Colts 2021 Free Agency Guide

We finally made it to NFL Free Agency Week.

The "legal tampering period," where teams may begin discussing contracts with prospective new free agents, begins Monday, March 15 at 12:00pm ET and last until 3:59pm ET on Wednesday, March 17.

At 4:00pm ET, the new league year officially begins and teams may begin signing new players to contracts. Trades that have been agreed upon during the offseason can also become official at this point.

Due to COVID-19 and the financial hit that the league took over the last year, the salary cap is not as high as it would've been on a normal year, currently set at $182.5 million.

Because the cap is expected to grow next offseason and a new, huge television deal is expected to be put into place, we may see a lot of short-term deals done this spring so that players may attempt to cash in on bigger contracts once the cap goes back up.

Today, we focus on the Indianapolis Colts, what we know, and how we think they may approach free agency. In each section is a list of articles from Horseshoe Huddle that can help you with the ins and outs of Colts free agency.

Free Agency Situation

The Colts are among the top five teams in salary cap space according to Over the Cap at about $45.8 million.

Because of that, they have the flexibility to do just about whatever they want and fill the few needs they have. However, they have some large contract extensions to focus on in the next year or so.

In-House Free Agents

Teams like the Colts rely on the draft to truly build their roster. Draft players, develop them, and then extend them is their mindset. However, of course, teams can't bring everybody back year-to-year.

Unrestricted free agents may sign with any team they choose. Restricted free agents may agree to terms with any team and sign an offer sheet, but the Colts have the right to match other teams' offers within seven days. If the Colts do not match, they may receive draft pick compensation from the other team pre-determined by the value they placed on the player at the beginning of free agency.

Here are the Colts' own free agents

UFA — DL Denico Autry, QB Jacoby Brissett, TE Trey Burton, CB T.J. Carrie, OL Le'Raven Clark, OT Chaz Green, WR T.Y. Hilton, S Malik Hooker, DE Justin Houston, C Joey Hunt, RB Marlon Mack, DE Al-Quadin Muhammad, CB Xavier Rhodes, LB Anthony Walker, S Tavon Wilson

RFA — TE Mo Alie-Cox, S George Odum, WR Zach Pascal, CB Tremon Smith

Players to Watch

Obviously, one of the most fun parts of free agency is looking at free agents around the league and putting together a "shopping list" for your team.

Here are several players that have been linked to the Colts either by rumor or suggestion from the media.

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