Category: Colts Wire Features

NFL announces Colts’ offseason workout schedule in 2024

Here are the offseason workout dates for the Colts.

The offseason workout schedule for the Indianapolis Colts has been announced by the NFL.

With head coach Shane Steichen returning for his second season, the Colts will begin Phase 1 of the offseason training program on April 15. They’ll follow that up with organized team activities (OTA) in May and mandatory minicamp in June.

Here’s what the offseason schedule for the Colts looks like:

  • April 15: Phase 1 of workouts begin
  • May 21-23: OTAs
  • May 29-21: OTAs
  • June 4-6: Mandatory minicamp

It will be interesting to see if the Colts add another session of OTAs. As it currently stands, the Colts only have six OTA practices scheduled. They are permitted to have 10 total.

The Colts also will likely have a rookie minicamp on one of the first two weekends following the 2024 NFL draft, but that hasn’t been announced yet.

[lawrence-related id=95189,95185,95181]

How Zaire Franklin’s new 3-year contract breaks down for Colts

Here’s how Zaire Franklin’s new contract breaks down.

Indianapolis Colts linebacker and defensive captain Zaire Franklin signed a three-year contract extension with the team just before the start of free agency.

Franklin is the only player thus far to sign an extension this offseason with a full year remaining on his deal. The Colts tacked on the three-year contract to his existing deal, meaning the contract runs through the 2027 season.

The three-year deal is worth $31.26 million, including $17.62 million guaranteed, and ranks eighth among linebacker contracts. Here’s how the deal breaks down after the 2024 season, according to Over The Cap:

Three years, $31.26 million

$5 million signing bonus

2025
– $5.74 million base salary (guaranteed)
– $30,000 per game roster bonus
– Cap Hit: $7.5 million (2.3%)

2026
– $6.24 million base salary
– $45,000 per game roster bonus
– Cap Hit: $8.255 million (2.9%)

2027
– $8.24 million base salary
– $45,000 per game roster bonus
– Cap Hit: $10.255 million (3.3%)

Franklin doesn’t have any guaranteed money on the contract after the 2025 season, which is when he’ll be entering his age-30 campaign.

The Colts can save $5.755 million in cap space while incurring a $2.5 million dead cap hit if he’s released or traded during the 2026 offseason. They would save $9 million in cap space and incur $1.25 million in dead cap if he’s released or traded during the 2027 offseason.

Franklin has earned a new contract after being one of the most productive linebackers in the NFL over the last two seasons. He’s a team captain every season, and he gets a nice chunk of change upfront.

[lawrence-related id=95019,95015,94987]

How Kenny Moore’s 3-year contract with the Colts breaks down

Kenny Moore is once again the NFL’s highest-paid slot CB. Here’s how the contract breaks down.

The Indianapolis Colts re-signed cornerback Kenny Moore II to a three-year contract, keeping him in the Circle City through the 2026 season.

Though it wasn’t totally clear whether Moore would return, the two sides eventually got a deal done to secure the talented slot cornerback for the next three campaigns.

The three-year deal is worth $30 million with $16 million fully guaranteed at signing.

Here’s how his contract breaks down, according to Over The Cap:

Three years, $30 million

$6.75 million signing bonus (guaranteed)

2024
– $4.24 million base salary (guaranteed)
– $30,000 per game roster bonus
– Cap Hit: $6.97 million (2.7%)

2025
– $7.99 million base salary ($5.01 million guaranteed)
– $30,000 per game roster bonus
– Cap Hit: $10.75 million (4.1%)

2026
– $9.49 million base salary
– $30,000 per game roster bonus
– Cap Hit: $12.25 million

With Anthony Richardson currently on his rookie contract, the Colts have had a clear theme of front-loading these three-year deals with guaranteed money during the first two seasons. This gives them an out if needed going into 2026.

If the Colts needed to cut or trade Moore going into the 2026 offseason, they would save $10 million in salary-cap space while incurring just a $2.25 million dead cap hit.

Moore returned to form as one of the best slot defenders in the NFL during the 2023 season. This came off the back of a poor season in the first year within Gus Bradley’s defense.

