Category: Latest Colts News

Colts’ Matt Eberflus among 2022 head coach candidates

It won’t be long until Matt Eberflus finds a HC role.

Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus will be a popular name in the head coaching circles again when the 2021 season arrives.

As the Colts have built a strong defense that gives maximum effort on every play, Eberflus has been there leading the charge when it comes to honing the mentality of the unit.

Going through potential 2022 head coach candidates, Pro Football Network listed Eberflus as one of the top candidates to keep an eye on.

“Eberflus should be viewed as one of the top head coach candidates heading into 2021. The Colts hired away Eberflus from the Cowboys after the 2017 season. Indianapolis’ defense in 2017 ranked 27th in efficiency. Since then, they’ve landed in the top-10 two out of the past three seasons under Eberflus. How has Dallas’ defense looked the past two years?

Eberflus has shown the ability to adapt his scheme for the roster around him. At 51 years old, it’s soon time for him to take the next step. Eberflus has coached for my entire lifetime of 28 years. He began as a student assistant coach for Toledo in 1992. Eberflus had long stints there and at Missouri. He was then briefly employed by the Browns for two seasons in 2009 and 2010. He was with the Cowboys from 2011 until 2018, when he got his first gig as a defensive coordinator at the NFL level.

The crazy thing about Eberflus as a coach is he’s never failed down. He went from college coordinator to NFL linebacker coach, but that hardly seems like a demotion. He’s also been outrageously stable, only calling five spots home in his nearly 30 seasons coaching.”

For the last few offseasons, Eberflus has been a candidate. Following the 2018 season, the Cleveland Browns brought him for an interview but wound up going with Kevin Stefanski.

Then in 2020, Eberflus had several interviews. He had interviews with the New York Jets, Houston Texans and Los Angeles Chargers during the offseason, but all three decided to go in other directions.

On the other side of the ball, former offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni interviewed and was hired for the head coaching role with the Philadelphia Eagles.

If the Colts defense continues to make strides as one of the better units in the league, it won’t be long until Eberflus finds himself leading a team as a head coach.

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Colts announce return to Grand Park for training camp

The Colts will be returning to Westfield for training camp.

The Indianapolis Colts will return to the Grand Park Sports Campus in Westfield for training camp, the team announced Friday.

Though it was expected that the Colts were going to return to their training camp site, it hadn’t yet been announced before Friday. Now that it has, it’s official that the team will be going through a relatively normal training camp.

With the Colts returning to Westfield, this will also resume the ability for fans to be in attendance for training camp, which is one of the main reasons the team conducts their practices off-site.

There was no training camp for fans in 2020 due to COVID-19 protocols. There was barely any training camp for the players. But with vaccinations becoming more prevalent, it seems the league is opening up more and getting back to normal.

It isn’t clear what kind of protocols the Colts will have in place for training camp, but it is expected that the schedule will be announced on Tuesday.

Leading up to their preseason opener, the Colts will be hosting the Carolina Panthers for joint practices at Westfield on Aug. 12 and 13 before the game at Lucas Oil Stadium on Aug. 15.

The full schedule is expected to be released on Tuesday, but this is an encouraging step for things to get back to normal.

Quenton Nelson the only Colt featured in PFF’s top 50

Just one Colts player was featured on PFF’s top 50.

Pro Football Focus released their top-50 players entering the 2021 season and only one player for the Indianapolis Colts was featured on the list: left guard Quenton Nelson.

The three-time All-Pro guard is a guarantee to make any of these top-player lists given the type of impact he’s had on the offense since he arrived in 2018.

“According to PFF WAR, Nelson was the most valuable offensive lineman in the NFL last season. And the season before that.

Nelson plays offensive guard, a significantly less valuable position than tackle, but that tells you just how good he is at his current position. Nelson has now allowed just three sacks in his three NFL seasons and finished 2020 with 15 total pressures allowed across the full regular season and wild-card game. If anything, Nelson is an even better run-blocker, making him one of the best players in the game, period.”

We know Nelson is great. He’s on a Hall of Fame trajectory just three years into his career, but Colts fans are going to have some gripe with this list because of some omissions.

For one, it’s hard to believe there are 49 players better than All-Pro defensive tackle DeForest Buckner. He proved to be one of the best three-techniques in the league and many would make an argument he deserves the second spot among defensive tackles behind Aaron Donald.

Instead, PFF decided to put Chris Jones (No. 19), Cameron Heyward (No. 31) and Grady Jarrett (No. 42) on the list ahead of Buckner. Those players are great—don’t get me wrong.

But for an organization that prides itself on devaluing the running back position, it’s odd to see them put four running backs on the list ahead of a defensive tackle that was named to the All-Pro First Team in 2020.

