2026 Off-Season Thread

[Oldcolt]

It is being reported (by Tony Pauline) that the Colts may have to use to franchise tag on Danie Jones as he apparently wants more money than the Colts thought he would. Means they won't have it for Pierce if true. Franchise tag for QBs will be from 44 to 47 million. All of it is guaranteed.

[YDFL Commish]

Originally Posted by albany ed

The base salary is 22,000,000 and the rest is bonus. I'm not an expert, but if you make the 22,000,000 a bonus and extend him for 3 more years beyond 2026, you can divide the entire 29,000,000 by 4. Add to that, a salary that's back loaded and you might get it down to a cap hit of 12 to 15 million. At least I think you could do something like that.

If that is the case, I would have no issues with keeping Pittman.

[AlwaysSunnyinIndy]

Originally Posted by Oldcolt

Franchise tag for QBs will be from 44 to 47 million. All of it is guaranteed.

Franchise tag for QBs will be 43.9 million.

Once the cap is set in stone, the franchise and transition tag values can be calculated.

[AlwaysSunnyinIndy]

Originally Posted by Puck

https://x.com/SharpFootball/status/2...899786862?s=20

Warren Sharp
@SharpFootball
·
5h
NFL players ranking their own stadium field:

Baltimore Ravens: A
Denver Broncos: A
Philadelphia Eagles: A
Kansas City Chiefs: A-
Las Vegas Raiders: A-
Miami Dolphins: A-
San Francisco 49ers: A-
Jacksonville Jaguars: B+
Washington Commanders: B+
Arizona Cardinals: B
Minnesota Vikings: B
Cleveland Browns: B-
Detroit Lions: B-
Chicago Bears: C
Dallas Cowboys: C
Los Angeles Chargers: C
Los Angeles Rams: C
New Orleans Saints: C
Green Bay Packers: C+
Houston Texans: C+
Indianapolis Colts: D
New England Patriots: D
Cincinnati Bengals: D-
Buffalo Bills: F
Carolina Panthers: F
Seattle Seahawks: F
New York Giants: F-
New York Jets: F-
Pittsburgh Steelers: F-
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: F-
Tennessee Titans: F-

Below are the other stadiums with the same turf used at LOS - 3 of the 4 AFC South teams have it.

I wonder if Tennessee's poor grade was because they switched from grass to this turf a few years ago.

Houston Texans: C+
Dallas Cowboys: C
Los Angeles Chargers: C
Los Angeles Rams: C
Tennessee Titans: F-

[albany ed]

Originally Posted by Oldcolt

It is being reported (by Tony Pauline) that the Colts may have to use to franchise tag on Danie Jones as he apparently wants more money than the Colts thought he would. Means they won't have it for Pierce if true. Franchise tag for QBs will be from 44 to 47 million. All of it is guaranteed.

That was purely speculation. It's being said that prior to his injury, Ballard was planning to use the tag on Jones. I applaud that strategy. Now, I would think a lower contract that is full of incentives should be what is fair to both sides. If Jones plays and is kick ass good, he gets a boat load. If he shits the bed, he does not.

[ChaosTheory]

Originally Posted by IndyNorm

So you think handing him the starting job from the get go and bringing in a veteran QB in year 2 who had no intention whatsoever in helping AR out were the right moves?

Hindsight's 20/20, but IMO it's pretty obvious AR should have sat either a good portion of if not all of his rookie year, and keeping Matt Ryan around to try to ingrain what it takes work ethic wise to be a successful NFL QB into AR would have been worth its weight in gold.

Maybe, but you're right, it's hindsight. Basically any hypothetical you throw out will look better and we don't have the luxury of seeing the outcome. Some people think Aaron Rodgers or Patrick Mahomes wouldn't be what they are if they didn't sit. I don't particularly agree, but that's also a separate topic.

Steichen’s track record with QBs belies the claim that AR failed due to a lack of mentorship. Between Herbert, Hurts, Minshew, Jones... Seems AR is the outlier, not Steichen's mentorship.

I think there's a huge tendency for people to act like these players are simply chess pieces controlled by their masters. Jalen Hurts had plenty of issues and concerns, but he was also showing up to the building for 12-15 hour days.

All that said, I don't hate on AR like it may sound. I think the injuries definitely derailed progress and he has worked to fix things. But damage was already done and I don't begrudge them if they try to salvage something in a trade.

[albany ed]

I'm amused by the debate on AR. If you were building the ideal QB, you'd probably say: tall, strong, fast and an arm like a cannon. These all fit AR. When you describe what you want between the ears, you would probably want him to be decisive, quick learner, confident, able to read defensive set ups and able to improvise. Anther important intangible is passing accuracy. These are not qualities associated with AR.

You can say Tom Brady, Aaron Rogers and Patrick Mahomes are examples of why you should not start your QB right away, but let him learn.

Or, you can cite Peyton Manning, Andrew Luck or Matthew Stafford and say QBs need to be thrown into the fire, that's the best way to learn.

I say there is no 1 formula for how a QB should be handled. AR has all the physical tools you would want in your QB, but lacks the between the ears skills. Can these skills be developed? I don't have any idea, but I do know that he has to work his ass off if they can. I'm not sure he will ever do that.

[Oldcolt]

Can anyone give me a link from a reputable (or not) reporter that talks about AR having a poor work ethic? Brett Kollman among others raved about how hard of a worker AR was. Not only is it to early to give up on someone this talented that you have so much invested in I have zero faith in the evaluators on this team when it comes to QBs.

[sherck]

I just want to go on record here to say that whatever team ends up paying Daniel Jones what he and the rest of the league appears to believe is his fair wage which is at least $35m+ per season....

....that they will be disappointed.

I may be wrong in this statement but I don't believe I will be.

DJ may end up becoming a franchise QB who can lead his team to the promised land...but no one can say for sure at this point and I believe paying that much for his potential to do so is a HUGE risk that will not pan out for the team paying him.

I hope that I am wrong and that this post can be thrown back into my face if the Colts pay him this contract....but I don't think I will be.

Just too much money tied up into too high of a risk.

[AlwaysSunnyinIndy]

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...ades-offseason

How will the Colts navigate QB Jones and WR Pierce?

Jeremy Fowler: Whether Indianapolis uses the franchise or transition tag on quarterback Daniel Jones or wide receiver Alec Pierce was a front-of-mind topic at the combine. The team has made it clear to Pierce that he will be a Colt, either through a tag or a long-term deal, before the new league year. The Colts have work to do to make that happen, but that is the plan. But while Pierce seems like a logical tag candidate, multiple people connected to the situation believe Jones is a prime candidate for it.

Pierce has a good relationship with Jones. If the team tags Pierce but doesn't reach a deal with Jones, for example, that could be an issue for Pierce. Conversely, tagging Jones ensures he will be there in 2026, a move that would appeal to Pierce.

A franchise tag for Pierce would come in around $27 million, while Jones would get $43.9 million on the franchise tag and $37.8 million on the transition. Those numbers are steep but reasonable. The Colts haven't tipped their hand in a possible direction. Pierce would command a massive contract if he hit free agency. In November, we reported his market could hit $20 million. Think higher now.

Dan Graziano: If the Colts can't get a deal done with Jones by Tuesday's tag deadline, it sounds like they'll put the transition tag on him. That means Pierce could hit free agency and another team could sign Jones to an offer sheet (and the Colts wouldn't get draft pick compensation if he were to sign elsewhere). I think the Colts push to get a long-term deal done with Jones to avoid those possibilities, but as of Saturday morning, it doesn't sound close.