With several free agency moves throughout the NFL already complete, experts believe the Indianapolis Colts are one of the early winners in the league.
Free agency is really just getting started but after two days of legal tampering and one day of official free agency, there have been more than enough moves made to evaluate teams after the first round of free agency. The Indianapolis Colts have been fairly active by signing players and moving on from others. How does Indy’s early free agency actions compare to the rest of the NFL?
Brent Sobleski, in a recent piece for Bleacher Report, named the winners and losers of the legal tampering period. Sobleski argued that the Colts were winners, but not necessarily because of the moves they made. Sobleski believes Indianapolis is an early winner because of draft implications based on other moves made throughout the league.
Free agency moves put Colts in a good spot for draft
After the Carolina Panthers traded for the No. 1 pick, there was some worry about what quarterback Indianapolis would end up with in the draft. There was even a thought that Indy would need to trade up one spot with the Arizona Cardinals to No. 3, ensuring the Colts take the third quarterback off the board in the draft. Sobleski explained why that may not be the case any more because of free agency moves.
Sobleski wrote, “the majority of teams that were sitting directly behind the Colts already made significant investments in the quarterback position.” The teams being referred to are likely the Seattle Seahawks who re-signed Geno Smith, the Las Vegas Raiders who signed Jimmy Garoppolo, and the Atlanta Falcons who seem content with moving forward with Desmond Ridder and the recently signed Taylor Heinicke.
That means the Colts should be able to stay at No. 4 and select a quarterback that Sobleski believes Indianapolis would take with any pick. Because of Chris Ballard’s love for traits and athleticism, Sobleski believes Indianapolis would like to land Anthony Richardson or Will Levis. Unless those are also the quarterbacks that the Panthers and Houston Texans want to take, free agency is going to help the Colts have the opportunity to choose between the two.
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