One of the best times of the year has arrived.
All NFL training camps have reported and with that comes the expectations of the fans and the franchise. While others get joy from the start of Indianapolis Colts training camp, many players know their time is limited to get all the reps they can, and other veterans know it’s the beginning of the grind of a full season.
Only 53 players make the active roster so it’s imperative to make an impression early and often, especially for the players on the bubble.
Let’s discuss some players and staff members on the hot seat with the organization heading into the 2024 season.
Chris Ballard, GM
Anyone who has read my work knows I am not the biggest fan of Chris Ballard, but I also don’t dislike him. I have stayed neutral about him. He was dealt a difficult hand with the retirement of Andrew Luck and the roster turnover he inherited when Jim Irsay hired him and fired outgoing GM Ryan Grigson. He has had (in my opinion) a couple of fatal flaws in his tenure.
First, he could not figure out the QB situation bouncing around with veterans with Philip Rivers, Jacoby Brissett and Carson Wentz. Second, his belief in “his process” has been unjustified. He missed on the hiring of Frank Reich and Jeff Saturday, although it appears the Saturday decision came directly from the owner. He has sometimes trusted his process too much with quiet free agencies and has missed on some draft picks. But he has hit on some later round guys such as Zaire Franklin, EJ Speed and Bernhard Raimann.
While I am not proposing to have Ballard fired just yet, it should bear noting that his record as the Colts GM is 54-60-1 with a 1-2 playoff record and ZERO division titles. It appears he got the coaching hire correct this time around with Shane Steichen and if Anthony Richardson can stay healthy this season, we might finally get to see the talent and promise we are all hoping for. Chris Ballard, Shane Steichen and Anthony Richardson could all be tied together as they are all under contract for the foreseeable future. All the other teams in the division improved this season and the seat for Chris Ballard is warming for this season.
Gus Bradley, Defensive Coordinator
When the franchise moved on from Frank Reich it was Gus Bradley and his staff that were retained and so far, that decision has been questioned. Bradley is held in high regard in this league for his defensive scheme and experience improving talent on the defensive side of the ball.
A disciple of the late Monte Kiffin was the architect of the Legion of Boom, the famous Seattle Seahawks defense in the mid 2010’s that won two NFC Championships and Super Bowl XLVIII. He has shown success wherever he has coached but his defense started to show some cracks last season.
The Colts defense excelled against the run and the team finished with 23 tackles for loss which led the NFL and we saw the team set a team record for sacks with 60. Where the team struggled was in pass coverage where they allowed 250 yards per game which ranked in the bottom half of the league. There were numerous blown coverages throughout the season resulting in devastating results to the defense.
While the secondary issues can be attributed to the youth movement partially, it falls on the coaching staff ultimately. Charlie Partridge joins that staff replacing Nate Ollie and the rest remain from last year and the seat could not be hotter for Bradley and how he can develop this still young secondary will be the deciding factor of his job security for 2025.
Alec Pierce, WR
Is it still a little early to make a judgement on Alec Pierce? Absolutely. But should he be further along based on where he was drafted? Absolutely. Not to mention the franchise drafted rookie Adonai Mitchell with their second-round pick.
Their current battle has been great to watch with both having some great highlights in camp. We need to give Alec Pierce the benefit of the doubt as this will be the first time we have seen him take some meaningful snaps with Anthony Richardson.
The strength of Alec Pierce is his ability to beat you vertically and deep. Last year we did not see too much of that because that was not the strength of Gardner Minshew’s game. We could see Adonai Mitchell and Alec Pierce split reps for that outside starting spot throughout camp, but this is a big year for Alec Pierce. He must cement his role this season or his future status with this franchise could be in jeopardy.
Rodney Thomas II, S
The final argument for the hot seat on this team could be a plethora of options but I wanted to go outside the box with a player that has not been heard from much so far in camp.
Enter Rodney Thomas II, who started off last season as the starter alongside Julian Blackmon. After struggling throughout last season, he was benched in favor of Ronnie Harrison Jr and the now, prohibitive starter Nick Cross.
It appears nothing has changed so far as Nick Cross and Julian Blackmon have been taking the starting reps and Ronnie Harrison Jr and Rodney Thomas II have been taking 2nd team reps. The former 7th round pick out of Yale still has some time to earn back the trust of this defensive staff.
However, if he continues to miss coverages and if Chris Ballard finally brings in some depth at the safety position, like Justin Simmons, then we could see the end of Rodney Thomas’ tenure before the season even begins.