The Indianapolis Colts had plenty of notoriety in the offseason surrounding their quarterback battle, which was closely followed across the league.
The question of who would lead the Colts through the 2025 season was arguably the most important answer the team would need to settle, and ultimately, head coach Shane Steichen opted for Daniel Jones over Anthony Richardson, a move that was roundly criticized.
But as crazy as it might seem, signing Jones in the offseason and making him the starter over their still-young first-round draft pick isn't the weirdest move the Colts made in the offseason. The weirdest decision they made involved the players who will protect their quarterbacks: the offensive line.
Regardless of who won the quarterback battle, the Colts need to do everything they can to set their QB1 up for success. That means surrounding them with offensive weapons, and ensuring they're well protected from pressure.
The Indianapolis Colts' weird decision to let Will Fries walk
Whether Jones or Richardson takes the field is irrelevant; both QBs have less-than-stellar records in the NFL, and need as much time to make decisions in the pocket as they can. A quarterback constantly under pressure and being rushed into throwing the ball away is not going to be successful unless they're already an excellent, well-established QB, and that doesn't describe Jones or Richardson.
So with that in mind, it was definitely a bizarre move to let Will Fries go.
Fries is a star on the offensive line and was named the best right guard in the NFL last season. After being named a starter in 2022, he improved each season until 2024, when he arguably reached superstar status. A tibia fracture cut his season short, which was unfortunate, but there was no reason to believe he wouldn't rebound well from his injury.
The rest of the league clearly felt that way; Fries became a free agent in 2025, and was one of the most sought-after players in free agency. By all reports, he was healing well from his injury, and re-signing him should have been a top priority for general manager Chris Ballard.
At 6'6" and over 300 pounds, Fries proved he is able to use that size and strength as a devastating run blocker, and at just 27 years old, he still has a long future ahead of him in the NFL.
And with the QB question up in the air, you would think Ballard and head coach Shane Steichen would prioritize keeping their elite offensive line intact, so their embattled quarterbacks would have the best possible chance at success in 2025.
Instead, they let Fries - along with center Ryan Kelly - walk, and both signed with the Minnesota Vikings. Kelly was getting older and was arguably reaching the end of his career, so losing him was expected. But Fries? It's a move that, frankly, made absolutely no sense, and fans are already seeing the repercussions.
Fries and Kelly were replaced by Matt Goncalves and Tanor Bortolini, respectively, and to be clear, both have potential. But a season when the Colts desperately need to make a good showing, even with their two underdog quarterbacks, is not the time to experiment with a new offensive line.
It would be different had the Colts already found an experienced, high-caliber QB, but it's not like they're going to have Peyton Manning in the pocket. And already, in the first two preseason games, fans saw why someone like Fries on the offensive line was so important; Richardson got injured in the first game, and both quarterbacks were sacked and pressured constantly.
If this is how it looks in the preseason, imagine how bad it will be when it actually counts. There's a lot that could be said about mind-boggling offseason moves, but not keeping their best offensive lineman is by far the dumbest and weirdest one.