Current roster and future needs

[ukcolt]

The current roster with guys who I think are likely to make training camp and be serious contention for roster spots, either full or practice squad.

QB (4) Jones, Richardson, Leonard, Henigan - This is likely to be three players

RB (3+2) Taylor, Giddens, Bentley IV - there are also Abdullah and Goodson, who could yet be resigned.

TE (4+1) Warren, Ogletree, Mallory, McKeon - Alie-Cox possibly resigning.

WR (6+1) Pierce, Downs, Dulin, Gould, Treadwell, Owen - DJ Montgomery could also come back.

T (5+1) Raimann, Travis, Freeland, Wilson, Matos - Luke Tenuta is a possibility to come back.

G (4) Goncalves, Nelson, Sills, Tucker

C (1+1) Bortolini - Pinter is someone who might well resign

DE (5) Latu, Arden, Tuimoloau, Clemens, Nchami

DT (3) Buckner, Adebawore, Wooden

NT (3+1) Stewart, Nnadi, Smith - Eric Johnson could be resigned, but i am not really that bothered one way or the other with him.

LB (3+2) Carlies, Ajiake, Veresuk - Both Pratt and Olugi could be back on the roster.

CB (7+2) Gardner, Ward, Moore, Blackmon, Walley, Edwards, Jones - I don't really expect Jones to remain on the roster for too much longer, but we also have Chris Lammons and Corey Mitchell are fairly good for training camp at least.

S (6) Wohler, Bynum, Owens, Thomas, Scott, Lowery

That's 54 players on the roster, with a further 11 guys from last year, who could potentially be brought back.

I am expecting Richardson and Jaylon Jones, to be traded or released. The major weaknesses that still need to be addressed in order of importance are:

LB, other than the possibility of resigning Pratt, all of the remaining guys have not proven to be of starting ability, so we have a bunch of backups, and sorely need a huge upgrade here. Thankfully this draft seems to be a deep draft for linebackers.

DE, we have bodies, i like the replacements for Ebukam, Lewis and Paye, but we need a genuine starter, Arden Key is a 3rd guy, which is probably also what Tuimoloau currently is as well. Relying on Latu, and Key to be your top guys is a huge risk. We thought we had no pass rush last year, if something were to happen to Latu this year, we will be MUCH MUCH worse this year with our current roster.

T, the starters look like they should be ok, but after that we have Freeland, who is coming off of a gruesome injury and wasn't exactly playing great in preseason, or in 2024. Luke Tenuta did ok in his spot duty, but would i feel comfortable with him starting games, absolutely not.

Interior offensive line, with Pinter not currently signed the only backups are Tucker and Sills.

RB, Giddens did next to nothing last year, Bentley IV is currently on the roster, but is at best a bottom of the roster guy. We could bring back Goodson, or Abdullah, but new blood to spell Taylor is something we could sorely do with.

WR, personally i am fairly comfortable with Pierce, Downs, Dulin, and Gould getting increased playing time. I also liked what i saw in preseason from Coleman Owen, and Treadwell as the 6th guy is perfectly fine. But i am ok with brining in a mid to late round guy to compete with the bottom few guys.

S, a 3rd round safety could well come in to compete with Wohler, Owens, Thomas and Scott to play alongside Bynum. I do like that we have brought in two new guys. We are no longer devoid of starting experience.

[Racehorse]

We have $54M in cap. Who would you target?

[ukcolt]

In free agency, there isn't that much left that would make a huge difference. But I wouldn't mind bringing in Wyatt Teller, the guard from the Browns, then we can have Goncalves and Travis battling it out for the tackle spot, rather than just ceding it to Travis.

Maybe Deebo Samuel might still give good bang for the buck, but that would be a luxury, that I am not sure is where the Colts are heading. It might hinder the development of Pierce, Downs etc. Unless we use him more as a 3rd down threat out of the backfield.

Hassan Reddick could help out at DE, so could Joey Bosa, but neither of those guys are long term answers.

Most of the major upgrades now are going to have to come through the draft. There are no LB's that interest me in free agency other than maybe Pratt.

If we are concerned about the health of Daniel Jones, maybe we bring in Jimmy G or Kirk Cousins as guys who could potentially start the beginning of the season and provide a solid backup option. Although i am also looking forward to seeing how much Riley Leonard might develop getting a lot of first team reps in training camp and the preseason. It could be highly interesting if he lights things up how that could be a pleasant surprise, but i am not expecting that to be the case.

[YDFL Commish]

Originally Posted by Racehorse

We have $54M in cap. Who would you target?

LB- Okereke, if we can get a reasonable contract. I'm also intrigued by Chazz Surratt. There several guys that I like in the draft, but we need at least one veteran to lead the group.

Edge- There is onl on FA I would take a flyer on, and that's AJ Epenesa. I like Epenasa's versatilty, and the way that he could fit into an Anarumo defense. After that my main focus is again on the draft.

TE- I wouldn't mind kicking the tires on Njoku.

After that. the rest of the roster will come from players released after the draft and camp cuts.