Colts have had contract extension talks about Ryan Kelly

The Indianapolis Colts exercised the fifth-year option for center Ryan Kelly, locking him under contract for the 2020 season. But the team has talked with Kelly’s agents about a potential extension.

General manager Chris Ballard hasn’t been afraid to reward those he feels have earned it. If the Colts can look past the injuries of 2017 and 2018, Kelly certainly deserves an extension for what he brings to the field and the locker room.

Kelly told reporters in a conference call Thursday that the two sides have had some talks about an extension.

Colts center Ryan Kelly, who's entering Year 5 with the team, says his agent has had some talks with Colts GM about a possible extension.

Says Kelly: "I want to spend my entire career in Indianapolis."

— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) May 20, 2020

Kelly is one of the top centers in the NFL and has shown he is capable of anchoring the middle of one of the top offensive lines in the game. He’s always been productive when he’s on the field but that two-year stretch of missing 14 games would likely be the reason it hasn’t happened yet.

But Kelly had a full season in 2019 and a good one at that. He’s a very strong pass protector and equally stout in the run game. Keeping that continuity on the offensive line would be another bonus for locking down Kelly.

It would be wise for the Colts to get a deal done for Kelly, especially since centers of his caliber aren’t all that easy to find.