Just under a year ago, many around the football world believed Indianapolis had lost their chance at seeing a quality football team in Lucas Oil Stadium for the foreseeable future. Andrew Luck, the Hoosier State’s golden child under center, hung up the pads and announced his retirement from football. The NFL was tipped on its side, and what was once a potential Super Bowl contender had collapsed upon itself. Left in the ruins was a shaky wide receiver corps and holes all over the defensive side of the ball. However, with one of the best offseasons in the NFL this past year, it seems that rebuild may already be over.
Longtime Chargers QB Phillip Rivers chose to sign with the Colts this offseason. You just don’t sign Phillip Rivers if you aren’t prepared to win now. Yes, I’m aware that the 38-year-old has a lackluster five playoff wins in his 16 years in the league. The most important part of that signing isn’t his playoff record though; it’s his age. You don’t bring in a consistent pro bowl QB to lead your rebuild, and you definitely don’t trade your First Round pick for star D-Lineman Deforest Buckner. The Indianapolis decision makers have a completely different vision for this squad, and they’re doing a great job of creating a solid roster.
It was obvious that the Colts had quite a few issues on the offense. They’ve already solved the QB problem. Wide receiver was basically just T.Y. Hilton and a handful of receivers. Well, they fixed that issue. Alongside T.Y. is Michael Pittman Jr, the USC standout that the Colts drafted early in the second round of the draft. They also drafted Parris Campbell, a second-round pick in last year’s draft. Rounding out the pass catchers is Jack Doyle, who managed to haul in 448 yards while splitting targets with Eric Ebron in 2019.
They also did alot to fix the scattered holes across the defense. The addition of Deforest Buckner is certainly a step in the right direction. They also managed to spruce up their pass rush by adding Robert Windsor and Sheldon Day to the D-Line. The development of corners Kenny Moore II and Rock Ya-Sin’s vast improvement over his rookie season, having a PFF grade of 77.9 from week 9 to 17. Behind the duo will be longtime Viking Xavier Rhodes and TJ Carrie, who were both brought in to provide some veteran help behind the young bucks.
Now, you might be wondering how long their Super Bowl window is truly open with Rivers’ retirement surely in the very near horizon. It seems the Colts already have that planned out as well. They managed to grab Washington Huskies QB Jacob Eason in the 4th round of this draft, and he couldn’t have a more comparable teacher in front of him than Phillip Rivers. Both are tall gunslingers who are revered in their respective locker rooms as leaders. He was also considered by many to have one of the highest ceilings in the class, and the Colts managed to get him in the 4th round.
Another piece of the puzzle fell into place without the Colts doing anything. Their divisional rivals in Houston traded their star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins away, leaving major questions on where their future lies. Jacksonville is currently penciled in as tied worst odds to win the Super Bowl in 2021 by CBS Sports.. That leaves only the Titans, who had a very impressive season, but are coming off of an offseason that has seen the departure of Jurrell Casey, Logan Ryan and Jack Conklin, three key pieces to the team.
The Colts have done a marvelous job at taking fate into their own hands (hoofs?) and rewriting the narrative. Not many teams have been able to stay afloat this soon after their franchise passer leaves the organization. The most recent example is, well, the Colts when Peyton departed for greener pastures and the Colts selected Andrew Luck in the draft directly after. It’s a very impressive attempt to return to glory on paper, but now we wait to see it unfold on the gridiron.
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