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Focus on what’s in front of him, rather than what’s behind.

Keeping his eyes forward is what got him here, what led to the Colts linebacker signing a two-year, $8 million contract with another $1 million available in playing-time incentives to stay in Indianapolis beyond his rookie contract.


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Speed set the foundation for a second contract with what he did on special teams. He locked it into place by finally proving last season that he can be a consistent piece on defense.

“Sometimes you feel like people put a box around you,” Speed said. “When you can break through the box and become something more than what’s expected, it’s always a warm feeling.”

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The opportunity to prove Speed could be something more than a special teamer has always been there.

Indianapolis general manager Chris Ballard has made it a staple of his regime. Ballard believes that special teams can be a critical incubator for raw, late-round prospects who need time on the field to develop but aren’t ready to contribute on offense or defense.

The belief was a big part of the interview process the Colts conducted in the search to replace former special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone.

“Overall, special teams is going to be about fundamental development,” Ventrone’s replacement, Brian Mason, said. “All those fundamentals, the game of football as a whole, there’s going to be a lot of carryover.”

Another Colts linebacker might be the best example of that vision.

Zaire Franklin spent his first three seasons in Indianapolis as a special teamer, entrenched himself as a leader and then proved in 2021 that he could handle a role on defense, stepping into the lineup as a strong-side linebacker.

Franklin signed a three-year, $10 million contract at this time a year ago, found himself forced into a bigger role by Shaquille Leonard’s injury and made the most of it, racking up a team-record 167 tackles as a starter in the middle.

Leonard’s injury also gave Speed an opportunity.

A raw, unpolished talent when the Colts found him at a Lone Star Conference pro day in 2019 and subsequently plucked him in the fifth round, Speed has always had a similar athletic profile to Leonard, but he spent the first three years of his career playing almost exclusively on special teams.

Speed played just 180 snaps on defense in his first three seasons as a Colt, and 65 of those came in the Christmas night game in Arizona in 2021 when Indianapolis was decimated by COVID-19.

When Leonard was able to play only 74 snaps last season, it opened the door for Speed to step into Gus Bradley’s defense as the team’s starting strong-side linebacker; he responded by producing 55 tackles, seven tackles-for-loss, two forced fumbles and a sack in 314 snaps.

“I can do a lot, Gus has expressed to me plenty of times that he trusts me,” Speed said. “We’ve already made plays together as a coach and player.”

A breakout like Franklin’s 2022 season might be hard to replicate.

Leonard has been optimistic that he’ll be back to full strength after undergoing a second surgery in November to relieve the pressure two discs in his back were putting on his nerves, and if he’s healthy, the three-time first-team All-Pro will team with Franklin in the starting lineup.

Right now, Speed projects to be the team’s starting strong-side linebacker again.

But considering where he came from — a relative unknown coming out of Tarleton State, a special teams-only player his first three seasons — signing his extension Wednesday was a milestone.

The rare experience that can make Speed look back, if only for a moment.

“It’s been a lot of hard work put into this to get to where I’m at today,” Speed said. “I’m just grateful for the Colts organization for trusting in me, and putting me in those positions to show I am who I say I am.”

In Indianapolis, the special teams units are designed that way.

But the player still has to take advantage of the opportunity