What on earth were the Colts doing? They traded only a few players, but despite the obvious tear down situation, hey held on to Jonathan Taylor, perhaps their most valuable player?1 And they had some interest in Daniel Jones, but weren't willing to trade him, either. Grover Stewart didn't go anywhere. This was supposed to be a tear down, why wasn't everything torn down?
As bad as things look in Indianapolis, I think it is not as far a leap to suggest that they might bounce back next year. More tenuously, even if they had sold off every component, their renaissance would not have begun next year, either. Despite the assets, they weren't getting another first round pick.
The Colts traded away their first round pick in this year's draft for Sauce Gardner, one of the top corner backs in the league. With an efficient offense last year and a wobbly defense, it was a defensible trade. Injuries have ravage the team since then, including quarterback Daniel Jones, still coming back from an Achilles injury.
But next year, Jones will be two years removed from his Achilles injury, which traditionally has been when recovery is complete. Alec Pierce, the wide receiver the Colts extended this season will be healthy, and Taylor and Gardner are still under contract. Their last first round picks, Laiatu Latu and Tyler Warren are on the roster. With health, it's not crazy to think this might be a decent team.
Perhaps the real situation is tied to how much of a challenge kicking this restart off would be. This day in age, teams are built through their quarterback, and the best quarterbacks are often drafted in the first round. As noted earlier, the Colts don't have a first round pick, and they only have one second rounder.
Just as importantly, Taylor, nor Jones were going to bring back a first round pick. The only legitimate path to a first rounder is the passage of time. They will finally get one back in 2028, so until then, they wait. The turnaround simply can't start next season. Going for it might be the most logical course of action.
There is a backdoor route to developing a team that hasn't been done as frequently in recent years. When done successfully, though, it can be pulled off with flying colors. Build a decent team, with a strong offense line, protection up front and incubate a later round quarterback. Let Kurt Warner, Tom Brady or Brock Purdy have a more manageable route to success. Get someone in the middle rounds this year and reload instead of rebuilding.
Or at least, be ready for this group to turn it around immediately. The scheme may not work, but frankly, the rebuild wasn't really going to start next year, so why ensure that it has to be terrible too?
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