ASAP came and went months ago. They have known since training camp last year that Pittmans contract needed restructuring. We are risking losing Pierce by this play. I do not like it, to risky.

o


In 1967, Joe Namath became the first QB in professional football history to throw for over 4,000 yards in a season (he threw for 4,007 yards.)

Namath did that in a 14-game season, and when the rules for defensive backs were stacked overwhelmingly IN FAVOR of the defense.

To this day, even with the 17-game season and with the rules STACKED AGAINST the defense in regard to the passing game, no Jets QB has thrown for 4,000 or more yards in a season.

o

Up & Adams
@UpAndAdamsShow
·
22m
"I love Indy... but at this point, I've kind of earned the right to explore free agency. See what's out there."

Colts WR Alec Pierce on his impending free agency

Thoughts?


Jordan Schultz
@Schultz_Report
Sources: The #Giants have informed LB and defensive captain Bobby Okereke that he will be released.

The team’s Walter Payton Man of the Year amassed 385 tackles in 3 seasons with the Giants (143 last season), but now will get a head start on free agency. Okereke was entering the final year of a 4-year $40M contract and was due to make $9M.

o



NEW YORK JETS QB's lll (Passing YDs in a Single Season)



Joe Namath - 4,007 Yards (1967)

Ryan Fitzpatrick - 3,915 Yards (2015)

Aaron Rodgers - 3,897 Yards (2024)

Ken O'Brien - 3,888 Yards (1985)

Vinny Testaverde - 3,772 Yards (2000)

Ken O'Brien - 3,690 Yards (1986)

Richard Todd - 3,478 Yards (1983)

Mark Sanchez - 3,474 Yards (2011)

Brett Favre - 3,472 Yards (2008)

Boomer Esiason - 3,421 Yards (1993)

Joe Namath - 3,379 Yards (1966)

Chad Pennington - 3,352 Yards (2006)

Ken O'Brien - 3,346 Yards (1989)

Richard Todd - 3,329 Yards (1980)

Ken O'Brien - 3,300 Yards (1991)

Mark Sanches - 3,291 Yards (2010)

Vinny Testaverde - 3,256 Yards (1998)

Richard Todd - 3,231 Yards (1981)

Joe Namath - 3,147 Yards (1968)

Chad Pennington - 3,120 Yards (2002)

Geno Smith - 3,046 Yards (2013)

Sam Darnold - 3,024 Yards (2019)

o

I’m afraid that dude is gone. I guess it could be a negotiating ploy, but that sounds like a guy who fully expects to be leaving.

The guy can most likely have his pick of team and QB that he wants. It boggles the he may hit free agency.

I'll never be upset with a guy that gets his payday. He's earned it. I just hope if the offers are close he chooses here.

I'd like to know sooner than later so they can decide on MJP. I don't think they keep both We should be able to trade MJP fairly easily for a decent return IMO

He should have been franchised. I hope I'm wrong but I'll be surprised if we get more than half a season out of Jones.

Oh yeah, I wish him the best. Go get your money, dude. I agree that if the money is even, I hope he chooses to stay.

Then again, if a team like Buffalo offers him the same money and he’d get the chance to play with Josh Allen, I really wouldn’t expect him to come back.

And if he does leave, maybe Ballard can trade for AD Mitchell.

https://1075thefan.com/723170/alec-p...-agent-market/

I won’t blame him for leaving. Unless the team offers more money than competitors why would he choose this organization? The consistent mediocrity? The other option is they clean house and you have no idea what you are getting. Ballard screwed up when AP wasn’t tagged. If some teams want to throw big money at DJ then so be it. He’s proven nothing IMO. DJ has more reason to believe the Colts are the right fit for him than AP does.

Holder explained it like this-the Colts have decided that Jones is their guy going forward, whether we like it or not. Once they made that decision, the choice of who to tag became clear, just based on the positional value. You make sure you keep your starting quarterback first, then the wide receiver.

If you view it through that lens, they made the right choice. It also tells us that a long term deal with Jones is still coming, regardless of whether they are able to keep Pierce.

As someone who does not think Jones is the answer at quarterback, I think they’re nuts.

Bingo. I would keep Pierce and give Leonard a legit shot. What do we have to lose? Jones scares me more than Leonard does. Get hurt again? Revert back to his Giants days? If Jones is the final answer, it better be an incentive loaded deal.

That’s the one and only upshot of all of this. If we trade AR and roll with Jones, we’ll get to see Leonard in action at some point because Jones will get hurt. That’s almost guaranteed.

I would have cut Pittman and signed AP.

Buffalo is over the cap, ATM

Good people of Coltfreaks, let me introduce you to the very worst GM in the NFL today, tomorrow, and forever hereafter.

Chris Ballard is without question an incompetent fucking stooge.

I guess he made some comments at the combine about fans on the internet talking shit but not having the courage to say shit to his face. Hilarious, fucking hilarious that the GM of a multi-billion dollar organization would spew that type of juvenile shit. Tells you everything you ever need to know at just how fully inept he really is.

