Trade Bait: Could Sam Ehlinger be on the Block?
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Indianapolis Colts quarterback Sam Ehlinger had an impressive showing on Saturday against the Buffalo Bills.
In the Colts' first preseason game, Ehlinger went 10-of-11 passing for 88 yards and two touchdowns. He was the Colts' second-leading rusher with 24 yards as well.
Despite his good performance, head coach Frank Reich established there is still a strong pecking order among the Colts quarterbacks, leaving Ehlinger at No. 3 behind Matt Ryan and Nick Foles.
“Right now, Matt (Ryan) is No. 1, Nick (Foles) is No. 2, Sam (Ehlinger) is No. 3 and Jack (Coan) is No. 4," said Reich on Sunday. "I feel confident in that. So, Nick has really had a long, established career as a starter and as a backup. But really love what Sam has done in preseason and love the game he had yesterday."
His good performance, and seemingly fixed spot on the depth chart, helped lead to speculation from Alex Kay of Bleacher Report that the Colts should try and trade Ehlinger.
"Ehlinger is currently competing with undrafted rookie Jack Coan for the third-string role," wrote Kay. "While Ehlinger has the inside track because of his familiarity with the offense, the 2021 sixth-rounder could end up on the practice squad if the club doesn’t opt to keep three active QBs on the 53-man roster."
"With Ehlinger’s upside, there is a decent chance another team poaches him if Indy attempts to demote him off the active roster. Rather than let that happen, the Colts could instead try to recoup a bit of value for the 23-year-old and deal him during the preseason."
The Colts used a sixth-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft; Ehlinger has proven he's at least worth that in return.
"The market for Ehlinger won’t be red-hot, but there are several squads in need of a promising depth option to develop in the QB room," wrote Kay.
"If Indianapolis is going to go with only two active signal-callers this season—something the team has done the last few years—taking a Day 3 pick for Ehlinger would be preferable to him getting poached off the practice squad."
If the Colts continue to showcase Ehlinger in the preseason, and he continues to play as he did against the Bills, the market for him should heat up.
If that's the case, the Colts could decide to move him for a 2023 draft pick rather than keep him on the active roster or risk losing him for nothing if he's moved to the practice squad.
Of course, there's always the option that he plays himself into the No. 2 role, and Nick Foles becomes expendable.
