertainty.
Raekwon Davis
This was a signing in the offseason that got some buzz, but did not live up to the hype. Davis was brought in as a rotational player to take the pressure and snaps off starters Grover Stewart and DeForest Buckner. He did not start any game, and only played about 30 percent of the total snaps. In fact, he had only 15 total tackles all season long with zero sacks.
It is expected that veteran Taven Bryan will exit this season as well, and allow Adetomiwa Adebawore to really take over the rotational role. The Colts could sign another free agent as well, but they will most likely look to develop another propect from the draft this upcoming season. Paying Davis nearly $10 million next season to produce 15 tackles does not make financial sense.
Braden Smith
This one will be difficult for the franchise to execute. Smith has been a pillar at right tackle for many years with this franchise. This year (before his personal leave) he was staying healthy and playing some good football. He left the team later in the season for undisclosed personal reasons, which we have still not been told. We don’t need to know, and we all hope that whatever the reasoning, he is healthy or ready to return to football.
The hard part about this is, football is a business first and foremost. His cap number is large, and with the assumption that veteran Ryan Kelly will not return either, it makes sense to consider going younger on the offensive line. Smith’s total cap number for 2025 is just under $20 million, with $3 million in dead cap. That is a very manageable dead cap number to consume. In his absence this season, we saw then rookie Matt Goncalves step up, and they can easily pass the torch to him while opening space to sign a playmaker on either side of the ball.