The Indianapolis Colts entered the offseason with two clear goals: They wanted to keep Daniel Jones in town, and they wanted to give Alec Pierce a long-term contract extension, even if that meant parting ways with Michael Pittman Jr.
Ultimately, general manager Chris Ballard succeeded at both endeavors. Pierce signed almost right away, but there were some tense moments until the Colts signed Jones to a two-year, $88 million deal.
Talking to Josh Downs on his podcast, Pierce admitted that, as much as he always wanted to be a Colt, not knowing about the transition tag and the lack of clarity about whether Jones would stay made him wonder if he had to leave.
Alec Pierce didn't know if Daniel Jones was returning to the Indianapolis Colts
"I had to treat them like they didn’t have a quarterback until they figured out the quarterback situation," Pierce said. "...I’ve never heard of that transition tag that Daniel had. I thought another team might take Daniel then, and then I was kind of like worried, like, if our quarterbacks’ gone... There was probably like a two to three day period where I was kind of considering, ‘man, am I really going to have to go somewhere else?’”
Pierce always thought the Colts were going to use the franchise tag on him, so he pretty much assumed that he would be back. Then, with the Colts using that on Jones, and with multiple offers on his table, things could've been different.
At the end of the day, though, the Colts may have had a clear picture of what they were going to do, and it's hard to believe they kept their star wide receiver out of the loop. Otherwise, Pierce wouldn't have signed when he signed; there was no rush to get a deal done.
Pierce got a four-year, $114 million contract, a bit steep for someone who hadn't been a primary pass catcher. He's led the league in yards per reception in consecutive seasons and has established himself as one of the prime big-play specialists, but with Pittman no longer in the building, he may have to diversify and do a little bit of everything going forward.
As for Downs, he's also going to have to pick up some of the slack. He's been mostly a slot specialist and a reliable pass catcher, but the Colts now need a possession receiver who can keep the chains in motion and get those difficult yards.
The Colts' offense looked proficient with Jones at the helm. Even though there were obvious concerns about his injury, they just had to double down on their bet and figure out whether he would finally put an end to their quarterback curse.
Still, that has only put more pressure on head coach Shane Steichen and Chris Ballard. This might be their final gamble to lead the team back to the mountaintop, and their seats could get blazing hot if this team doesn't hit the ground running.
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