On this new deal, Moore is now the highest-paid slot cornerback in the NFL—the second time in his career he’s achieved the feat.

[lawrence-related id=94974,94970,94966]

Here are the details of Michael Pittman Jr.’s new contract with Colts

Here’s our breakdown of Michael Pittman Jr.’s contract extension.

The Indianapolis Colts and wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. got a deal done on a new three-year contract that will keep him with the team through the  2026 season.

After using the franchise tag to extend their window of negotiation, both sides were able to get a deal completed in what should be a win-win for either party.

The three-year deal is worth $70 million and includes $41 million guaranteed at signing and up to $46 million guaranteed.

Here’s how the contract breaks down, according to Over The Cap:

Three years, $70 million

$15 million signing bonus

2024
– $8 million base salary (guaranteed)
– $5 million roster bonus (guaranteed)
– Cap Hit: $18 million (6.9%)

2025
– $18 million base salary ($13 million guaranteed)
– Remaining $5 million guaranteed if on roster fifth day of 2025 league year
– Cap Hit: $23 million (8.8%)

2026
– $22 million base salary
– $2 million roster bonus (fifth day of league year)
– Cap Hit: $29 million (10.2%)

Going with the theme of the other contracts the Colts have signed this offseason, this shapes up to be essentially a two-year deal with a team option in 2026.

The Colts can save $24 million in cap space while incurring a $5 million dead cap hit if they need to cut or trade Pittman after the 2025 season. It also gives them the opportunity to extend Pittman if things go well.

This is also a win for Pittman because he gets a market-level deal with a ton of guaranteed money upfront, and he potentially gets to hit the market again before the age of 30. That’s huge for a wide receiver of his caliber.

Overall, this is a solid contract for both sides. The Colts retain their WR1 for at least the next two years and can revisit the deal in any capacity if needed after 2025.

[lawrence-related id=94961,94956,94954]

Watch: New Colts QB Joe Flacco appears on ‘Pat McAfee Show’

Here is Joe Flacco’s full appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show”

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Joe Flacco hasn’t been introduced to the local media yet, but he did make an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” shortly after signing with the team.

Going into his 17th season, Flacco will be joining the Colts as the backup to young quarterback Anthony Richardson. He signed a one-year deal worth up to $8.7 million.

Flacco earned the AP Comeback Player of the Year award in 2023 after helping the Cleveland Browns reach the playoffs despite not being on a team at the beginning of the season.

Here’s his full appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Thursday.

[lawrence-related id=94954,94949,94930]

Colts free agency: What are details of new Tyquan Lewis contract?

Here’s a look at the contract details for Tyquan Lewis’ new deal.

The Indianapolis Colts retained some vital depth along the defensive line by re-signing Tyquan Lewis to a two-year deal. We have the preliminary details of that contract.

After a career year, Lewis and the Colts agreed on a two-year deal worth $12 million with $7.7 million guaranteed, according to Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report.

That’s a solid deal for both sides. Lewis has had an extensive injury history, but he’s persevered at an incredible rate. He should be able to provide another solid season of working as the third or fourth pass rusher from the edge.

Lewis broke out in a big way after playing a full 17-game season. He tied a career-high with 4.0 sacks while he posted career-high marks in tackles for loss (nine), quarterback hits (13) and total pressures (44).

The Colts may still add to the edge rusher room in the draft, but the return of Lewis into the rotation is a key piece. And it’s a solid value for a productive No. 3/4 edge rusher.

[lawrence-related id=94765,94758,94759]

Important 2024 offseason dates for Colts in March

Some important dates to keep in mind for March.

The Indianapolis Colts are officially into the month of March with the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine wrapping up at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday.

We outlined the overarching view of the important dates of the offseason but now we’ll take a focused view on just the month of March.

While the combine is the talk of the town early in the month, free agency is likely to dominate when the new league year arrives. The Colts can’t make too many moves outside of signing their own pending free agents until the middle of the month arrives.

There will also be pro days and top-30 visits taking place for the Colts and the draft prospects throughout the month of March.