Then there is another argument that Colts fans will make about linebacker Darius Leonard, who was also omitted from this list. Leonard has two All-Pro nods under his belt in three seasons. Four linebackers (Bobby Wagner, Fred Warner, Eric Kendricks, Lavonte David) made the list ahead of Leonard.

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Pair of Colts named to NFL’s ‘All-Under-25’ team

A pair of 2020 rookies made the All-Under-25 team.

Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor and kicker Rodrigo Blankenship were named to the NFL.com’s “All-Under-25” team by Nick Shook.

Taylor had a sensational rookie season thanks to a big second half in which he dominated. From Weeks 12–17, only Derrick Henry (948) had more rushing yards than Taylor (651) during that stretch. And only Henry (8) and Alvin Kamara (8) had more rushing touchdowns than Taylor (7) in that span.

“Taylor’s explosive second half of last season earned him a spot here. He beat out the likes of Saquon Barkley because, well, Taylor was available to play last year while Barkley missed all but two games due to injury. Taylor led rookies in rushing yards with 1,169 and finished third in the entire league in the category, doing so while seeing the second-most touches among all rookies (268). He also became one of just 25 rookies in NFL history to rush for 1,100-plus rushing yards and score 10 or more rushing touchdowns. Do you know who else is in that group? Barry Sanders, Earl Campbell and Adrian Peterson. It was a heck of a start for the next star running back in Indianapolis.”

Blankenship had a solid rookie season but will have to compete with Eddy Pineiro to keep his spot on the roster. Even so, his rookie campaign earned him a spot on this list.

“Blankenship ranked fifth in the league in field goals made with 32 in 2020. He was perfect from chip shot range (10 of 10 from 20-29 yards), nearly perfect from 30-39 yards (12 of 13) and posted a long of 53 yards. The group of young kickers isn’t exactly a packed one, and Blankenship rose to the top as a rookie.”

Blankenship was accurate enough, but he has to improve his deep kicking. If he can do that, the former Georgia Bulldog should be able to hold onto his role as the kicker.

Lucas Oil Stadium may not be host of NFL Combine for long

The NFL has opened up bidding for other locations to host the combine.

Since 1987, the Indianapolis Colts and Lucas Oil Stadium have been the host of the NFL draft combine, putting the best incoming athletes on the national stage for NFL teams.

However, it may not be the host of the combine for long. The league has opened bidding to host the NFL Combine, per Anthony Calhoun, Sports Director of News 8.

Calhoun also reported that the city of Indianapolis plans to do their part in keeping the massive offseason event in the Circle City.

The combine will continue to be in Indianapolis through the 2022 offseason. There was no combine in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

It will be interesting to see what happens with the combine but as soon as 2023, it could be in a new location.

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Colts’ Jim Irsay shows support for Raiders’ Carl Nassib

Jim Irsay gives his support to Carl Nassib.

Indianapolis Colts owner and CEO Jim Irsay showed his support for Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib in a tweet on Wednesday.

On Monday, Nassib came out as the NFL’s first-ever active gay player when he made his announcement via Instagram.

Irsay tweeted his support, commending Nassib’s decision to come out, a decision that was met with heaps of praise and support on social media.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell also gave a statement quickly following Nassib’s announcement.

“Representation matters,” Goodell said in a statement. “We share his hope that someday soon statements like his will no longer be newsworthy as we march toward full equality for the LGBTQ+ community. We wish Carl the best of luck this coming season.”

Nassib also donated $100,000 to The Trevor Project, an organization that focuses on suicide prevention for the LGBTQ+ community.

Former Missouri and St. Louis Rams defensive end Michael Sam was the first-ever gay player drafted into the NFL in 2014 but was cut before the regular season started.

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Colts’ Sam Ehlinger working out with Patrick Mahomes

Colts rookie QB getting work in with Patrick Mahomes

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Indianapolis Colts rookie and former Texas Longhorns quarterback Sam Ehlinger will be battling for the backup role behind starter Carson Wentz, and it seems he may be getting some help from Patrick Mahomes.

Ehlinger and Mahomes were spotted working out together this offseason in Texas.

Ehlinger was a sixth-round pick of the Colts during the 2021 NFL draft. His skill set is intriguing given that it is more like Wentz’s than that of Jacob Eason, who was a fourth-round pick by the Colts in 2020.

Ehlinger’s mobility and toughness will give him an edge during the preseason while Eason has a literal cannon attached to his right shoulder. Which one wins out will be determined throughout training camp and the preseason, even if the team keeps all three on the roster.

Hopefully, Mahomes also shared some tips with Ehlinger on how to have a deep ball like his, which would go a long way with the Texas product amid his position battle.

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Eric Fisher named biggest potential disappointment for Colts

B/R lists Fisher as a potential disappointment.

