The Indianapolis Colts are coming off of a season in which they exceeded expectations en route to a trip to the playoffs. This somewhat surprising success of a 2018 season has given plenty of encouragement for the immediate and distant future.
From the construction of the roster, to the mentality of the coaching staff and front office, to the talent evaluators, the Colts have an extremely bright future and arguably the brightest in the NFL.
Here are five reasons the Colts have a bright future:
A talented foundation has been laid
When the Colts brought in Chris Ballard to be the general manager ahead of the 2017 offseason, he had a lot of work to do in order to get the roster even close to where he wanted to begin. That started with cutting some of the age down and ridding themselves of some contracts.
Throughout his first two free agent pools and draft classes, Ballard has been able to construct a foundation on the roster that not only is young but one that is talented with plenty of upside on both sides of the ball.
Now, the Colts have a strong foundation laid out in front of them where they can add pieces to the roster making both sides of the ball even stronger.
Ballard and Reich’s contagious mentality
While some teams can get by without a strong relationship between the general manager and head coach, it usually doesn’t allow for sustained success. With Ballard and head coach Frank Reich, it doesn’t seem like mutual respect will be a problem.
Both Ballard and Reich have a way of winning people over with ease. Whether it be the way they interact with people, their determination to win at all costs or their desire to put the team above all else, it is easy to see why the players in the locker room bought in so quickly.
The Colts are building a young team and part of the success must come from the mentality that Ballard and Reich share. As the players see the coaching staff and front office sticking to it, they will buy in and follow without hesitation.
An abundance of resources this offseason
With that solid foundation already built, the Colts will be entering this offseason with the most projected salary cap space in the NFL to go along with a projected nine picks in the 2019 NFL Draft.
It remains to be seen how Ballard will handle the abundance of resources, but he at least has the opportunity to go out and get almost any free agent or draft prospect he desires without much difficulty. There aren’t too many teams in the NFL with the freedom the Colts have.
Just because they have a ton of salary cap space doesn’t mean they will splurge in free agency, but they have the opportunity to outbid any other team, and the draft selections give Ballard another chance to add to positions of need.
Andrew Luck returned to the elite status
There were some concerns about his ability to bounce back quickly but following the first month of the regular season, Luck played arguably the best football of his career. He certainly played the most efficient football of his career to date.
In Reich’s quick passing offense and behind a stout offensive line, Luck was able to move the ball with ease regardless of how strong the opposing defense was lined across from him. His pre and post-snap abilities showed true, and the 29-year-old was able to make all of the throws in the book by season’s end.
Luck will finally have a normal offseason for the first time in what seems like forever, which will give him the opportunity to improve on his elite status as one of the best signal callers in the game.
Colts should continue to dominate the trenches
A surprising aspect of their success in 2018 was the Colts’ ability to dominate both sides of the trenches, sometimes at the same time. A suddenly stout offensive line and penetrating front seven allowed the Colts to match and even win over their opponent’s physicality.
The offensive line proved to be legit as the season progressed allowing the fewest sacks in the NFL while paving the way to a solid run-blocking unit. Some depth should be added to the group, but the starting five will return in 2019 making them already one of the best in league.
The defensive line was strong against the run in 2018 and while the pass rush was suspect, the Colts did see an uptick in sack production in the attacking scheme. The defensive line must be a priority this offseason, but there is plenty of encouragement with the development of this group.
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