We are fucked beyond comprehension.

I was never on the "I hate Ballard" bandwagon that your were driving, but this latest move of giving Jones a guaranteed 37 million and thus sealing the fate of Pierce going to greener pastures, has me on board.

FUCK CHRIS BALLARD!

Pierce would be retarded to come back here, and we're retarded for not tagging him.

When does it fucking stop? These clowns do their best to ruin a glass half full attitude.

Took fucking years and years for this asshole to finally build a WR corps that can play, and what does he do- fucking sit on his hands so it most likely is dismantled just when it was proving to be very good.

I HATE this fucking dude, I mean HATE him. It is incomprehensible how shitty he is at his job.

Been following this team for 62 years. Not sure I can keep rooting for a team that is so dysfunctional. For those of you who still support Ballard can you explain what he is doing? Honestly I have not seen or heard one person, not one, who is on board or understands WTF this organization is trying to do.

It’s obvious what they’re thinking, it’s just that they are wrong about Jones. He will never even lead this team to the playoffs.

I will say that if Pierce ends up getting some insanely big contract from another team and leaves, the Colts will end up being better off in the long run, because I don’t think Pierce is a true number one receiver any more than Pittman is.

He’s a good player and a great deep threat but he’s not a true number one.

I mean, the plan is a clear as day if you choose to look at it that way.

Andrew Luck retires and our decades of superior QB play ends.

We then search 7 seasons with little to no success in finding someone who can deliver superior QB play (I am giving the year with Phillip Rivers as the little success in that above statement.)

Ballard tried...regardless of success, he tried everything he could think of to find someone who could deliver superior QB play to the Indianapolis Colts.

While trying to find that guy, we can debate all day long on how well he built the rest of the roster but as we all know, the rest of the roster matters much less than having that one guy that can deliver superior QB play.

And in 2025, for just over half the season going 8-2, we found a younger QB with lots of starting experience that again delivered superior QB play to the Indianapolis Colts to pair with a roster that showed it could compete.

Red flags? Sure! Injury and bad play with the Giants but for that half year, Daniel Jones did what no other QB had done in Ballard's time as the Colts GM...he delivered superior QB play.

And now the team wants to try and retain that. It is clear as day.

Honestly, I myself am over the Ballard experience in Indy after having defended him because I do not believe that DJ can sustain superior QB play in 2026 and beyond. I think they are betting on the wrong horse and it is going to bite them in the a$$.

But, to those who are going on about how he is THE WORST GM in the NFL or how the franchis has become a complete joke....please.....

Do some fricking research.....study the Raiders....or the Jets....or Miami....or about ten or so franchises who just can not put a quality team on the field. Get some prespective.

My son mentioned to me yesterday that this is the first time in his memory of following the Colts (which started in about 2013 or 2014) that the Colts are probably going to lose someone to free agency that he is really sorry to see go. Like, he is perhaps a future cornerstone of a team we are letting get away.

Perhaps you could argue Bethea signed away in 2014...
Perhaps Justin Houston in 2021...
Perhaps Glowinski in 2022...
Okereke in 2023?

None of our lost free agents have really been impact players for the team...and now Pierce.

That makes the worst GM and most disfunctional NFL franchise in the league? Please...

I do not like the choice. I think whatever team gives DJ a starter quality contract is going to be very disapointed in the end. I disagree with the selection of DJ over AP.

But that choice does not catapult the franchise into "worst run" area. Some on here are worst that teenaged girl K-Pop fans with their drama...and I have a couple of them who live in my house!

While I disaree with Hoopsdoc and believe that AP is a legit WR1 in the NFL, his loss to the franchise will not plummet us back into the dregs of NFL loser-hood.

The future play of Daniel Jones will do that...

P.S. - AND I REALLY HOPE THAT I HAVE TO EAT CROW ON THE ABOVE STATEMENT! i will support the Colts no matter what and I hope that I have to come back on this board in two years and say that I WAS WRONG about DJ. I want the Colts to have success no matter what.

We will see.

I was never anti Ballard until this latest move. I agree, the sudden Luck departure left a huge hole in all his plans. He tried, but if weren't for a retired Luck, he had no Luck at all. (Blues despair and agony on me.).

I'm just really pissed at this latest move. I really don't believe there would be any team that would offer DJ a contract that exceeds the 37 million they are now on the hook to pay him. I honestly believe 15 million with some reachable incentives would have worked and then they could have franchised Pierce.

Like you, I hope I'm wrong about this, but I really don't think so. As for Pierce, he'll probably end up in New England where his success will continue to haunt Colts fans for years to come.

I agree with everything you said here with the exception of Pierce being a true number one receiver.

True number ones are guys like Smith-Njigba, AJ Brown, J’Marr Chase, and Justin Jefferson. Pierce is nowhere near that level and, in my opinion, never will be. He’s not athletic enough. He’s a really good receiver but he’s not one of those guys.

