After having what many analysts have deemed a good offseason, the Indianapolis Colts are being criticized for having one of the worst offseasons.
All offseason, the Indianapolis Colts have been praised for the moves they made. It hasn’t been an offseason filled with blockbuster moves and acquisitions of star players, but it’s been productive for Indy, as the team has gotten younger and addressed several needs.
The Colts hired a promising head coach in Shane Steichen, hit the draft out of the park by selecting 12 exciting players, headlined by quarterback Anthony Richardson, and Indy also made some veteran signings to fill out the roster. Again, those moves earned praise from several NFL analysts.
However, that praise isn’t unanimous. Not everyone is impressed by Indianapolis’ offseason. In fact, Bill Barnwell believes the Colts had one of the worst offseasons in the NFL. He argued that in a recent ESPN piece where he ranked each team’s offseason from best to worst. Indy was ranked at No. 24 on the list.
Bill Barnwell argues Colts had ninth-worst offseason in NFL
Barnwell commended Indianapolis for hiring Shane Steichen and likely bringing stability to the quarterback position with Richardson and Gardner Minshew as his backup. However, the problem Barnwell found with Indy’s offseason is that the team didn’t do “enough to address the other premium positions on its roster.”
Pointing out the lack of upgrades on the offensive line as the team’s biggest issue, Barnwell also named the edge-rushing group and cornerback room as areas of concern for Indianapolis, and also hinted at slippage from the Colts’ two biggest offensive stars: Jonathan Taylor and Michael Pittman Jr.
Pretty much everything Barnwell said is fair, with the exception of his comments on Taylor and Pittman. Their decrease in production was because of injury and the surrounding mess that they were forced to play with on Indy’s offense. They haven’t personally given much reason to be concerned about them as players.
Aside from that, Barnwell is pretty spot on in his breakdown of Indy’s roster. The offensive line that was horrible last season will pretty much have the same starters, the cornerback room lost Stephon Gilmore, though Indy did draft three promising corners, and the edge rushing group is without a clear star, but has a couple of guys that can give solid production.
Although Barnwell’s assemnent of the Colts is mostly accurate, it’s hard to look at what Indy did the last few months and say this was a bad offseason, let alone one of the worst in the league. A promising draft class, that potentially has the franchise quarterback, and a good hire at head coach, makes this a good offseason for the Colts.
Indianapolis may not have made all of the necessary moves to be contenders next season, but it hasn’t had a bad offseason.