The Indianapolis Colts signed veteran left tackle Eric Fisher fully knowing the risk they are taking as he goes through his recovery from a torn Achilles in January.

It isn’t clear yet when Fisher will be ready to return from the rehab process, but the Colts seem comfortable enough with the timeline to sign him to a one-year deal following the 2021 draft.

However, Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report named Fisher as the Colts player who could be a disappointment due to the injury.

“New Indianapolis Colts quarterback Carson Wentz may not quite revitalize his career this season. However, with Wentz coming off the worst season of his career, the expectations in Indianapolis shouldn’t be terribly high for the former Philadelphia Eagles signal-caller.

A bigger disappointment could be Eric Fisher’s inability to protect Wentz.

The Colts brought in Fisher to help replace the recently retired Anthony Castonzo at left tackle. The problem is that Fisher’s 2020 campaign with the Kansas City Chiefs was cut short by a torn Achilles. Fisher suffered the injury during the playoffs and could miss a large chunk of the coming season.

Achilles injuries are tricky, and there’s no telling if or when Fisher will be back to 100 percent this year. That’s no fault of Fisher’s, of course, but if he can’t get onto the field or struggles, it will be a discouraging development for the Colts and for Wentz.

Poor pass protection hampered Wentz last season, as he was sacked 50 times in 12 games. He shouldn’t be pressured as much with standouts like Quenton Nelson and Braden Smith on the line, but Fisher’s recovery—or lack thereof—could still leave a significant hole at left tackle.”

Are the Colts taking a rise with Fisher? Sure, an argument can be made. He’s 30 years old and coming off of an injury that doesn’t have a strong track record of successful recoveries.

But Fisher doesn’t have to be a Pro Bowl left tackle for the Colts to get value out of this deal. Their offensive line and blocking scheme can mask an average left tackle next to Quenton Nelson.

The hope is that the Colts won’t have to worry about this because Fisher’s rehab will go smoothly, and the offensive line returns to its elite status.

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Colts to host Panthers for joint training camp practices

Panthers will be visiting Indy this fall.

The Indianapolis Colts will host the Carolina Panthers for joint training camp practices at the Grand Park Sports Complex in Westfield ahead of the preseason opener in August, the team announced Tuesday.

This was expected as reported by Zak Keefer of The Athletic following the 2021 draft, but it wasn’t set in stone just yet. Now that the team has announced it, the Panthers will be visiting the Colts.

Despite going 5-11 in 2020, this should be an interesting matchup for the Colts. The Panthers’ trio of receivers in D.J. Moore, Robby Anderson and rookie Terrace Marshall should provide the secondary with a stiff test right off the bat.

It isn’t clear how much work running back Christian McCaffrey will get during the two joint practices and the preseason game, but he will be the star of the show after missing most of the 2020 season due to injury.

The Panthers also traded for Sam Darnold this offseason, hoping he can be the quarterback of the future.

The Colts will be hoping to see what their new players like Carson Wentz and Kwity Paye can do against some real competition even if the looks will be vanilla for the most part.

The Colts are expected to have fans in attendance for training camp, which will help get things back to normal after a pandemic-filled 2020 season.

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Golden Tate names Colts among teams he’d like to join

Golden Tate wouldn’t mind a reunion with Carson Wentz.

Free-agent veteran wide receiver Golden Tate is available on the market and apparently believes he would be a good fit with Carson Wentz and the Indianapolis Colts.

The 32-year-old wideout ended his stint with the New York Giants this offseason with one year left on his contract after they needed to save some salary-cap space. Now, he’s looking for his next team.

While on SiriusXM NFL, Tate listed a few teams he’d like to play for. The Colts, and a reunion with Wentz, were among those teams.

“I would love to go back home to Tennessee. Indy, over with Carson Wentz. Obviously, the LA Rams would be fantastic with [Matthew] Stafford,” Tate said.

It’s hard to imagine the Colts going after Tate even if he does have a rapport with Wentz from their short time together in Philly.

The Colts seem to be set when it comes to their roster for the 2021 season, especially when it comes to the receiving corps. They are expecting a big jump from Michael Pittman Jr. while they re-signed T.Y. Hilton to a one-year deal this offseason.

Indy also still has extensions on the docket for linebacker Darius Leonard and right tackle Braden Smith so their salary-cap figures may be a bit deceiving.

Along with that, Tate’s game doesn’t appear to be what it used it. According to Next Gen Stats, Tate average 2.1 yards of separation per target in 2020. That was tied for fifth-fewest among wide receivers.

Tate is likely to sign somewhere before the 2021 season and while in the NFL anything can happen, it shouldn’t be expected that the Colts will go out of their way to sign the former second-round pick.

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