What I’m saying is, if he ends getting paid like one of those guys, then the Colts will have dodged a bullet if he leaves because he’s never going to live up to that contract.

Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t think I am.

Ughh, New England would be a perfect spot for him. Damnit. Now he’s going to end up there.

Destin Adams
@TheDestinAdams
·
Mar 4
To be honest, though, Jones knows the Colts can't have him actually play on the transition tag

There's no cap flexibility there, and they need it

They need him to sign an actual contract

So I'd say this still gives him more leverage than the Colts

Maybe wait until we see happens before turning on this move? If we keep DJ. his contract will be different than the 37m if he wants more than a 1 yr deal.

They have until next Tuesday to get a deal done with AP. I am guessing they are working on other contracts right now to free up some cap space

Patience

I think he is working his way to becoming one. Remember he has not had a stable QB in all his years here. His route tree is expanding, and he is absolutely correct when he says "I only had 84 catches last yr and went over 1000 yards. With 130-150 catches. I set the receiving record'

Hard to argue with that. He and Dimes were building some chemistry. While he may not be a top of the NFL #1 right now. He will be eventually.

He wanted Dimes signed. and his brother is going to be playing BB at Purdue

I think this deal gets done eventually and he is going to get paid. And when he does I am sure some on here will be doing a lot of bitching about the price.

JMO
~Pete~

Ballard had half a season to either work something out with Jones or Pierce. He had a year to restructure Pitman or decide how he would handle it. Rather than make decisions and take control of situation he has just been along for the ride it seems and reacted to what has happened. I don’t see a plan here, even if you think Jones=Mahomes he will need receivers

I fully understand that not signing Jones or Pierce, leaves us in a huge hole this year, but I am not so sure I am happy signing them to long term deals at the prices being thrown around at the moment is a good thing for the Colts to be doing either.

Pierce is a great 2nd receiver, who deserves a contract in the region of $15-20m based on what he has already produced. Could he become something more, sure, that's possible, but I don't want to be saddled with a similar contract to what Pittman has already, should he fail to morph into a No. 1 guy, which is what the contract being muted says he should be. The figures bounded around, say he should be one of the top 5 receivers in the league, and he certainly isn't anywhere near that at the moment and is it realistic to think that he will become that?

Jones was brilliant in the first half of the year, but he then suffered one of the most serious injuries a player could have. Are we willing to pay him top 5-10 QB money, when he has only achieved that sort of play for 8 games in his career. I am not sure he deserves that, even if he was fully healthy.

The alternatives, that's now the real problem, especially at QB.

I am less concerned with the receiving corps, without Pierce. We should be trying to redo Pittman's contract, and then feed him the ball more often than we have the last 2 years. Downs is ready to step things up, Tyler Warren is also going to see a big uptick. That's 3 decent receiving threats that we have. Could we sign someone like Debo Samuel in free agency? Or now that Darnell Mooney has been released, could he be a cheaper option? Or a true speedster in the drafts middle rounds?

Just thinking out loud on this. I was sure the Bills would be in on AP. Maybe the agent told the Bills he is not going to be available because he is staying with the Colts.



Adam Schefter
@AdamSchefter
·
55m
ESPN sources: the Chicago Bears are working to finalize a trade that would send WR D.J. Moore to the Buffalo Bills.

Compensation still is being discussed, and the trade cannot be processed until the new league year begins, but both sides are pushing to make it happen.

James Boyd
@RomeovilleKid
·
41m
Gotta be good news for the #Colts. Takes Alec Pierce off the table for the Bills, so that’s one less suitor for arguably the best free-agent WR on the market — and Pierce *will* test the market.

Agree, one less suitor for Pierce.

Read where Pierce is prioritizing QB stability and a strong established winning culture. Neither of those exist in Indy.

Warren Sharp
@SharpFootball
·
1h
most expensive WR rooms in 2026:

1. CIN - $63.5M
2. BUF - $59.4M
3. DAL - $56.7M
4. TB - $56.3M
5. MIN - $48.4M
6. DET - $44.8M
7. HOU - $43.8M
8. NE - $43.4M
9. ATL - $42.9M
10. LAR - $40.8M
11. IND - $39.7M
12. PHI - $39.5M
13. PIT - $38.2M
14. JAX - $33.3M
15. TEN - $31.9M
16. NYG - $31.7M
17. NO - $26.7M
18. SF - $26.2M
19. SEA - $25.8M
20. WAS - $24.6M
21. DEN - $24M
22. ARI - $23.8M
23. GB - $20.5M
24. CLE - $20.3M
25. NYJ - $17.7M
26. MIA - $16.8M
27. CAR - $15.8M
28. LAC - $14.1M
29. BAL - $13.9M
30. CHI - $12.5M
31. LV - $11.1M
32. KC - $9.9M

*based on total cap hit

Yeah ok where the fucks that?

QB stability means less money

Unless he’s trying to go to the Bears