Indianapolis Colts tight end Mo Alie-Cox reportedly is available for trade, per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.
After signing a three-year deal to be the starter replacing Jack Doyle, Alie-Cox failed to make the type of impact the Colts were hoping for at the tight end position.
Now, with two years left on his deal, Fowler reported that the Colts are making Alie-Cox available for trade. This comes on the heels of the news that center Ryan Kelly also is on the trading block.
Sources with several NFL teams say three-time Pro Bowl center Ryan Kelly is available for a potential trade or release. Kelly signed a four-year, $50 million extension before the 2020 season. With cap hits of $12.4 and $14.6 million in 2023-24, coupled with Indy’s rough outing across the offensive line last year, Kelly’s future in Indy could be tenuous.
Tight end Mo Alie-Cox is another name a few teams have on their lists as potentially available.
After recording over 300 receiving yards in a rotational role over two seasons in 2020 and 2021, Alie-Cox regressed massively in 2022. He recorded just 19 receptions for 189 yards and three touchdowns. The quarterback position deserves some blame for that, but Alie-Cox simply didn’t thrive the same in a bigger role.
On top of that, the Colts have more promising assets at tight end in Jelani Woods and Kylen Granson. We likely would add Alec Ogletree to that list as well had he not torn his ACL in training camp.
The Colts need a tight end who can consistently run block while adding some help as a safety valve in the passing game. They seemed to think Alie-Cox would be that option, but he didn’t show as much in his first season as a starter.
Releasing Alie-Cox would save the Colts $2.9 million against the cap while incurring a dead-cap hit of $2.3 million in 2023. However, they would incur no dead cap while saving $5.9 million if he’s released in 2024.
If the Colts somehow find a trade partner, they would save $5.3 million and $5.9 million against the cap without any dead cap for 2023 and 2024, respectively.
We’ll see what the future holds for Alie-Cox, but the team may be looking to move forward with Woods and Granson while adding a more serviceable blocker this offseason.
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