Colts Free Agents: 'We're Going to Have Those Tough Conversations'

The Indianapolis Colts have nearly two dozen impending free agents. Who are they, are which are the toughest decisions?

Indianapolis Colts linebacker E.J. Speed (45) celebrates with Indianapolis Colts safety Julian Blackmon (32) after he made an interception to end the game Sunday, Oct. 8, 2023, during a game against the Tennessee Titans at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. / Robert Scheer/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Indianapolis Colts have their work cut out for them this offseason.

After failing to reach the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year, the Colts will gaze at themselves in the mirror at a roster that has had no significant turnover over the last three seasons in which they've compiled a record of 21-29-1

The franchise's culture has been called into question in recent weeks. The words "complacency" and "ego" have been thrown around by arguably their biggest leader and one of the only players who has any significant team success in their career, DeForest Buckner.

After preaching the value of continuity among the roster and coaching staff at the end of the previous season, Colts head coach Shane Steichen was asked this week if the Colts might need to shake things up to get the team going in the right direction.

“Those are going to be the conversations that we're going to have moving forward because, obviously, it wasn't good enough this year," Steichen responded. "We're going to have those tough conversations moving forward.”

In order to shake up the roster, it starts with evaluating which in-house free agents should be brought back and which ones should find a change of scenery. The following is a list of each of the Colts' free agents, per Spotrac.com, broken up into the type of free agent they are. Players are ordered by the amount of snaps they played in 2024.

UNRESTRICTED

Per the NFL: "Any player with four or more accrued seasons and an expired contract; free to negotiate and sign with any team."

• S Julian Blackmon
• LB E.J. Speed
• DE Dayo Odeyingbo
• TE Kylen Granson
• C Ryan Kelly
• TE Mo Alie-Cox
• LB Grant Stuard
• DT Taven Bryan
• WR Ashton Dulin
• QB Joe Flacco
• G Mark Glowinski
• G Will Fries
• RB Trey Sermon
• S Ronnie Harrison
• C Danny Pinter
• CB David Long
• QB Sam Ehlinger
• WR Juwann Winfree

This is where the Colts can truly break a cycle. General manager Chris Ballard has done a nice job of finding mid and late-round picks in the draft who wind up becoming useful players but not necesarily difference-makers. Because the Colts' early-round picks have been so underwhelming, the roster is full of guys who are average but still get re-signed because they're homegrown. Eventually, some of these guys are going to have to be let walk so that some of that salary cap space can be used on difference-makers.

There will be some tough decisions for the Colts when it comes to guys like Julian Blackmon, E.J. Speed, and Dayo Odeyingbo. All three have been drafted and developed by the Colts and became starters. They've had periods of really solid play but are coming off of disappointing seasons.

The decision on Ryan Kelly is likely to be gut-wrenching for Ballard, as the four-time Pro Bowler is the longest-tenured player on the team and one of their most prominent leaders. However, at 31 years old, he's only had three seasons uninterrupted by injury and may be usurped by rookie Tanor Bortolini, who looked good in relief of Kelly this season.

Will Fries is an outlier. He's gotten better each season and was having an outstanding year before suffering a season-ending leg injury in October. At the pace he was playing, he likely would've gotten a huge payday on his next contract. If his medicals check out, the Colts could re-sign him for significantly cheaper.

What happens next for the Colts? Don't miss out on any news and analysis! Take a second and sign up for our free newsletter and get breaking Colts news delivered to your inbox daily!

RESTRICTED

"A player with three accrued seasons and an expired contract. RFAs are free to negotiate and sign with any team, but their original team can offer them one of various qualifying offers ('tenders') that come with the right of first refusal and/or draft-pick compensation. If the tender is withdrawn by a team, the RFA becomes an unrestricted free agent... The RFA tenders are classified as First-Round tenders, Second-Round tenders, Original-Round tenders, Right-of-First-Refusal tenders, and Upgraded tenders."

• LB Cameron McGrone
• S Trevor Denbow
• IOL Wesley French

Cameron McGrone and Trevor Denbow are core special teamers for the Colts so they may be retained on that basis alone. However, Denbow suffered a significant knee injury at midseason.

EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS

"Any player with fewer than three accrued seasons and an expired contract. If his original team offers him a one-year contract at the league minimum (based on his credited seasons), the player cannot negotiate with other teams."

• OL Ryan Coll

As an undrafted rookie, Ryan Coll spent his initial season in the NFL on Injured Reserve.

RE-SIGNED

• LB Segun Olubi (ERFA)
• RB Tyler Goodson (ERFA)

Segun Olubi and Tyler Goodson are both significant special teamers for the Colts with as-needed abilities on defense and offense, respectively. If the Colts want to keep them for their special teams prowess, sure, but they shouldn't be factors in deciding what to do at their position groups.

---

Need your fill on daily Colts' content? Head over to the Locked On Colts' YouTube channel where Jake Arthur and Zach Hicks hit on all the major topics surrounding this team. Hit that subscribe button while you are there!

Become a Locked On Colts insider! Ask your burning questions and get prompt answers from someone who's around the team every day! Get special access from the locker room, practice field, and press box!

Follow Horseshoe Huddle on Facebook and X, and subscribe on YouTube for multiple Colts live-stream podcasts per week.