INDIANAPOLIS – With the calendar turning to March, we are about to find out what the Colts really think of their future at quarterback.
From free agency starting next week, to the draft coming at the end of next month, the Colts are going to have to show their hand of their feelings on Jacoby Brissett and how much they like the quarterbacks available this offseason.
While Chris Ballard says the Colts evaluate quarterbacks with a fine tooth comb every offseason, it’s hard to imagine this year not having a little more of a pressing manner at that position.
“We look at everybody,” the GM says when asked about quarterbacks in free agency. “Always. Every year. I think you have to go through the process every year, at every position, but especially quarterback. Not only in the draft, but also in free agency. For one, you know who’s playing in the league, how they are playing and how they are using them to be successful, number one if you play them and number two if you get the chance to acquire them.
“It’s the same thing in the college draft. You have to go through that process every year. Because you never know. You never know when that guy is going to end up on your roster.”
The appeal of bringing in a quarterback in free agency would be for a couple of reasons.
It would, theoretically, provide more of a Day One ready option, giving the Colts an opportunity to make a quicker turn back into the playoffs. The signing of a veteran QB with starting experience would help the key leadership aspect that Chris Ballard holds in high regard.
Where a free agency addition faces some major questions is the long-term viability of such a player, whether the ceiling on that guy is still high enough to be a top-level quarterback for years.
That’s where the draft offers more of the higher-end potential.
With that though, you must be open to patience and know the risk that inevitably comes in projecting any collegiate signal caller to the professional ranks.
Many want to see the Colts spend resources in both avenues this offseason, satisfying improvement in the short-term, while still offering hope for the longer-term.
Unlike previous years for the Colts, there’s compelling reasons to replace the starting QB (Brissett) and the backup (Hoyer), both who are in contract years in 2020.
Should the Colts upgrade at QB?
“Anytime we have a chance to acquire a player that makes us better, at any position, we are going to do it, any position, whether it’s wideout, quarterback, running back, linebacker, doesn’t matter, so I wouldn’t just single out the quarterback position as one,” Ballard says.
“Any chance we have to get better, we are going to do that.”
As the Colts embark on the unpredictability that comes with free agency and the draft, contingency plans are abundant.
“It just depends on how it falls,” the GM says. “You never know what’s going to happen in free agency. You never know what’s going to happen in the draft. It’s an unknown every year.”
It’s time to find out what the Colts really think.
