Top Landing Spots for Michael Pittman Revealed by CBS
NFL Free Agency is scheduled to open March 13th. The Indianapolis Colts have several-key players scheduled to hit the open market including wide receiver Michael Pittman.
The odds of Pittman hitting the open market on that day are low with the Colts having the ability to use the franchise tag on him. That window opened last week, and the Colts have until March 5th to decide to use that option or not.
The Cincinnati Bengals will tag wide receiver Tee Higgins, making Pittman arguably the top free agent wide receiver this year.
It's preferable for all parties that Pittman and the Colts agree to a new-long-term contract. However, if the Colts are forced to use the franchise tag, CBS Sports' Bryan DeArdo revealed the teams most likely to turn Pittman's head, keeping him from signing a new-multi-year contract.
He first mentioned the Kansas City Chiefs.
"Kansas City won last year's Super Bowl despite a receiving corps that underperformed for most of the year," wrote DeArdo on CBSSports.
The Chiefs have an estimated $28 million in available salary cap according to Spotrac. Adding a young-offensive weapon to a team with Patrick Mahomes and a championship-caliber defense would be bad news for the rest of the NFL.
DeArdo also lists the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a good fit with a young replacement for Mike Evans.
He closes out with the Chicago Bears, Carolina Panthers, and Pittsburgh Steelers. The Bears are an interesting option. Not only do they have the No. 1 and No. 9 picks in April's NFL Draft, they have $83 million in available cap space.
"The Bears have the draft picks to pull off a tag-and-trade if the Colts are willing to do so," he wrote.
DeArdo admits Pittman isn't likely to hit the open market in March. But could one of those teams turn Pittman's head enough to keep him from signing a long-term deal, freeing him up in 2025?