Here’s a quick look at the important offseason dates for the Colts during the month of March in 2024:

Colts’ 2023 rookie review: S Daniel Scott

Daniel Scott’s rookie season ended before it could even begin.

The Indianapolis Colts rookie class from the 2023 season had plenty of ups and downs throughout what was an encouraging campaign from the organization as a whole.

With their first season now behind them, it’s time to take a quick look back at how they performed and where they may be headed in the future. In our rookie review series, we’ll be taking a look at each 2023 draft pick currently still with the team.

Here are the rookie seasons we’ve reviewed thus far:

Now, it’s time to review the rookie season for safety Daniel Scott, who was selected with the No. 158 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft.

Reviewing Scott’s rookie season

Unfortunately, there isn’t much to review for Scott. The California product tore his ACL during the final week of OTAs and missed his entire rookie season.

The Colts really liked what Scott could bring from a special teams and safety depth standpoint. He’s extremely athletic and should be a factor in the rotation as the final safety in the room while being among the leaders in snaps on special teams.

Considering the fact that Scott tore his ACL in the spring, he should be close to returning to full strength, assuming he didn’t suffer any setbacks during his rehab.

The safety position is one of need for the Colts this offseason, but it will be interesting to see how the team feels about Scott as a depth piece and special teamer going into 2024.

[lawrence-related id=94349,94342,94340]

Colts’ Kwity Paye’s 5th-year option cost revealed

Here’s what it would cost to exercise Kwity Paye’s fifth-year option.

The Indianapolis Colts have plenty of decisions to make this offseason, including whether they exercise the fifth-year option on the rookie contract of defensive end Kwity Paye.

As a first-round pick, Paye’s rookie contract includes a fifth-year team option. Teams must decide to exercise or decline the option before the fourth year of the rookie contract. The Colts have until May 2 to make that decision.

While there are different levels of cost for the fifth-year options based on performance and playing time, we now know what it would cost the Colts to pick up the option.

Paye does not qualify for either of the Pro Bowl tiers since he hasn’t made one during the first three seasons of his career. He also failed to qualify for the playing-time criterion, meaning his fifth-year option would cost the Colts $13,387,000.

In order to meet the playing-time criterion, a player must meet one of the following criteria in terms of offensive or defensive snap counts:

  • 75% or greater in two of their first three seasons
  • Average of 75% or greater over all three seasons
  • 50% or greater over all three seasons

Paye failed to hit the final criteria because of his snap counts in 2022. This is despite the fact that he averages roughly 60% of the snaps in the games he’s been active for throughout his career.

Paye is still developing his game, but he has continued to show improvement. The Colts want to see more consistency out of him as a pass rusher, but he did log a career-high 8.5 sacks and has improved that mark every season in the league.

The increasing salary cap might make this decision easy for the Colts considering they have a lot of money to work with over the course of the next few offseasons.

[lawrence-related id=94338,94335,94333]

How the Colts are impacted by NFL’s $255.4M salary cap

How the increased salary cap impacts the Colts in 2024.

The NFL announced the salary cap for the 2024 season, increasing an unprecedented $30 million from the previous campaign up to $255.4 million. How will the Indianapolis Colts be impacted?

With this new figure, the Colts now sit at $72.3 million in salary-cap space (sixth-most) and $68.1 million in effective salary-cap space (fifth-most), according to Over The Cap.

The Colts already knew they were entering into the 2024 offseason among the leaders in salary-cap space. However, the figure the league announced Friday is roughly $10 million more than most teams expected to be working with this offseason.

The extra flexibility might be enough to help the Colts sign multiple contract extensions with some big names like Michael Pittman Jr., Kenny Moore II and Grover Stewart—all of which are slated to be unrestricted free agents in March.

The biggest name is Pittman, who is the catalyst for the offense. A contract extension for the team’s WR1 is expected to be above $20 million annually, and the franchise tag numbers are now official with the announcement of the salary cap.

If the Colts wanted to use the non-exclusive franchise tag on Pittman, it would cost them $21.8 million.

It will be interesting to see how this will shake out for the Colts, but the higher salary-cap number should work in their favor to get deals done with their big-name free agents.

[lawrence-related id=94331,94327,94325]