The Indianapolis Colts could be a playoff team in 2026, but without a doubt, the AFC South is not going to be easy. To finally be able to take the division crown, Indy needs to stay healthier, while also re-signing some key contributors from 2025. Without doing so, next year could be rough.
One of the players who needs to be brought back is wide receiver Alec Pierce. He needs more targets in the passing game, but he has made the most of what he has received. He has led the NFL in yards per catch in each of the last two seasons, and is the first player since Flipper Anderson in 1989-90 to have back-to-back seasons with a yards per reception of 20 yards or more.
Indianapolis needs Pierce's explosive, but other teams do too. One of those teams is the New York Jets, which just happened to hire a former Indianapolis head coach. Frank Reich will be the Jets' new offensive coordinator, and that might matter to Pierce.
New York Jets hiring Frank Reich could have an effect on Indianapolis Colts' Alec Pierce
The wide receiver was chosen in the second round of the 2022 draft. Chris Ballard was still the Colts general manager, but Reich was the head coach. Ballard and Reich clearly made draft decisions together, and Reich saw something in Pierce he could use. He still would.
The wideout would probably be confident that he could sign with the Jets and get the ball more. No matter who New York's quarterback is, Reich's offense will be a bit more wide receiver-friendly than Shane Steichen's. That isn't a slight toward Steichen. His offense just works differently than Reich's.
Coincidentally, Pierce would also be joining another former Colts wide receiver. Indy traded Adonai Mitchell to New York as part of the trade that gave Indianapolis cornerback Sauce Gardner this season. Mitchell did pretty well (or, at least, better) in New York than he did in Indy.
The Jets also have more than enough money to sign Alec Pierce. The assumption is that he can command as much as $20 million per season in a new deal. New York has $83,569,717 in cap space this offseason, according to Over the Cap, which is fourth-most in the league.
Now that the New York Jets have hired Frank Reich, the team will clearly want to give him the weapons he needs to succeed. It would make sense for Alec Pierce to be one of those pieces. Along with Garrett Wilson and Adonai Mitchell, Pierce could give New York one of the more explosive wide receiver groups in the NFL.